After listening to Amy Goodman's show last week airing Greg Palast's investigative report on voter suppression I began to wonder if it would actually be possible for one's vote to survive the polls and be counted, and in the same way in which it was cast. I was especially horrified to hear that mail-in ballots would have the most chance of being rejected if the voter didn't include a copy of their identification with the ballot. This just gave me a headache big enough for a hatbox.
So I set about looking into ways each person could make sure they were fulfilling the various requirements, especially with regard to identification. This site is fantastic and it would be great if every US citizen of voting age on a computer had http://www.866ourvote.org/ stapled to their forehead.
It not only has each state's requirements for ID, but where to vote, how to vote, who to contact with questions about the vote, etc. It also had a daily review of what snafus were caught around the country and what rulings are being overturned to help each voter vote and be heard. Here is a scary sampling from their "Newsroom" for 10/15/08:
OHIO SEESAW.
OHIO: In a reversal of a decision by three-members of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last week, the full court ruled 9-6 that Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner must provide access to a database of voters whose registration information does not match state records. In a victory for the Ohio GOP, Brunner has until Friday to make the list available, and she issued a statement urging election workers to make sure “voters not be disenfranchised because of federal government red tape…or glitches in databases.”
EARLY VOTING IN INDIANA (FINALLY).
INDIANA: Following a week of court battles, early voting is finally underway in Lake County. Tuesday’s Superior Court decision quelled Republican efforts to have early voting centers in the predominantly Democratic cities of Gary, Hammond and East Chicago declared illegal.
FLORIDA PREVIEW.
FLORIDA: Secretary of State Kurt Browning told Governor Charlie Christ and the Florida Cabinet that election officials are preparing for up to 85 percent voter turnout on November 4. In comparison, the 2004 general election drew out 74 percent of the electorate. If the turnout is as great as expected, it would be the highest since 1992.
GLITCH CAUGHT EARLY.
WEST VIRGINIA: Early voting begins today in West Virginia. Good thing it does, otherwise election officials in Kanawha county would not have found a programming glitch in its optical scanning machines. Eighteen other counties will now retest their machines as well.
As well, we found out in New Mexico that early tests last week showed when people opted for the shortcut to vote STRAIGHT PARTY and not by candidate the vote was tossed, especially if it was Democrat. Hello!!!
I have a website to support Barack Obama which came out of my seeing red several weeks ago regarding some of the choices being made, and, realizing this was counterproductive to him winning, decided to see blue instead. The Blue Point of View is the result, and it has photographs I made at the Espanola NM rally on 9.18.08, articles with regard to protecting the vote, some sound bytes and video, and other morsels as well. Please pass this on to anyone and everyone you feel could benefit from this site and maybe get, dare I say it, inspired by it.