Absentee ballots a big hit with Ohio voters (lesson learned!)

[theHandpuppet]

But I wonder how many excuses Ken Blackwell will invent to reject these votes?

Absentee voting a big hit
With no reason needed, SW Ohio requests soar
BY ANNIE HALL | ENQUIRER COLUMBUS BUREAU

COLUMBUS - The joke among politicians used to be, "Vote early and often." But voting early is no joke in Ohio anymore.

Voters are flooding Greater Cincinnati boards of elections with absentee ballot requests - the result of a new law that allows anyone to vote absentee, no excuse needed. Previously, voters had to sign an affidavit saying they would be housebound, out of the county or had some other reason for being unable to get to the polls on Election Day.

(snipping)

In Hamilton County, 22,000 people - about one in 25 registered voters - have requested absentee ballots since Oct. 3, the first day counties were allowed to start making them available. By contrast, in 2002 (the last gubernatorial election year) the county got only 19,000 requests through Election Day.

Clermont County has already received requests for twice as many absentee ballots as in 2002. Warren County has run out of ballots but was able to mail them to out-of-state and overseas voters. They expect a new supply of ballots Saturday...

MORE at http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061013/NEWS01/610130375

[jdadd]

1. No surprise here....

I'm in Richland county Ohio and I've got mine.:hi:

[theHandpuppet]

3. Good for you!

I'm afraid of what Ken Blackwell has in store for citizens who actually try to vote on election day.

[ray of light]

2. Feeling out ot it. Did they get rid of blackwell running the election

on his own election?

[theHandpuppet]

4. Nope. Last I heard...

... he refused to step aside.

[texpatriot2004]

5. kick nm

[maseman]

6. Makes me worried though

26 days for the Repukes and Blackwell to figure out how to not count the absentee ballots in Ohio.

[sugapablo]

7. He already figured it out...

http://groups.google.com/group/alt.politics/msg/e3a2ec6996cad734?dmode=source

[RawMaterials]

8. but warren and clermont are R countys n/m

[semillama]

9. I sent away for mine and haven't recieved it yet.

In Franklin County. I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

[sinkingfeeling]

10. But, will Ohio count those absentee ballots, and will they use ES&S

'tabulators' or Diebold?

[liam_laddie]

11. Hamilton County

and one other OH county bought a Hart Intercivic system - eScans primary, and eSlate DRE for disabled, one per polling place (or perhaps one per precinct?). This is probably the most secure brand, from an outside hack standpoint. However, the ballot definition settings at the precinct reader, are variable in the setup. I understand that the sensitivity at each mark position are individually programmable. May be fact, not certain. If true this would allow less complete R marks to be read, but same mark for a D position might be rejected. How the scanner would tell the voter to check the mark again is unknown.

I voted on the eScan in the May primary, and the BIG problem is that filling in the rectangle at your choice takes a LOT longer than punching a chad through the previously-used punch-cards. I predict long lines due to this time stretch-out. Not good!