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Departments Election Issues Franklin County, Ohio Election Procedures – April and May 2005 by Paddy Shaffer May 6, 2005 It was the last week in April 2005 and I received a call from the Franklin County Board of Elections wanting to know if I would want to help out as an Election Official for the May 3, 2005 Election. After a few moments of thought on the matter, and revisiting my memories of the traumatic and fraudulent November Presidential Election, the memories of months of work I put into assisting the many heroic citizens from Ohio and across the nation that tried to figure out how big, and how far reaching the apparent theft of the Ohio Election was, I thought I should continue my education on elections. I called and got it set up, that I would be trained in the art of working the polls, and that I would become a Judge, for the May 3 primary election. It seems kind of humorous that Kim Spangler, the Deputy Director of the Delaware County Board of Elections (BOE) is who recommended me to the Franklin County BOE. I had brought some protestors to the Delaware Courthouse and Ohio Wesleyan University in the fall regarding Delaware legally blocking the recount of the presidential election. I was also the Delaware County Coordinator for the Green Party and was there for the recount. It seems like maybe Kim wanted me busy elsewhere, anywhere but Delaware. That’s OK, I still think of her, like now. I was excited about the opportunity to learn firsthand about this election, and a little sick to my stomach that I was to work for J. Kenneth Blackwell. The last time I saw him was at the Statehouse on March 21st and he was upset that he finally had to answer questions to Bob Ney’s little Congressional Committee. This had him yelling at Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones and Representative Jaunita Millinder-McDonald regarding the November election. He was so rude, and seemed to be having a mental meltdown. I was told to report on April 29th to the Park of Roses Recreation Center at 10:00. I did. The classes were instead at the Park of Roses Shelter House. So I went there. Our trainer’s name was Beverly. We each received a manual and a sample page of the Precinct Register of Voter book. We were told that the manuals are revised from last November. A woman in the class brought up the story of a poll worker last November, that she was working with that slept, “sprawled out” for much of the day, even with them being very busy. She said they called the BOE and asked for assistance with him, and that this disgusted the other workers, and the people coming in to vote. They received no help, they were very frustrated, and the woman asked Beverly what else could be done? The answer…. Call the BOE, it is up to them. The woman said she had done that and received no help. The issue of putting up flags and signs that denotes the point at which people can pass out literature was explained to us. It is to be 100 feet from the door. The flags and signs are to be pushed into the ground, and we will have a roll of string that is 100 feet long to measure with. These items must be 100 feet from the door of the polling place. If you do not have dirt to push them into, they can be tied to other things like lampposts, polls, some clever woman had bought pumpkins once for them, or even tied to a car antenna. This would likely put them more than 100 feet from the building. I put up my hand and questioned why if they use the same locations, and know there is no ground to push the signs into (because of pavement), why doesn’t the BOE provide a cone, or a can with gravel or some way to put the sign at 100 feet as it is supposed to be. I was told that they don’t do that. Should the 100 feet requirement, be kept to 100 feet I wondered? We were told that there would be neither Witnesses, nor Challengers for this election. Beverly asked the group if anyone had problems in November with them. No one there did. They agreed that those people had been very helpful with the lines. Beverly was pleased with how it had turned out, and stated that she had been apprehensive prior to Election Day in November. Beverly said to watch for voters in distress, and if they are not physically able to stay in line, to move them up by asking the other voters if we can process them first. If we have a disgruntle person that says no, let them vote first. Then have the person in distress vote. We were told about how to use the voter location guide, a book with all the addresses in Franklin County. It gives the polling place for each address, and the location of the polling place. The woman in front of me asked if they had revised the book. The trainer said no and asked why? The woman said that the book was “Bad” in the past for errors. She was concerned with having the wrong information again. She again asked if the book had been revised. We then went on to the next subject, and didn’t deal with the book problems… I learned that 17 year olds that will turn 18 before the general election can vote for candidates, but only in the primary. They cannot vote for issues. They would vote a provisional ballot, which would receive a pink sticker denoting it as a 17 year olds ballot. This was the first time I had heard this, I thought it was strictly that you had to be 18. I’m learning! The Precinct Register of Voters has a status for each voter. It says either Status A or Status I. So I asked what this means. Beverly said not to worry about it, that it is for Official Purposes only. I told her that if it is part of our records, I would like to know what it means. She said she was not able to tell me. We were instructed that at the close of the election, the Presiding Judge would deliver the election materials to the designated location. I asked if both a Democrat and a Republican should deliver the materials riding together? I was told that just one person delivers them, and that is determined by which party received the most votes in the gubernatorial race. So each precinct will have a Presiding Judge that will do the delivery. This is a four year term, and is determined anew each gubernatorial race. I brought up that the issue of this would seem fairer, and safer, if we had a person of each party to travel with the votes. We were split into groups and went to the machines to learn to run them from Bonnie. To start and finish the running of the touch screen voting machines the tapes that record the votes need to be signed by all the poll workers. We were told that if someone was late in showing up to work the election, we could just have him or her sign the tapes at the end of the day. I asked if we should list it on our problems sheet, a place where we are to record any problems that occur during the election. I was told “No”. It seems wrong to me to start the machines and not have the correct number of Democrats and Republicans to oversee the process. The day of the election was May 3, 2005 and I reported for duty at 5:45 a.m. with the first light of the day starting to push across the sky. I had a good and helpful group of people to work with at the Grace Brethren Worship Center in Westerville, Ohio. I took my job seriously, asked lots of questions, learned a great deal, and enjoyed the variety of people working the two precincts voting there. The voter location guide, the book with all the addresses and precincts had a printing date of 4/11/05 on it. I asked Barb, our presiding judge if it had been fixed since the last election, and told her about the woman with the information that the book had “Bad” errors. She didn’t know anything about it, having any problems, or being fixed. The BOE had provided a questionnaire for everyone that worked the November 2004 election. It asked lots of questions about the November election, and how to resolve problems from then. There was information on the ADA guidelines for handicap accessibility issues. They wanted us to look at the building for these issues. They wanted to know how many parking places were there. I was very pleased they were asking these questions, looking into what had happened and how to resolve the problems of the past presidential election. I hope they use the information. As for the ADA issues, it would seem that the BOE would want to have a staff person, rather than a poll worker look at these issues and be familiar with the buildings that house the election. At least they are starting to look. I hope for improvements so everyone can have access and utilize their right to vote. The turn out at the polls for this May primary was small, as I was told to expect. I wish everyone took the time to study the issues and candidates, and went out to vote. Our very survival may depend on it. One of the things that would help with free and fair elections would be to get those that are concerned and able… to work the polls, to be on the front line. Help out, and be a first hand witness to our election process. The pay is $15 for the class, and $95 for Election Day. You get one hour off for lunch. You work from 6:00 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. or until the voter’s finish and the election area is packed up. They had questions on the questionnaire about wanting idea’s to get more election workers. I understand the incredible importance of having the election workers to show up on time, but the small print on the Assignment and Commitment Card page could make some nervous. It says: Note: Failure to appear at the designated hour or to perform any duty imposed by law under this appointment can result in you being guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree. Notify Board of Elections immediately of any disability preventing your prompt attendance and service. (O.R.C. Section 3599.17 and 3501.31) It will take a lot to bring back a feeling of trust to our election system. This is just one more item we can help with. Email this article to a friend |
Don't forget to check out articles from 2008 and 2009
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November 5, 2005
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"Clarification of NEDA's withdrawal of Ohio exit poll paper"
November 5, 2005
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"Clarification of NEDA's withdrawal of Ohio exit poll paper"
November 3, 2005
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"Watergate-style money laundering indictments stoke Ohio's stolen election fires"
October 28, 2005
Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
"Powerful Government Accountability Office report confirms key 2004 stolen election findings"
October 26, 2005
Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
"Did you erase your own vote?"
October 25, 2005
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"Why can't the left face the Stolen Elections of 2004 & 2008?"
October 18, 2005
Bob Fitrakis and Harvey Wasserman
"Carter/Baker Report can't face how the GOP stole America's 2004 election & is rigging 2008"
September 20, 2005
Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
"Two Steps Forward, One Step Back"
September 20, 2005
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"FEMA Chief Brown Paid Millions in False Claims to Help Bush Win Fla. Votes"
September 19, 2005
Jason Leopold
"Ohio recount lawsuit set for trial; election workers indicted"
September 4, 2005
Blair Bobier
"Ohio Governor's ethics violations expose money trail to stolen 2004 election"
August 30, 2005
Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
"Diebold's failure in California"
August 7, 2005
John Gideon, Information Manager, www.VotersUnite.Org and www.VoteTrustUSA.Org
"Did the GOP steal another Ohio Election?"
August 5, 2005
Bob Fitrakis and Harvey Wasserman
"Conyers-Kaptur seek special counsel for Noe probe"
August 4, 2005
John Conyers, Jr. and Marcy Kaptur
"Dramatic new charges deepen link between Ohio's "Coingate," Voinovich mob connections, and the theft of the 2004 election"
July 29, 2005
Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
"None dare call it stolen - Ohio, the election, and America's servile press"
July 24, 2005
Mark Crispin Miller, summarized by Mary Anne Saucier, Columbus, Ohio
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July 19, 2005
Terri Zins
"My report from Hocking County, July 5, 2005: An update on Sherole Eaton's unfolding Story"
July 7, 2005
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"Handbook for Ohio Voter Activists, Version 2.0"
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July 4, 2005
Richard Hayes Phillips, Ph.D.
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June 25, 2005
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June 16, 2005
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"Fear of riffraff"
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"Electoral Politics and the War: Lessons from 2004 and What the Anti-War Movement Should do in 2006"
June 8, 2005
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"Optical scan machines hacked in Florida"
June 2, 2005
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May 28, 2005
John Gideon
"Attack on election board whistleblower and leaked Blackwell threats re-fire Ohio's election theft scandal"
May 23, 2005
Bob Fitrakis and Harvey Wasserman
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"Carter Gets It – But Will His Electoral Commission?"
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Kevin Zeese and Linda Schade
"Voter Perceptions and Political Deceptions: Federal, Ohio and Knox"
April 24, 2005
Mike Swinford
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Ilene Proctor
"National Conference on Election Reform Opens with Civil Rights Panel"
April 13, 2005
Abigail Thorton
"View from Another Planet"
April 13, 2005
Josh Mitteldorf
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April 12, 2005
Lynn Landes
"Democrats, Paper ‘Trails’ Aren’t Good Enough; Count The Damn Ballots!"
April 1, 2005
Lynn Landes, Online Journal Contributing Writer
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March 30, 2005
US Vote Counts
"As Blackwell Says, Ohio’s in 2004 was a National Model"
March 24, 2005
Steve Rosenfeld, Bob Fitrakis, and Harvey Wasserman
"Understanding the difference between paper ballots and paper audit trails"
March 20, 2005
Gary Beckwith
"Save Our Democracy"
March 16, 2005
John Irwin
"Republicans maneuvering to get Voting Rights Act killed"
March 10, 2005
Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr.
"Legal filing highlights Blackwell's hypocrisy in Ohio recount case"
March 7, 2005
Blair Bobier
"Selma 40 Years Later"
March 6, 2005
Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr.
"Exit Poll Madness - Analyst Steve Freeman & Company Offer False Choice"
March 4, 2005
Lynn Landes
"Libertarians To Testify in Ohio House: Modernize Ohio's Election Laws"
March 3, 2005
Robert Butler
"The New Voting Rights Movement Begins Here Today"
March 2, 2005
Steven Rosenfeld
"Voting in America"
February 28, 2005
Bob Babson
"The Mighty Texas Strike Force"
February 28, 2005
Nick Mottern - Documentary News Service
"Blackwell presidential election sanctions briefs"
February 22, 2005
Various individuals
"Representative Conyers and others file amicus brief in Ohio Supreme Court"
February 17, 2005
Dena Graziano
"Congresswoman Tubbs Jones Outraged at Blackwell's Failure to Appear During House Administration Hearing"
February 12, 2005
Office of Rep. Tubbs Jones
"Ohio Attorney-General's attack on election protection attorneys draws mountain of documentation on state's stolen election, including new study on exit polls"
February 3, 2005
Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"Prominent Statisticians Refute 'Explanation' of 2004 U.S. Exit Poll Discrepancies in New Edison/Mitofsky Report and Urge Investigation of U.S. Presidential Election Results"
January 31, 2005
Bruce O'Dell
"The last man to concede..."
January 29, 2005
Sheila Samples
"Report on Washington DC, January 6, 2005"
January 25, 2005
Avram Friedman
"Arkansas in 2004: Did Bush Really Win?"
January 24, 2005
Max Standridge
"New links"
January 23, 2005
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January 23, 2005
Justine Smith
"Plan B: Parallel Elections & Signed Ballots"
January 20, 2005
Lynn Landes
"Open Letter to Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro from Representative John Conyers, Jr."
January 20, 2005
Representative John Conyers, Jr.
"Open Letter to Warren Mitofsky and Larry Rosin from Representative John Conyers, Jr."
January 20, 2005
Representative John Conyers, Jr.
"Ohio's GOP Attorney General launches revenge attack on Election Protection legal team"
January 19, 2005
Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"What are they hiding in New Mexico?"
January 18, 2005
Warren Stewart, National Ballot Integrity Project
"In the Shadow of Dr. King, counting the vote remains a civil rights issue"
January 17, 2005
Bob Fitrakis, Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"Did the “Liberal Media” Get the 2004 Election All Wrong?
"
January 16, 2005
Gene C. Gerard
"'COUNT EVERY VOTE. EVERY VOTE COUNTS'"
January 16, 2005
Mary Anne Saucier
"Moss v. Bush moves on and movement continues"
January 13, 2005
Bob Fitrakis, Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"Rally Continues Drive for Democracy"
January 9, 2005
Mark Huntress
"Estimated vote count in Ohio"
January 8, 2005
Richard Hayes Phillips, Ph.D.
"January 6 Washington, D.C. rally report"
January 8, 2005
Nick Mottern
"Together, we moved three mountains"
January 8, 2005
Bob Fitrakis, Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"What the election challenge means"
January 8, 2005
David Swanson, ILCA
"Progressive Democrats lead historic voting rights protest as Congress ratifies flawed 2004 Electoral College tally"
January 7, 2005
Bob Fitrakis, Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"Arnebeck letter to Congress re Presidential Electoral Challenge"
January 6, 2005
Clifford O. Arnebeck, Jr.
"Senator Barbara Boxer, D-CA and Representative Stephanie Tubbs Jones, D-OH contested the election"
January 6, 2005
Free Press staff
"The "Crime of November 2": The human side of how Bush stole Ohio, and why Congress must investigate rather than ratify the Electoral College (Part Two of Two)"
January 5, 2005
Bob Fitrakis, Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"Status Report of the House Judiciary Committee Democratic Staff"
January 5, 2005
U.S. Rep. John Conyers and staff
"Seven key reasons why the vote must be challenged at the electoral college"
January 3, 2005
Rev. Jesse Jackson, Rainbow/PUSH Coalition
"Ten preliminary reasons why the Bush vote does not compute, and why Congress must investigate rather than certify the Electoral College (Part One of Two)"
January 3, 2005
Bob Fitrakis, Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman
"Verified election contest petitions and documents in Ohio Supreme Court "
January 2, 2005
The undersigned
"Distribution of voting machines by county in Ohio"
January 1, 2005
Andy Shifflette
"Did We Bounce An Election?"
January 1, 2005
Warren Stewart, votersunite.org
"Presidential election congressional hearing transcript"
January 1, 2005
Congresspeople Waters, Tubbs-Jones and Conyers and others
Selected articles from 2004
"Ohio's official non-recount ends amidst new evidence of fraud, theft and judicial contempt mirrored in New Mexico"
December 31, 2004
"Impossible Phantom Votes in New Mexico
"
December 30, 2004
"The 2004 Presidential Election: Who Won The Popular Vote? An Examination of the Comparative Validity of Exit Poll and Vote Count Data"
December 29, 2004
"Ohio GOP election officials ducking notices of deposition as Kerry enters stolen vote fray"
December 28, 2004
"Another third rate burglary"
December 25, 2004
"Hacking the vote in Miami County"
December 25, 2004
"Update from the Ohio Frontlines"
December 24, 2004
"Lawsuit Before the Ohio Supreme Court"
December 24, 2004
"Kerry votes switched to Bush and ballots pre-punched for Bush"
December 24, 2004
"Uncounted votes in Cuyahoga County"
December 24, 2004
"GAO report documents how easy it is to hack the vote"
November 15, 2005
"J30 Election Reform Coalition"
March 21, 2005
"The Un-mighty New Hampshire Jam Force"
March 21, 2005
"Petro sanctions democracy"
March 21, 2005
"Progressives helped concede election by conceding the moral high ground"
March 21, 2005
"We will not concede, or get over it, but we shall overcome"
January 23, 2005
"From Selma to Palm Beach to Columbus"
January 23, 2005
"Movement Heroes"
January 23, 2005
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