only to ask a very important question:
"How do I keep from being disenfranchised?"
Today I received two letters in my e-mail box from the Obama campaign.
The first letter reminded me that as a Democrat Abroad, I should immediately fill out paperwork for my state to ensure that I was registered for November.
First, I don't know if I need to register again, or not, because I filled out a registration for the primary. Does anyone know the answer to this question?
Depending on the answer to that question, the second e-mail may or may not be important. It read as follows:
Dear Ohio Voter,
Ken Blackwell might be gone from office, but Republican leaders haven't given up his old, cynical political tactics.
You may have heard that last Friday, the Ohio Republican Party filed a lawsuit to block Buckeyes from casting absentee ballots if they register between September 30th and October 6th -- the exact period of overlap when voter registration ends and absentee voting begins.
Once again, Republican political operatives are attempting to disenfranchise Ohio voters.
Several weeks ago, Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner and Attorney General Nancy Rogers brought together election attorneys from both political parties to reach an agreement to avoid costly, confusing litigation. I was in this meeting.
The Ohio Republican Party sent their attorney, Kari B. Hertel, who is responsible for handling Election Day operations, and the McCain campaign sent their chief counsel, Todd Steggerda. When given the chance to speak up about any issues that Republicans or McCain had, they did not raise any concerns.
But late Friday afternoon, Republican operatives filed a last minute lawsuit to suspend early voting -- a blatant attempt to cut Buckeye voters out of the political process.
Jeremy
Jeremy Bird
General Election Director
Ohio Campaign for Change
This is very serious stuff, and obviously I can't walk down to Board of Elections and find out the answer. I tried to call the county where I vote today and the people there "supposedly" knew nothing about this and told me to send my paperwork by fax.
I don't trust them.
What do I do to make sure my vote counts?
I thank you for your assistance in advance.
Thanks everyone...back to the ether!