Virginia Voting: Broken Machines, No Paper Ballots

At the Math and Science Center in Richmond, Virginia, an early breakdown of electronic voting machines led to a three-and-a-half hour wait to vote on Tuesday morning, according to one poll watcher.

"Some people have been here since 6 a.m., and the first voters are just finishing now," said Judith Browne-Dianis, adding that the Richmond location she was watching did not even have backup paper ballots in case of machine malfunction.

"They didn't even have the paper ballots required by state law," she said. "That's not even something we were supposed to have to ask for. I went inside and asked the polling judge, and he said 'we don't have 'em. They [the Board of Elections] were supposed to give 'em to us, and they didn't.'"

Browne-Dianis is also a lawyer with the Advancement Project. That group, along with the NAACP, unsuccessfully brought legal action against Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine as part of an effort to expand polling place hours this evening.

The groups had also hoped to get Virginia to provide more paper ballots for voters in case late evening lines proved prohibitive -- a request that was also rejected by a judge on Monday.

On Tuesday morning, though, Browne-Dianis said her group had succeeded in getting Virginia to announce that curbside voting will be in effect tonight for elderly and disabled voters. She also underlined the fact that anyone who lines up by 7pm will be able to vote, no matter how long the line takes to process.

As for her group's thwarted legal challenge, Browne-Dianis said the judge was sympathetic to the case during Monday's hearing. "He himself described waiting two and half hours, at age 85, to vote absentee. ... He said we need to go to the state legislature and get early voting, and that there is no remedy for voters for this election. And so we are monitoring the polls."

Comments

[TrooAmerican]

again relying on the fact that poor people give up, poor people have few to represent them, and poor people have no power at all, and impeding people's ability to vote affects the poor far more than any other class of citizens.

We should just get a statewide and federal electronic database of citizens of the United states, which would allow law enforcement to more easily tackle illegal immigration, it would allow State secretarys to keep a statewide database comparable to a federal one to find people registered in two states due to moving or school or fraud. And it would allow you to easily vote anywhere in your state electronically with legitimate State owned, State Run machines that are hardwired only to State secured Servers, not these "Middlemen" private companies that are contracted to take in the votes and then manipulate them in favor of the GOp and THEN send them out to the government.

If we did that, we could finally vote online using our social security number and identification just like going online to get a drivers license or plate registration. Then i could log in from home at 7am, vote, logoff, and go to work, or just do it from work later.
:D

[santamonica39]

no online voting!!! It's prone to fraud and hackers. We need traceable paper ballots. Period! We never had long lines or any of these problems years ago before all these electronic voting machines that break down.

[mlrosato]

I teach college students from all over the US. One of my students has been trying for 6 weeks to get an absentee ballot from VA which still hadn't arrived as of yesterday, despite repeated calls. I got him to get in touch with the Obama campaign in Virginia. If you know of anyone else with a similar situation, point them toward Obama Campaign in VA. They will want to know about it. The contact numbers can be found on the net, or try local Obama Campaign offices wherever you are - a Field Director will know how to proceed.

[gintheb]

The Virginia chapter of the NAACP predicted this weeks ago, but nobody listens to the NAACP anymore. What would have been the problem with having papaer ballots as a backup?

[yoyobrit83]

They're supposed to have been delivered, but weren't.

[rkimball]

if this was a heavy republican voting district, they would had been delivered on time. you can count on that.

[rkimball]

no surprise here. this happens every elections. why is it always democratic precincts? could the republicans be behind this to discorage some voters?

[Aleka4]

I have really never seen anything as incompetent and easy to cheat on, than american Elections.

I mean, all the diebold crap and they still use them? Machine are always breaking down and misreading votes?

I hope the first thing obama does is overhaul the election system to be competent and rig-proof

[jobecky20]

After this election, all touch screen machines need to be discarded. This is ridiculous and I hope that there is a President Obama to overhaul the voting system because the only way McCain can win is BECAUSE of the current voting system. So he won't overhaul it.

[springsm]

He has so much fixin to do in this country that this should be assigned to Congress and Congress should have the mandate to do what is right...fix it.

[alyd69]

This falls right in Tim Kaine's lap. The NAACP and Doug Wilder kept telling Kaine of the anticipated problems, and begged for additional paper ballots. Kaine just kept replying that "he had it under control". Regardless of the outcome, Kaine has lost my vote when he's up for re-election. He either was not sufficiently in touch with what was going on, on the ground, or his ego got in the way. Whatever, he has lost this loyal Dems vote.

[SCVADem]

He won't be up for re-election. Virginia governors only serve ONE four-year term.

[CaptainVideo]

Fortunately Obama did not pick Kaine as his running mate. How did he ever make it to the final 3?

[macracan]

Don't be so intransigent. Would you rather vote a republican over Kaine? Think Gilmore... Kaine may not be perfect, but he _is_ a democrat, and under republicans we'd be much, much worse. Don't ever forget that! I got paper ballots today for crying out loud! In Fairfax county! This would have been unheard of, had we had a republican governor...
Cheers!

[Anthrofreak]

Looks like it's Virginia's turn to play Ohio and Florida.

[mizplacement]

I live in Hampton Roads, which is southeastern Virginia and includes Hampton and Virginia Beach. I waited for an hour and a half in the rain this morning, with my 15-year old son who was glad to wait with me. We had paper ballots (in Newport News) and once I got inside, everything went smoothly. I don't know why EVERYONE doesn't have paper ballots. Though it made me nervous putting mine into a Diebold machine.

I know Tim Kaine is a Democrat and was on the shortlist for Obama VP, but he should have done whatever he could with the state representations and whoever else to make sure they AT LEAST had paper ballots -- more than anyone would ever need -- in case of what has actually happened.

I just hope everyone else at the polls in Virginia has the fortitude I saw with the 500+ people I waited in the rain with this morning.

[Sundialsvc4]

"No paper ballots." Indeed.

Ballot-box stuffing across the country has never been easier. Does -nobody- out there think it just a little bit strange that laws would actually be passed that stipulate... "no paper?" Or that an election would proceed when the "required" paper is just, gosh, "not there?"

At the end of the day, millions of votes will have been cast and the results will (nevertheless) come out exactly as they have been pre-decided. Yes, indeed, it IS "a crime," but only one of many such ridiculous crimes.

"Ridiculous" because they are tolerated. "Ridiculous" because people in "power" can be so enamored of their "power" that they simply don't care about 300 million(!) other people. If someone robs your house once, you're a victim. But if you pass a law that says that locks are prohibited on all doors and windows, you're both a fool ... and victimizing an entire town.

[holltech1]

I voted in VA @ 8AM and the scanning machine (yes, a single machine at a location in one of the 5 fastest growing counties in all of Northern VA...Stafford) was already broken. The officials didnt tell people that it was broken until they filled out their paper ballots. I think many would have voted electronically if they knew the machine was broken. We just slid the ballots through a slot on the machine until the repairman fixed it at which time they'd scan all the ballots one at a time. Scary!

[fiorastar]

I hope you will report this to the Obama campaign. This is the kind of thing that may seem "small" but can have a huge impact if those ballots "mysteriously" don't get counted. Obama has an army of election law attorneys ready to fight for this one.

Don't let it be stolen this time, Americans!

[machyer]

In Madison County Virginia, a strong Republican area, we always have a supply of official (embossed) paper ballots (at least 200 with more available as needed.). As the poll chief at one of the precincts I had occasion during the general election of 2006 to put the paper ballots into use. I personally had made an error that caused all the machines to go offline. We got back up in 25 minutes and so did not run out of paper ballots. The supply of paper ballots was always given to us, presumably by state law.

[tea in the harbor]

Maybe you should consider learning what the hell you're doing before you accept a position such as this.

"Presaumably by state law?" You are a poll chief and you don't know the law you are administering? How could you possibly get something right when you don't know what "right" is?

[fiorastar]

Yes. In a "strong Republican area" there is always ample ability to vote quickly. Not so in heavily black Richmond, though, right?

[mrich2500]

At 6:45 this morning - news from Ch. 3 in Norfolk, VA.

Chesapeake, VA. - voting machines without electrical cords {WHAT?}
Virginia Beach, Va. - 1 voting machine for 750 voters

many other problems - this is what I heard as I was heading out to work.

I live in NC, 30 min. from Va. border - early voted!!!!!!!!!!!

Very discouraging...OBAMA?BIDEN 08

[mshazen]

Arizona is a pretty easy voting friendly state. We have early vote, no excuse mail in, and paper voting no computer, I am not a fan of the no paper trail I just am not. There are always plenty of spaces and even today when the turn out was heavy it took only about five minutes. I find it appalling that these things go on in other parts of the country. People need to ban together and demand that something be done by the officials in your states.

Bless all of you who have to wait it out. I thank you and commend you for your effort.

[frantaylor]

Here in New Hampshire we have an actual functioning democracy. No lines to vote. 5 minutes in and out. Paper ballots. Unregistered people can register and vote on the spot. We call it "civilization".

[bola47]

that's why your motto is live free or die. gotta love new hampshire.

[Gericault]

Same here in California................except it's warm.

[bridge to somewhere]

I'm still waiting for the rest of the country to adopt the Oregon method...every voter gets a ballot in the mail...drop it off just about anywhere and anytime before 8PM on election day...grocery store...library...even drive-thru drop-off points are set up all over town. No wait...no touch-screen nonsense!

[fiorastar]

I just got back from some "drive time" sign waving. After I warm up, I'm going out to drive around and pick up ballots for those who are having trouble with transportation. If you live in Oregon, it is too late to mail your ballot! Postmark date does not count! You have until 8pm to turn in your ballot at one of the many drop boxes or your election office.

IF YOU NEED HELP, PLEASE CALL YOUR ELECTIONS OFFICE OR THE OBAMA CAMPAIGN OFFICE! Someone can drive to you and pick up your sealed/signed ballot for you.

[Oregon Ivy]

Virginia officials caught the criminal who passed out "vote on the 5th" notices to Democrats, completed with forged state seal and board of elections info and are calling it a "prank."

That's right. No arrest, no charges, no nothing for tampering with an election.

Virginians, you need to get working in your state to clean things up!

The story has its own thread somewhere on HP with the named, address and phone/email of your election officials. If you've already voted, perhaps you could fill your time sending them a message.

[frappe]

There should be severe criminal penalties enacted for "ANY" kind of tampering with our elections. That would quickly put a stop to it.

[bola47]

not to mention forgery.

[gbkc]

this polling station is in democratic area.... watch out