Over 100,000 Have Complained About Voting Problems

UPDATED at 7:30 P.M. on November 3:

Today, Barbara Anwine of the Election Protection Coalition (1-866-OUR-VOTE), a nonpartisan group, told MSNBC about voter suppression tactics they have witnessed around the country.

The group says it has received over 100,000 voter calls at the Election Protection Command Center.

- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Callers have reported receiving robocalls telling them that Election Day is November 5th.

- Ohio: Voters have been falsely told that they can send in absentee ballots as late as November 14th.

- North Carolina: Fliers were left on cars at a shopping mall instructing Republicans to vote on Tuesday, Nov. 4th (actual Election Day) and Democrats to vote on Wednesday Nov. 5th.

- Louisiana: People who moved out of their damaged homes after Hurricane Katrina are reporting confusion about their registration status and voting precinct.

- New Jersey: The state registration database is operating too slowly to update with the names of recent registrants.

- Maryland and Virginia: Voters report receiving calls from the purportedly from the Obama campaign with inaccurate polling place location.

- Indiana: Early voting centers are closing at noon and many people left standing in line have been sent away without getting to vote. Election law is unclear about this situation.

- Michigan: Many registered voters' names are not appearing on the state web site that verifies registration status. This also means that people can't find their polling location on the site.

- Kansas City, Missouri: Reports are coming in from voters at a largely African American polling location, who are being warned of a 6-8 hour wait to vote (despite the line being short) and forced to put their names on a list while in line to vote.

Comments

[sylar]

You guys need to watch this, demand paper ballots next time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIDsiukzfIY&eurl=http://www.bradblog.com/?p=6600

[bethinNC]

My brother voted (early) in Guilford county, NC yesterday.

He said that everyone in line after a certain time was given a sticker of some type indicating they were in line by the time required. *However* , they ran out of stickers and those who didn't receive a sticker but *WERE* in line by the specified time were turned away, which violates NC law as far as I can tell.

My husband and I voted early so we can help keep an eye out at the polls and to volunteer to GOTV on election day for Obama. I'll have a videocamera, etc. ready in case of anything untoward occurring. I want it caught on tape.

[sylar]

They will try and steal it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lrFkRHrRDI

If they get away with it again, it's up to you to take your country back. People = power.

[TrooAmerican]

PROOF of Bush links to Voting machine process issues with security, and possible direct vote changing.

http://www.securitypronews.com/insiderreports/insider/spn-49-20080930SecurityExpertWarnsOfRiggedElection.html

[bngood40]

!URGENT!URGENT!We need election reform at a national level.The federal government must issue National Voting Cards which will look like a credit card and have an 18 digit number with Encrypted signature, fingerprints, personal data, photo, password,etc. This Card will prevent voters from being purged and will prevent voter intimidation .Committing voter fraud gets 20 years in prison if the conviction is upheld. No more lines waiting because booths will be available at shopping malls,etc and voting will start 30 days out. With a National voting card it's not necessary to vote in a specific precinct because the information will be in a National Database. Once a voter has been verified and goes into the voting booth the Card is inserted into the machine and then a password must be entered. Once he has voted the card and a receipt are ejected. Once the card is used it cannot be reused until it is reactivated from the Feds before the next election.A National Voters Card will be mandatory once you are of legal voting age.You do not have to vote but you do have to have a card. After voting you will be able to go to a government website, put in your card number and password and see how your vote was recorded and compare it to your receipt. Any government issued photo I.D. will be acceptable until everyone has a card.

[Arkangel3]

Any type of National Documentation (outside of Social Security Cards, which, unfortunately have been abused themselves) is tantamount to allowing the Federal Government to track you, your whereabouts, and who knows what else. This is the furthest thing from the intention of the Founding Fathers; do not compound one problem with a solution that may be worse than the problem it is meant to solve. ANY type of National ID requirement is opening the door to a Police State. I am as Liberal as the next fellow Liberal, but I also hold many Libertarian views, and this happens to be one of them.

Yes, there is improvement needed in the way people are registered to vote; no one should be intimidated from voting, nor should anyone be denied their vote. Let's just hope that massive fraud is not a part of the equation on Tuesday; I shudder to think of the consequences. Let's try and improve on things in time for the mid-term elections in two years. For good or bad, we have to live with things as they are now.

[citizentm]

Can't follow you there. All Western European democracies and Australia have a national id card, which also is needed for elections. None of these qualify as police state more than the US. Eavesdropping on private phone calls and e-mails did not happen there, but here. A police state comes into being when the people allow it to come into being (through fear etc).

[miamia]

Sorry, I don't trust it.

[LemonMeringue]

I don't want to see any kind of national card - not driver's license, not voter card, nothing.

We've lost enough privacy already.

[BroMan]

Why don't we have a national WAY to vote? Why do we have electronic in some places, then punch cards in other places.

Also, shouldn't voter intimidation be a federal offense. The right to vote is a fundamental right for our citizenry. People would stop intimidating if they were prosecuted for doing so. Hard time!!!

[sunnyokanagan]

Golly... maybe the US should just start a voting process of dipping a finger in purple ink!

[Harmony1812]

It works.

[violimo]

Why does voting in America seem like you are in Zimbabwe? Why wasn't everything fixed eight years ago.? Does the electoral office have some kind of bias? It took me about a minute to vote last time. Walked in, no lines, VOTED WITH PAPER, stuck it in the relevant ballot, then I was out of there. Of course this is in Australia. We NEVER have voting problems.

[rubberstamp]

8 years Republican WH + Congress thats why

[citizentm]

True, but also because the country has no national identification card. It's a much bigger problem than people believe. Countries like France, Germany, Britain, Australia all have it and have never problems with voting. You are registered to vote because you live in the country.

[gmlaster]

Well my Aussie friend, this Zimbabwe thing started in 2000 when Bush got away with stealing the White House. Remember, the voting disaster in Florida, where the governor just happened to be the future president's brother? Some weeks later, thousands of voters' ballots washed up on a beach in Florida. It also didn't hurt that the Supreme Court, which decided the election, was presided over by Chief Justice William Rhenquist, one of George Bush Sr.'s dearest lifelong friends.

Republicans have been in the White House, and both houses of Congress for six of the last eight years, preparing for this election by putting the fix in wherever they could while they had control of the legislature and the Dept. of Justice. That's why the process is more broken than ever.

However...­all their fixes rely on voter apathy. They can fix a few machines, lose a few ballots here, disenfranchise a few voters there, and who cares? Nobody's watching. But nobody planned on the Obama phenomenon. It's easy to steal an election that's really close. But how do you steal it when your opponent's loved by billions? If you want to win, you can't just cheat a little. You have to cheat really big. But if you cheat big now, the world will know you cheated.

After leaving us with two wars and $4 trillion in debt, expect heads to roll if they do.

[Harmony1812]

They want to be able to manipulate the results.

[kiwi1]

I tried to vote 5 times for Obama but they STOPED me after the 1st time. I wanted to vote on behalf of my cat and 3 buggies... I demand my RIGHTS...
Can we sue?

[whatsthatsound]

You're far less funny, and far more ignorant, than you imagine yourself to be. I DID chuckle, though.

[redorb]

It's spelled STOPPED

[athenalong]

BURN

[gmlaster]

Hey Kiwi, are you from New Zealand? Your English is a dead giveaway. Maybe that's why they "stoped" you from voting five times.

[kylie]

Maybe you need to see a doctor very soon.
How many personalities do you own?
Must be a Republican, cheating seems to go along with the Party affiliation.

[tploomis]

My daughter, who lives in Manhattan, recently registered to vote and just got notification that her registration was rejected (there are no legitimate reasons why she should not be able to vote in New York). The reason for the rejection was marked "other"--- no better explanation than this. Her rejection notification gives no address, phone number, or website to contact to appeal. So Obama will have one less vote in New York than he should. Actually, two less votes--- my daughter's boyfriend received confirmation that he is registered to vote, but they managed to misspell his first name. Presuming that he knows how to spell his own first name, the error is obviously somebody in the registration office being careless. Again, there is no recourse on the registration notification. Democracy in action!

[TR12]

How do you know that the letter of rejection is official?

[rubberstamp]

True that

[Hagar7]

Both of those situations sound highly sketch. They should contact the Board of Elections at 1-866-VOTE-NYC between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. tomorrow -- they run a live phone bank, so they won't be talking to a machine -- and tell them what's going on. They'll probably find out that both of them are registered to vote just fine, in which case they should inform the people what happened. Have them save those documents, and, if they haven't already thrown them out, the envelopes they came in; this is not a matter to be taken lightly. If they can't get through to the hotline, they should go to the polls on Tuesday anyway -- let the poll workers tell them that they are not registered, don't have them take the word of some random questionable letter.

[georgiaR]

I voted in California and did not have to show any ID. Oh yeah the dems think that is ok

[sandrarita]

In California, if you are pre-registered, your name is on the list at the polls which they check when you vote and if you bring in your voter information pamphlet with your name and address. I have never been asked for ID, but if you try to vote again under that name, it will not be accepted, and you may be charged with voter fraud. If you registered for absentee ballot mail-in, your name will not be on the list at the polls.

I would be more worried in the redneck states where neocon thugs have been known to intimidate voters - in that case I would report it and have their a--es hauled off to jail. Also in states known to have 'Repubican' voter suppression, people should check their ballot carefully if using electronic voting machines to ensure votes haven't been switched. I understand anyone can legally request a paper ballot.

NIce try neocon blowhole.

[kylie]

Try Georgia, North Carolina, West Virginia, Ohio, Missouri, Virginia--whoops, aren't those the states McCain is running well in? Who'd a thunk it?

[drg42]

I voted without having to show an ID from 1962 to 2004. Since then I have had to show an ID just because republicans want to make it difficult for minorities to vote. Every time I have to show the ID it reminds me to vote DEMOCRATIC!

[Hagar7]

Lodge a complaint with your local elections board if this is actually true and you're upset about it because you don't think you should have been able to vote.

[LemonMeringue]

I have never had to show my I.D. to vote in any state where I've lived.

They have your name and address on a computer printout, they find your name, you sign, that's it. I never heard of there being any kind of problem, anywhere.

That tells me there have been zero problems with people trying to vote more than once. Zero.

All the new GOP rules are just to make it possible for them to cheat.

[kylie]

I voted in California and voting requires a current address and your signature.­-- with your party preference.
Do you really need more?
How about your passport, college degree, church affiliation, the names of your family members and their birth dates, credit cards, shopping preferences? Enough.
Guess you Republicans just love long lines, especially when they tend to exist in Democratic districts and don't affect you. Enough.

[Harmony1812]

Even homeless people have the right to vote. The correct address should not be necessary. Just because someone is poor should not prohibit them voting. There must be a way. This sector of invisible people need representation more than anyone else.

[DrPneumann]

AH yes...

The great CARNY voting scam.

Can't win an election fairly so they have to pull the ol' ONE-TWO on their fellow countrymen.

How sad that something so petty and cheap still goes on in this country of ours.

The REAL problem is not only do our fellow citizens see these kinds of tactics being pulled on them but the rest of the world is watching as well.

Where has JUSTICE gone?

[TR12]

Country second
election first

[CrackerJacker]

I guess I'm one of the rest of the world that is watching. The McCain campaign has been a shameful shambles, and there seems to be an ever-narrowing tiny minority of people outside of America that would prefer potus McCain, just like the ever-narrowing minority of supporters the campaign has in the GOP. I watch CNN and FOX, aswell as UK channels like BBC News and More4 - I've seen some talking heads suggest that a spirited campaign is good for the country, because debate is important. This is no debate. This is a fight. It won't be to the death, because those involved will continue on after the campaign, and if you lose a fight, you wait for revenge.

The partisan politics that plague democratic nations like the U.S. and U.K. make me sick. Not because there is opposition, but because the opposition is never on the issues, and is almost always about making the other guy look stupid or scary.

[citizentm]

I remember when the US was sending election observers around the globe. Ha! Those would be laughed right out of these countries nowadays. Nobody but the US people (and only some) still trust the system here. What a joke - 8 years since the butterfly hanging chads and still a fiasco of the first order...

[sylar]

More on voter fraud:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LyByZx5GEaw&feature=related

People need to wake up to this and get on the street and demand paper ballots.

[rf-hawaii]

It's too late to demand paper ballots in many places. That's only good for the next election. If we lose this election the next one will be lost as well.

[mln7905]

I am volunteering in Charlotte, NC tomorrow and Tuesday. I voted early 2 weeks ago, and this weekend I saw a 5-hour line waiting to vote. It's awesome to see...but sad too. Sad that we are still ill-equipped to handle large numbers of voters. Inexcusable for a Democracy.

[CrackerJacker]

Agreed. Can anyone explain to me the potential legality or problems with the Federal government buying the voting machines for the U.S., instead of relying on individual counties? I guess if nothing else I'm shocked that there would be such a discrepancy, when surely a nationwide method of voting would help eliminate discrepancies, such as the chad that caused so many issues in 2000.

[shades3]

Two words, CrackerJacker --- PAPER BALLOTS.
What is this love affair that the United States has with electronic voting machines???

Convert all the voting machines to lovely planters at the entrance of every government office in the land.
They tell us NOTHING that a paper ballot can't tell us.
We want to elect a President, not keep voting machine manufacturers and distributers in business.
PAPER BALLOTS.

[LemonMeringue]

I think the relatively new, overly strict rules are changing the outcome of our elections much, much more than the few illegitimate votes that might sneak through if they had a more reasonable approach.

I don't see that many people breaking the law (risking prosecution) to cast one more vote. It's hard even to get them to come and cast their one legitimate vote, because they don't believe one vote makes a difference.

[Warrensburgian]

One problem with this report: how can there be Early Voting problems in Missouri, if Missouri has no Early Voting system?

[trying-to-be-objective]

Mail-in absentee ballots.

[MarkInEugene]

True and if you have a half dozen states experiencing voter fraud, there goes the election.

That's why we should have a national voting center allowing all Americans to vote in a standardized way through the mail in a secure fashion. It can be done.

[Nikola Tesla]

Its Unconstitutional, silly.

[smbs]

Dah, read it again, it says they are giving misinformation, etc about voting, not that they are voting now.