Urban, Diverse Areas Not Given Enough Voting Machines

TMZ, of all sites, has an interesting story up about a political saboteur telling Democrats in Deerfield Beach, Florida that they are supposed to vote at a different location.

Putting aside, for the moment the dirty tricks going on, there is another important nugget to glean from the story.

Nearly 400 people were firmly planted in line at 6:15 this morning, waiting for the polls to open at 7:00 AM. There is one voting machine to accommodate all of them.

This is a predominantly African-American community, with only one machine to punch in residents' votes.

Contrast that with an email we received from a voter near Columbus, Ohio, where, he says, historically very few people show up to vote. There were 14 voting machines on hand -- in this case, a needed amount for the influx of nearby college students showing up to the polls.

At 6:10 I was 31st in line. By the time the doors opened there were more than 100 in line. I am 57 years old and this is the first time there were more than 3 people present prior to the doors opening. Usually I am the first and only voter at opening. I finished voting by 7:00. The tech still had about 14 machines to start up and get running. About 60 people had voted and about 250 in line. The entire crowd was Students and people older than me. We're next door to [Ohio State University].

This problem is a constant gripe of Democrats: there is simply not a proper, proportional allocation of infrastructure to meet the needs of densely populated communities. Indeed, the Huffington Post has been getting tons emails from urban locales reporting a lack of machines, election workers and even ballots necessary to deal with the high turnout.

Comments

[Saganslegacy]

Looks like we need some independent UN election observers,

that's were we are.

Great.

[Happyexpat]

According to my Italian friends, there are international observers in all the swing states. True? False? Anybody know for sure?

[Saganslegacy]

I have no idea.

[unscum]

Best idea I've heard on Huffpo. It's time to put an international spotlight on corrupt US elections.

[JulieDole]

Yeah, where's Jimmy Carter? Is he watching any polling places today? I hope so!

[WolfI]

My condo building in Chicago is its own precinct. There was one electronic voting machine (it hasn't totally caught on here in Illinois) and about five or six stations for paper ballots.

I find it shameful that there is a single voting machine for all of those voters. Here, where there were probably a maximum of about 1000 eligible voters, they did much better than that. I hope that if Obama wins today (everybody cross your fingers) the first issue he will address will be inequality in voting. This is not what the Constitution promises.

[doctordoubt]

It only promised the 'pursuit' of happiness.

[assassinave]

Don't mean to be a bastard on this joyous day, but the Constitution says nothing of the pursuit of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That was the Declaration of Independence and it was part of a statement and is an ideal, not law.

[WolfI]

Who is talking about happiness? I am talking about a Constitutionally protected right to vote.

Amendment 15 - Race No Bar to Vote. Ratified 2/3/1870. History

1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

and
Amendment 19 - Women's Suffrage. Ratified 8/18/1920. History

The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.

Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

[TruthandReconciliation]

Remember, this was a post on TMZ.com. The precinct is not named nor is the source named. The comment "There is one voting machine to accommodate all of them," does not define this as an electronic voting machine or a scanner. This type of suppression is happening in poorer areas of Virginia. No need to exaggerate anything elsewhere.

If you are in any of these new battleground states where the voting infrastructure does not support the increase in voter turnout, PLEASE go to these long lines with umbrellas, food, warm clothes, water, folding chairs, and inspiration. Tell them not to leave their line even if some official tells them to. Tell them not to leave the line and support them in any way you can to stay put.

Any of you not in new battleground states? Please buy a plane ticket and go to these areas and buy a whole bunch of food, water, chairs, and garbage bags for raingear. Will you do something?

[standup2them]

Indiana voters I hope you send those jerks packing!! Text everybody you know and get out the vote!! Go as fast as you can and we together can change this country. We want our country back! Go vote and do it fast, don't let anybody get in your way, tell your friends and get out the vote!! Obama/Biden 08"

[JaneQCitizen]

When Obama wins and we have a majority on the Hill ... we need to pressure our reps to write a federal law concerning so many machines per capita per precinct.

We also need to pursue these issues after the election. File charges and/or class action lawsuits if necessary.

[assassinave]

I second that, but under a Obama presidency, it should be the duty of individuals to seek out and understand the neighborhoods they live in and be volunteering to work out the logistics and communicate that back to their county/city officials and reps.

The world starting tomorrow is one where giving back and working selflessly for your communities is not only needed, but vital.

[JackInChicago]

This is just WRONG and meant to surpress the vote. How sad we are still over Race in this Country. It's despicable!!

[lazercat2008]

By MOLLY PRIESMEYER 11/4/08 2:38 PM

Mahamoud Wardere talks to voter
Earlier today, three voters of Somali origin at the Brian Coyle Center in Minneapolis told me — and two told an election observer — that a translator working there was instructing people to vote for Sen. Norm Coleman.

In addition, the presence of a Coleman staffer who says he came to volunteer his services as a challenger or translator also stirred controversy between election judges and GOP challengers on the scene. -- more at mn independent

[sueinmn]

so how long was this person allowed to translate? this is so corrupt of coleman supporters!!

[jobecky20]

These poor people should get paper ballots and then the counting of these should be monitored. This is inexcusable.

[bluekatz]

This is inexcusable anywhere in this country.

[musicisourhigh]

What the heck?

Nearly 400 people were firmly planted in line at 6:15 this morning, waiting for the polls to open at 7:00 AM. There is one voting machine to accommodate all of them.

ARE YOU SERIOUS.

Here we are the USA and we can't get it together for an election that we knew was coming. This is beyond ridiculous. Okay I know these kind of things happen, my problem is why aren't we more prepared. Every 4 years it seems like there is little or no progress being made.

[sueinmn]

their is possible threat of a cyber attack on the electronic machines by the IT people who created these machines. also the FLIP machines, they have no idea how many votes were flipped over to gop votes!! its wrong!!! they may steal this election again and McCain made the comment a couple weeks ago about Guaranteeing his win.

[Bubbas]

What the F*.

I'm so p*ssed off at whoever is in charge of these polling booths in this district. It's criminal neglect and someone needs to pay the price no matter who gets into office.

[ArmyCentrist]

There should NOT be this many problems, and funny, we didn't have these issues prior to 2000...

[Waltb31]

Indiana votes being delayed because there are no Republicans to count votes. In this county, a Democrat and a Republican must be present.
http://videothevote.org/video/820/
Repugs are deliberately trying to sabotage the vote in Indiana!

[RepublicanJoe]

ooh... big whoop. My polling place in a suburb of Dallas, TX only had one voting machine. Should I complain because I'm a republican voter? I didn't. But when democrats complain, it gets a news story written about it. Care for some news with that bias?

[bac59447]

Given that you appear to be late to the party I'll share with you part of the defining philosophy that animates your party's thinking with regard to elections: "I don't want everybody to vote. Elections are not won by a majority of the people. They never have been from the beginning of our country and they are not now. As a matter of fact, our leverage in the elections quite candidly goes up as the voting populace goes down."

— Radical Right strategist Paul Weyrich, at a 1980 training session for 15,000 conservative preachers in Dallas.

If you had to wait hours because there were inadequate voting machines then you should complain. But please don't equate what sounds like a minor inconvenience on your part to decades of disenfranchisement of the poor and minorities. If someone had tried to trick you out of your last several votes ("your" voting day is actually tomorrow, "your" polling place is across town, "you" can't vote if you have a speeding ticket) I think you'd be singing a different tune.

[dbawden]

A reminder to RepubJoe,

Please remember the 2000 election was decided by 1 Supreme Court vote after which we all suffered through 8 years of incompetence in government. Those 8 years gave all Americans good reason to not trust our government implicitly. The republicans have created a climate of fear and suspicion. For some young and new voters, that's the only world they have known.

I'm glad you would wait patiently for six hours in a line and not complain when the machine broke down or in the end you were turned away when they shut off the lights in the building and went home. We will need more tolerant republican Joes like you in the future.

[TruthandReconciliation]

RepublicanJoe, How many voters were waiting in line in your pricinct? If is was less that one hundred, then all of those people would likely be able to vote. The problem is when there are more than one-hundred voters per voting machine. This is when votes are not counted. In this instance, those 400 voters waiting in line before 6am cannot possibly be able to vote as you would need multiple voting days to allow this many people to vote on one machine. Thant is the difference.

[cactusgal]

Joe the Dallas Republican has his own private voting machine...

Ah'll tell yoo whut--them Texas rethuglicans shure live high on the old hog!

[KareninSac]

WTF? Are we a Banana Republic???? Why don't we have adequate and working voting booths? This is just inexcusable.

[FilthyHarry]

This can no longer be categorized as a 'new problem'. This is the status-quo. It would be bigger news if the people of this community were served fairly by their local govt.