What are we DOING about Election Procedures?!

[goclark]

All I read, night and day, are articles about how the votes are stolen.

There are a few short days before the election and as far as I know,Diebold and Rove are alive and well!

What Plan is in place to STOP the FRAUD and let our votes be counted?

I have seen no plan!:mad:

[greeneyedboy]

1. monitor elections w/ www.themmob.org or verifiedvoting.org

some groups are on it, thank goodness. see www.verifiedvoting.org and www.themmob.org. i think the DNC has a "sign up to be a pollworker" on 100actions.com too.

[goclark]

3. I have been a poll worker for the last three elections

And, unless I missed something, their is no way to be there and watch the polls and know that the vote got messed up.

Except, if someone complains and how would they really know.

The general public , to our sorrow, does not go to websites to check and see what to do.

There should be night and day ADS on TV warning the voters what to do.

[Bitwit1234]

2. No Hope

Since 2/3 of the election boards are republican run there isn't going to be any changes. If the republicans have been "winning" this way why in the hell would they change.

[goclark]

5. Exactly

The general public didn't read RFK and Rolling Stone.

They don't know what to do.

The only way that I know is for MoveOn or other groups to flood the airways with ADS on the lead up to the election to tell the voters what to look out for ~

[grizmaster]

4. I'm doing my part by working a polling station

[goclark]

6. I worked it and the "election supervisor"

is the person that handles all the big complaints.
That little Republican type " Ann the Man" twin, just seems to always be the final answer person.

She also approves the tally of the ballots counted.

There is little to nothing that a poll worker can do accept to tell the Lead Person that someone said, for example " the line is too long, I had no ere to park, my machine was broken etc."

NONE of those items will stop anything unless word comes down from the top that they are sending in help or bringing in more machines.

None of that stops ROVE.

I read that now Absentee ballots are being messed with ~ so what does a person do~

**** I Still will be a Poll Worker and have encouraged all my friend to do it too.

[grizmaster]

7. In RI all the poll workers have to sign off on and confirm results

There isn't any job that one person has sole say on at the polling station.

[goclark]

8. We signed off too

but the ballots are then taken to the County Office in the trunk of the car of the Clerk at the polling station.


My cousin was the clerk the last time and I went with him to deliver the ballots.

Do I trust that process with the Diebold machines and Rove ~ hell no~

[EFerrari]

9. I still think we should go to high risk precincts - minority precincts

where we can predict they will try to steal it.

There will be vote suppression that we can see with our eyes.

And we could set up a parallel election or even an exit poll.

I don't see how going to random precincts to poll watch does much good. How do you watch software, anyway? :shrug:

[goclark]

14. I agree, the minority areas are really left open

I am African American and I have worked the polls in Beverly Hills as well as South Central Los Angeles.

There is a WORLD of difference...

Beverly Hills -- Parking blocked off on two streets just for voter parking

Lovely school setting with the PTA selling home made cookies and hot dogs to the voters.

Loads of poll workers

No problem with the macbhines ( even though Kerry "didn't win."

Skilled, poll workers that had worked for many years and understood the process.

I begged to be at a Urban Polling Station for that election but they said NO, we need you in Beverly Hills.

Now I am glad I had that experience so I would know the diffedrence first had.

Next I worked the urban setting and the lines were so klong they wrapped around the block.

Only one chair for the elderly to wait their turn

Broken machines and when someone was called to fix it, they came 40 minutes later and didn't know how to solve it.

It was always a White Supervisor when I've worked in the Urban settings.
I'm not trying to be prejudice at all, just saying that I never saw a supervisor be anything but White.

There is no reason why polling places in the urban setting can not be in a Drug Store or a huge cultural setting.

[EFerrari]

15. Bob Fitrakis calls it modern day high tech Jim Crow.

We KNOW they'll do it. We should invest in THOSE precincts. Medea Benjamin said the same thing. We have to focus on BOTH the fraud and the civil rights issue. They go hand in hand.

/oops

[goclark]

17. Poll tax 21st century

[grizmaster]

11. our boxes have numbered seals for the ride to City Hall

as to Diebold and Rove- no, I wouldn't trust them with dog's droppings

No Dieblold in RI luckily, and the dem majority controls the process here, not the satanic GOPers

[goclark]

18. I wish there was some way

that the public, Democrats, could find out what to do on Election Day.

I am thrilled to hear that the MSM has finally recognized that there is a problem.

They were able to finally start ta;ling about it with about six weeks left to the election.

Please let this one work in our favor.

[FogerRox]

10. IMHO , 4 weeks before the election would Time to

GEt the VOte Out...... not infer lack of Confidence, just prior to the election. Many ERD folks work on election reform year round. I choose to to work in a House race this season.

My Priorities:
-Pound the hell out of NEO CONS NOW....WIN in Nov.
-When the NJ legislative season opens early in 2007, I will be working to Lobby NJ leg for a new VVPB Audit law. CUrrent NJ LEg efforts are called S507, which is a weak piece of legislation.

[Peace Patriot]

12. There is really nothing we can do about Bushite electronic voting

corporations "counting" all the votes with TRADE SECRET, PROPRIETARY programming code, with virtually no audit/recount controls. That was a coup that took place in the 2002-2004 period, engineered by the biggest crooks in the Anthrax Congress, Tom Delay and Bob Ney, abetted by Corporatist Democrats Christopher Dodd, Terry McAuliffe and others, and by the MIND-BOGGLING SILENCE (fear? corruption? they love Bush's war? who knows!) of the entire Democratic Party leadership.

Which makes me think that it's not so much a fascist Bushite plot as a Corporate plot. I mean, you'd think the Democrats would want to get elected. But then maybe they decided to let the Bushites lead with in-your-face fascism, so we would all be grateful for a fallback to "nice" corporatism under the Corporate Democrats.

Anyone, nothing we can do about it, at this point. Diebold/ES&S may temper their vote stealing this time, in order to put a damper on the huge election reform movement that is gathering steam around the country, in order to preserve their rigged machines for future uses.


THE ABSENTEE BALLOT PROTEST

But we can stop THAT. We can insure that they DON'T have future use of this rigged system, by MASSIVE ABSENTEE BALLOT VOTING this fall. If everyone who despises the Bush Junta--60% to 70% of the American people!--votes by Absentee Ballot, the reign of these diabolical machines will be OVER. Local/state election officials will not be able to defend this system--and will be forced to reform it, or resign--if NOBODY WILL VOTE ON THE MACHINES!

It's already happening. I just read in my local paper that FIFTY PERCENT of yet another California county will be voting by AB this fall! Let it grow! Spread the word!

AB votes are not "safe." No vote is "safe" with SECRETLY CODED central electronic tabulators. We CAN make AB votes safer (see below). But we cannot expect AB voting to give us accurate vote counts THIS time. AB voting this (s)election is primarily A PROTEST--a way to express the will of the people, that we want vote counting that we can SEE, the best method being PAPER BALLOTS, HAND-COUNTED AT THE PRECINCT, WITH RESULTS POSTED AT THE PRECINCT BEFORE ANY ELECTRONICS ARE INVOLVED.

To help safeguard your AB vote:
1. Fill in the ballot and envelope out very carefully (to avoid disqualification).
2. Check local rules on AB voting; follow the rules carefully.
3. Hand deliver it to the polling place on election day--or (second best) mail it registered/return receipt requested or Fed Ex (to insure that it gets there).
4. If your ballot doesn't arrive soon, get on it fast--call, pester, get a lawyer, whatever you have to do to get this remedied quickly.
5. Raise hell at your country registrar's before and during the (s)election, over the handling and counting of AB votes; demand to watch; demand to know totals before any electronic scanning or word processing; take pictures, keep good notes; write to election officials and media about it; work with local election monitoring group to increase scrutiny on AB votes (and the whole process).


STATISTICAL MONITORING AND OTHER POST-(S)ELECTION STRATEGIES

The other thing we can do is to closely watch not just the polling, but also the polling RESULTS. Statistical analysis CAN reveal fraud. Many of us did just that after 2004, and what it reveals is stunning. www.UScountvotes.org was created specifically for fast statistical analysis of this (s)election. They need donations and various kinds of volunteers.

Get prepared for election results challenges! Talk to candidates and their campaigns. Urge them to create a challenge strategy and NOT TO ACCEPT suspicious results and results than cannot be verified.

Get prepared for JUST AFTER this (s)election, and for the two years after it! We MUST get rid of these machines! WE MUST! And we may not have a big window of opportunity to do it. The time is NOW. Start with the Absentee Ballot protest, and THEN maximum pressure on local/state officials.

Here is a list of election reform resources for the immediate and long term future:


SOME RESOURCES FOR AMERICAN REVOLUTION II: Election Reform

Hopeful signs - latest news:

"Was the 2004 Election Stolen?" by Robert Kennedy Jr. 6/1/06
(comprehensive overview of the 2004 stolen election)
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/10432334/was_the_2004_election_stolen

California voters sue the state over Diebold:
www.VoterAction.org is suing the state of California and 18 Calif county registrars on behalf of 25 California voter/plaintiffs, on the illegal Diebold "certification" by Schwarzenegger appointee Bruce McPherson.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2180496

San Diego voters sue the state over Diebold (CA-50, Bushby/Bilbray)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=1995831&mesg_id=1995831

Maryland rejects Diebold:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x418263

Florida - anti-trust accusations against Diebold, ES&S and Sequoia, re: heroic Florida election official Ion Sancho:
(FLA AG subpoenas the companies)
http://www.computerworld.com/governmenttopics/government/legalissues/story/0,10801,110192,00.html
http://www.tbo.com/news/politics/MGBKSY8W8LE.html
(info & discussion)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2183630

Utah county clerk fights back!
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x419226

-----

See the ELECTION REFORM forum here at DU for the latest-latest news (for instance, the San Diego CA-50 lawsuit has now been appealed), and the NUMEROUS, almost daily "Election Reform, Fraud and Related News" posts here at DU, with news of this great movement from all over. Great forums! For instance, today...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=203&topic_id=452310&mesg_id=452310

-----

More resources for American Revolution II:

www.votersunite.org (MythBreakers - easy primer on electronic voting--one of the myths is that HAVA requires electronic voting; it does not. Send this pamphlet to your registrar!)
www.UScountvotes.org (statistical monitoring of '06 and '08 elections--they need donations)


(Activist sites with links to state activist groups or info)
www.votetrustusa.org (news of this great movement from around the country)
www.votersunited.org (good general info, and state links)
www.verifiedvoting.org (great activist site)
www.solarbus.org/election/index.shtml (fab compendium of all election info)

www.freepress.org (devoted to election reform)
www.bradblog.com (also great, and devoted to election reform)
www.TruthIsAll.net (analysis of the 2004 election) :patriot: :applause: :patriot:
www.votepa.us (well-organized local group of citizen activists in Pennsylvania, where important legal issues are at stake, including state's rights over election systems)
Provisions of the PA lawsuit:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x423739

The Voter Confidence Resolution
http://tinyurl.com/rlnr2 (“We Do Not Consent”)
http://guvwurld.blogspot.com (GuvWurld blog main page)
http://tinyurl.com/amryg (Voter Confidence Resolution

www.debrabowen.com (Calif Senator running for Sec of State to reform election system)
www.johnbonifaz.com (running for Massachusetts Sec of State on strong election reform and antiwar platform)

Congressional bills: (NOTE-don't count on the people who gave you the Iraq war to give you back your right to vote! Think nationally--act locally!)

Russ Holt's HR 550 requires a real paper ballot, bans secret software in "voting machines", and has more than 170 co-sponsors, but the audit required is too weak, it promotes electronic voting and centralized power, and the secret software might be permitted to continue in the central tabulators (the bill is not clear). To sign the HR 550 petition: http://www.rushholt.com/petition.html
At lot of discussion at DU of the loopholes/pitfalls in HR 550:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x422926
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x421136
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=203&topic_id=422967&mesg_id=422967
(Note: Senate Bill-SB 330 and House-HR704 simply require a "voter verified paper audit trail" (VVPAT), which may be best for the moment.)


Also of interest:

"Secret Vote Counting Crammed Down the Throat of Democracy, " by Michael Collins (DU's Autorank) (--searing election reform article for New Zealand's Scoop.com)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x971363

"Poll Shock," by Bob Koehler (11/24/05) (-- four recent election reform initiatives in Ohio, predicted to win by 60/40 votes, flipped over, on election day, into 60/40 LOSSES!--the biggest flipover we've seen yet; the election theft machines and their masters are now dictating election policy!)
http://commonwonders.com/archives/col321.htm

Bob Koehler's latest: "Take this box and stuff it" (3/16/06)
http://commonwonders.com/archives/col337.htm

Amaryllis (Diebold, ES&S, Sequoia lavish lobbying of election officials - Beverly Hilton, Aug. '05)
www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x380340

------------------------------------------------

Throw Diebold, ES&S and ALL election theft machines into 'Boston Harbor' NOW!

:think: :patriot: :woohoo: :patriot: :think:

-----------

"That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it." --Thomas Jefferson, The Declaration of Independence

[Peace Patriot]

13. A note about vote suppression against blacks and other minorities,

students, the poor and other Democratic votes. I don't say much about this in my Resources list because it's so obvious what to do. The Bushites in Ohio BROKE THE LAW with massive violations of the Voting Rights Act and state laws in 2004. They shorted black and other Dem precincts on polling stations and voting machines, they unfairly challenged registered voters and made them vote on "provisional" ballots (then tossed those ballots), they lied to people about times and places, they intimidated people. It was just awful! And they got away with it--weren't charged--because that criminal Kenneth Blackwell knew he had impunity--he knew Diebold/ES&S were insuring Bush's re-(s)election and a Bush A.G. who would not investigate it. And the only solution to this is vigilant monitoring. DON'T LET IT HAPPEN AGAIN! We also have electronic voter purges to worry about--and various kinds of denial of voting rights. But the main thing of importance DURING the election is to have EYES AND EARS on every precinct, taking notes, and--best--with lawyers ready to go to court. Intimidate BACK! Make them know they are being watched!

I don't have the incident reporting sites/telephone nos. handy. But there will be central gathering of vote suppression incidents. I think People for the American Way has one. If you really want to do good deed on this election day, volunteer with the Dem Party or an election monitoring group at a black or other vulnerable precinct, especially one with a history of vote suppression. Know the rules! Make sure that fairness is enforced.

The Bush fascists needed TWO things to "win" in '04: secret control of the electronic vote count, to manufacture Bush's popular majority and tweak a number of close states for the Electoral Vote count, AND massive vote suppression in Ohio, Florida, New Mexico and other places. That's how down they were! They needed BOTH. They're even more down now, and so they need both more. Electronic vote stealing is tricky. They can't steal too much, or they'll lose their system to citizen outrage. And we're all onto them now. Even so, there's not much we can do about it except scream like hell afterwards and GET RID OF THESE MACHINES. But vote suppression we CAN do something about. And warm bodies, and sharp eyes and ears are needed.

Also know this: the machine advantage to Bushites CAN be overcome by big turnout, in some cases. The Absentee Ballot protest is a good way to encourage turnout! Tell people who are disillusioned and say "it's all rigged," but this is a PROTEST to UN-rig the system! Please help us get rid of these machines by FLOODING election officials with MOUNTAINS of Absentee Ballot votes!

[goclark]

16. Bookmarking your links right now! Thanks

[Amaryllis]

19. Resources to find out what you can do:

http://pollworkersfordemocracy.org/pollworker_info.html

http://networkofcitizens.org/

It has been a busy few weeks for voters and voting rights advocates around the country. With just 32 days to go until Election Day, our Election Protection efforts are heating up across the country. We need your help as we work to ensure that every eligible voter has the right to cast a meaningful ballot and have that vote counted.

The Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and our partners are currently recruiting volunteers for the 2006 national Election Protection program.

Election Protection, the nation's largest non-partisan voter protection coalition, is led by the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, the NAACP, the National Bar Association, and People For the American Way Foundation. Election Protection provides direct voter assistance through our toll-free hotline, 866-OUR-VOTE, and through legal field programs in targeted states.

Election Protection guides voters through the voting process, helping to ensure that all eligible voters have the opportunity to cast a meaningful ballot and have their vote counted. While Election Protection is a resource for all Americans, the program centers on traditionally disenfranchised communities including: African Americans, Latinos, and other racial, ethnic, and language minorities; seniors; young people; low-income voters; and individuals with disabilities.

Interested volunteers should sign up online at http://www.866OurVote.org.
National Voter Assistance Hotline - Washington, DC, New York, and San Francisco

Volunteer attorneys, paralegals, and law students are needed in Washington, DC, New York, and San Francisco to staff the national voter hotline on Election Day, Tuesday, November 7th (6:00 a.m. - 12:00 midnight EST) and Monday, November 6, 2006 (8:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m. EST).

In addition, volunteers are needed in Washington, D.C. starting Monday, October 16th through Friday, November 3rd (Monday-Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.) to staff the national voter hotline for early voting.

The hotline will provide immediate assistance to voters who encounter problems attempting to vote on Election Day in states across the country. Expected problems include dissemination of misinformation by poll workers, problems associated with voting machines (including new electronic ones), and potential intimidation of voters in minority communities.

All volunteers (including those who volunteered in 2004) must attend a 1.5 hour training session. Legal materials, including Voter's Bills of Rights and Frequently Asked Questions, will be provided for all 50 states.

Sign up for hotline shifts online at www.866OurVote.org.

Local Legal Field Efforts - Targeted Locations

Volunteer attorneys, law students, and paralegals are needed to serve as Mobile Field Attorneys, staff local voter hotlines, and/or serve as "on-call" lawyers on Election Day in targeted locations.

Mobile Field Attorneys roam between several pre-assigned targeted polling locations, providing in-person assistance to voters at the polls in coordination with the local hotline and local Legal Command Center. In some locations, calls to the national voter hotline (1-866-OUR-VOTE) will be routed to a local phone bank staffed by volunteers. Finally, in some areas, "on call" attorneys will be dispatched to polling places or the local Board of Elections if serious problems arise.

Sign up online at www.866OurVote.org to be a local legal field volunteer.

All volunteers must attend a 1.5 hour training session. You will receive further information about the legal field program in your community in the coming weeks. Please note that we are not supporting "traveling volunteers."

Targeted locations include (list still being finalized): Montgomery County, Alabama; Maricopa County and Pima County in Arizona; Los Angeles, California; Miami-Dade, Broward, and other locations in Florida; Atlanta, Georgia metro area; New Orleans, Louisiana; Boston, Massachusetts; Baltimore, Montgomery, and Prince George's County, Maryland; Detroit, Michigan; Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota; Mississippi; St. Louis and Jackson County, Missouri; New Jersey; Chapel Hill, North Carolina; Hamilton, Cuyahoga, and Franklin County, Ohio; Philadelphia metro area and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Columbia, South Carolina; Houston, Texas; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Our partner organizations are creating programs in several additional states. If you do not live in a targeted location, but want to volunteer for Election Protection, please sign up online and we will share your information with our partners.

National and state co-sponsors include: the American Bar Association, Asian American Justice Center, Common Cause, Electronic Frontier Foundation, IMPACT, NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, National Asian Pacific American Bar Association, National Black Law Students Association, National Congress of American Indians, National Disability Rights Network, Poll Workers For Democracy, Rock the Vote, Verified Voting, United States Student Association, and many more.

Sign up today to volunteer for Election Protection!

Election Protection is a non-partisan effort and is not affiliated in any way with any candidate or political party.

Other News

In a major victory for voters in Arizona, yesterday we received a favorable ruling in ITCA v. Brewer, where the 9th Circuit enjoined Proposition 200, Arizona's law requiring that voters present proof of citizenship when they register to vote and also present photo ID at the polls. Coming just days before the registration deadline in Arizona, the ruling prevents implementation of Prop. 200 for the November 7, 2006 elections.

On Tuesday, Judge Boyko of the U.S. Dictrict Court for the Northern District of Ohio found that an Ohio voter challenger law that treats naturalized citizens differently than native-born citizens is unconstitutional. The overruled law required naturalized citizens to provide documentary proof of citizenship but made no such requirement for native-born

The Senate adjourned last week without taking up photo ID. On September 20, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 4844, the deceptively titled Federal Election Integrity Act. While the Senate has not introduced a companion bill, we will continue to monitor any efforts in Congress to attach photo ID requirements to legislation during the lame-duck session.

Read more Recent News at the National Campaign for Fair Elections' website.
http://www.nationalcampaignforfairelections.org/

[Amaryllis]

20. More resources:

http://www.pfaw.org/pfaw/general/default.aspx?oid=17502