My voting experience
By kowalski Comments (6) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
Even though I live in one of the bluest of blue states, Massachusetts, I live in an area of the state that contains a lot of Republicans. And my voting experience was simple, unproblematic and completely non-stressful as a result.
I walked into my polling place this morning and noted that approximately 10 cars were parked outside the town hall, including one police officer in a cruiser parked about 100 feet away from the entrance. Walking into the polling place and receiving my ballot was a straightforward and reassuring experience: our election workers in this small town are enthusiastic, friendly, longstanding locals who have done their jobs dozens of times before.
In Massachusetts, you do not need to show an identification card of any kind in order to vote -- you merely need to say that you are on the voter registration list and state your name and address. Mine was on the DMV-registrant list because I registered when I got my shiny new MA license, and that caused about 5 seconds of confusion, but only because I am new to the state and a first-time voter here. Nevertheless I was quickly found on the list and handed a ballot.
The ballot is a large, 11x17" heavy paper ballot that you mark with an ink pen by connecting two large, prominent, rectangular ink marks together with a wide felt-tipped pen for each office and ballot question. Basically you connect two rectangles together with a line about 1/4" long, for each office and ballot question. You'd have to work pretty hard to screw that up. The ballot was clearly printed and unambiguous. You turn the ballot over to vote on the referendum questions in the same fashion, and for each one there is a full description of the proposed referendum text as well as a short recapitulation of the "pro" and "con" arguments.
I was voter #247 in my small town at about 11:00 this morning and the entire process took less than ten minutes, and was very pleasant. Nice people all around, and everything ran like clockwork, including the machine reading of my vote.
After you vote, on the other side of the room, a poll worker crosses off your name on an identical list with a red pen. Then you say bon voyage and go back to blogging.
Some thoughts: It's astonishing that Massachusetts does not require any form of identification at the polling place. Literally anyone could vote in anyone else's place by simply saying: "That's Me" and be handed a ballot. In fact, the poll worker specifically told me to put away my ID when I took it out of my wallet: "We don't need that."
Secondly, at least in my small, heavily-Republican area, people know what they're doing under the law and run the operation very smoothly. It was an absolutely painless and enjoyable experience. All that was missing was a mint julep on the way out the door. Kudos to smalltown America, even up here in the Liberal Northeast.
You missed a key alternate identification process, where a good day at the mail could still get a bogus vote. My Id doesn't have my current address(college syndrome of moving about once a year), so I just gave my voter id card and a mailing from the recorder, I also could have used a utility bill instead of voter card. So mail thieves could still mess up the vote.
You can use a utility bill to REGISTER to vote on the day of the election. Or just have someone vouch for you. You don't need anything at all to actually vote. How are we keeping ineligible people from voting? We aren't, that's how.
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"I am a great believer in luck. The harder I work, the more I have of it." -- Thomas Jefferson
To register in WI and MN (same day registration and voting!)
1) Drivers License or State ID
2) Utility Bill
3) Someone vouches for you
its no wonder that voter fraud occurs in Milwaukee, Racine, Kenosha and Dane counties. All coincidentally Democratic strongholds of the state.
"Took the nickname Troll long before BlogTrolls existed..."
When I voted at 6:05 this morning, no ID, just what's your name with no proof. It's no wonder the favorite punchline here todays is;
"My grandmother's been voting for 100 years and she died at 90".
Another gross failure noted often in this part of the country is attributed to large "snowbird" population. People here joke they vote "twice" once via absentee (FL)and a second in person (NY).
Frankly. it's not a joke I find funny.
"Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori"
is making our election process more secure. Stuff like eliminating "election day" registration and motor voter. And voting machines that work.
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If "pro" is the opposite of "con", what is the opposite of "progress"?
Here in AZ, thanks to SCOTUS intervention, we must show a photo ID. In 2004 we didn't. I voted and noted when my name was checked off that our oldest son was still registered in our precinct. I knew he wouldn't be voting in Scottsdale since he was a deployed Marine and had reregistered in California. I said to the poll worker, who had just told me I didn't need to show ID, "Oh, there's my son. Since he's a deployed Marine he won't be voting today. I'll come back in an hour or so and vote for him." The poll worker looked up and said, "OK, see you later."
I didn't go back, but if W had lost by one vote I probably would have kicked myself.
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If "pro" is the opposite of "con", what is the opposite of "progress"?