are there contingency plans re: IKE evacuees to let them VOTE

[yellowdogintexas]

absentee from shelters, etc.

Will there even be early voting in the impacted counties? Other than I assume Harris, which I expect to be all set up by then.

I sent an email to a couple of the local State Leg folks up here to just raise the question.

I know these poor people have way more on their mind than Nov 4 right now but hopefully some sort of contingency plan is in place.

[sonias]

1. Voter protection groups asked the SOS to extend voter registration

Past the Oct 6th deadline in all the counties impacted by Ike but there has not been a decision from the SOS on that yet. If accommodations for voting were made for the people that fled Katrina and lived in Texas for awhile, I would certainly expect Texas to do the same.

Super-voting centers would make the most sense especially in the Galveston area.

I agree that a lot of people won't be thinking about voting when they have so much loss to consider.


Sonia

[sonias]

2. Hurricane Ike’s Victims Shouldn’t Also Lose Their Vote

PRESS ADVISORY
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Contact: Fred Lewis, 512-636-1389
or f_lewis @ sbcglobal.net


Hurricane Ike’s Victims Shouldn’t Also Lose Their Vote
Groups Ask Governor to Extend the Voter Registration Deadline in Disaster Areas

Press Conference, Friday, Sept. 26, 2008 at 10 am in the Speaker’s Comm. Room at the Capitol


Texans already have lost much because of Hurricane Ike; they should not also lose their right to vote this November. The state’s voter registration deadline of October 6, 2008 is fast approaching, while Hurricane Ike’s victims are preoccupied dealing with its devastation.

This Friday, September 26, 2008, at 10 am at the Capitol (the Speaker’s Committee Room) citizens groups are holding a press conference to ask Governor Perry to extend the voter registration deadline under his emergency powers in major disaster counties in Texas. The groups include the League of Women Voters of Texas, Houston Votes (a non-partisan voter registration collaboration), the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities, Common Cause, and the People for the American Way Foundation.
-30-

:applause:

Sonia

[yellowdogintexas]

3. Sonia, you totally rock. Here I am up here in KY, worrying about

this.

We are having Tarrant Co debate watch party @ a microbrewery in FW, Rahr Co. I understand Rick Noriega is an honored guest.

And I won't be back in Texas until Monday night.

sigh


But I will be ready to roll when I do get back.

oops , time to go do my donations before I hit the road and am computerless for 3 days.

[TexasLawyer]

4. I hope this will happen

My voter registration drives were disrupted for 2 weeks. People need the extra time.

County offices can hire a few more people to do the data entry.

[sonias]

5. Don't look to Perry for any leadership

Houston Chronicle 9/26/08
Groups ask Perry to extend voter deadline for Ike victims
By JANET ELLIOTT Austin Bureau
Sept. 26, 2008, 11:58AM

AUSTIN — Several citizen groups are asking Gov. Rick Perry to extend Texas' Oct. 6 voter registration deadline by one week in the 29 counties that have been declared major disaster areas.

Fred Lewis, of Houston Votes, said hurricane victims dealing with the loss of their homes, lack of power and other problems are not thinking about registering to vote. The organization has been registering people in Harris County.
(snip)

Houston Votes and several other groups, including the League of Women Voters of Texas and Common Cause, are joining in the effort to extend the deadline. They also want the governor to appropriate emergency funds to assist county registrars in processing applications.

(snip)
Allison Castle, a spokeswoman for Perry, said the governor would not consider a request to extend the deadline unless it came from a county official or the secretary of state.

''We've not been asked by any county officials to extend the deadline,'' she said. ''We're working with the secretary of state, and they've not given any indication there's a problem.''

Sonia

[sonias]

6. Advocate calls for postponed voter registration in some counties

AAS 9/26/08
Advocate calls for postponed voter registration in some counties

(snip)
Meanwhile, the state has posted this guidance for displaced hurricane evacuees regarding voting:

If you intend to stay in your new county, you may register to vote there by Oct. 6. If you intend to return to your home county, you may maintain your voter registration there or register there if not already registered.

The state goes on:

If you are able to return to your home county, you likely will vote there. Local officials are still evaluating polling places, but the Texas Secretary of State’s office said it appears that all counties will be able to conduct early voting and Election Day voting. Polling places might change, however, from previous elections.

Finally, the Texas secretary of state advises:

If you are away from your county of residence, you may apply for a ballot by mail from your home county. The application must be received by Oct. 28. You will need to provide a mailing address for the ballot outside your home county.

Questions? Call the Secretary of State Elections Division at (800) 252-VOTE (8683) or visit this site:
http://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/voter/ike.shtml

No help for voters is my bet.

Sonia