Report from the frontlines: voting in california totally screwed up

[endarkenment]

I just got off the phone with my sister who was irate about the situation in California. Polling stations not set up, people going to the wrong place because they weren't notified, and independent voters' ballots spoiled because of some new requirement that they had to check an additional box indicating what party they were voting for, in addition to the voting for the candidate of that party.

[Cleita]

1. Here's a website with a hotline for voting problems and

irregularities, "People For the American Way".

http://www.pfaw.org/pfaw/general /

[aquart]

2. I love my levers. I love my levers. I love my levers.

And now the evil courts are taking my levers. And NY will be just like California.

[MonkeyFunk]

4. NY is getting rid of the levers?

I LOVED those things!

[MonkeyFunk]

5. I voted in California this morning

no problems at all.

[aquart]

17. An EVIL judge is forcing us to obey HAVA. Hate HAVA.

I hope we'll still have our levers in November. New York is excellent at stalling and finding fault.

[KharmaTrain]

3. Primaries Are Notorious For Problems

I was chatting with the poll watchers at my local precinct...this is the second election they've used the touch screen system and had a lot of problems when they opened this morning. Looks like the machines weren't properly "activated" and the polling stations weren't coming up...they had people do paper ballots until the touch screens came up.

Having worked elections in the past, primaries are almost always a mess...many new people working on their first election and the constant turn-over of equipment. The hope is the glitches get worked out for the General Election.

[OwnedByFerrets]

6. As Thom Hartman points out all the time.....

THEY do NOT want us to vote. The fewer ppl that vote, the happier the neo-cons are.

[nadinbrzezinski]

7. I voted this moring, no problem whatsoever

in fact we were in and out in five minutes flat.

Hell, I even told my hubby, first time nobody asks ME to see proof of citizenship (Yes I always carry a passport)
Did I mention I am an indie and all they asked was for us to initial that they gave us dem ballots?

[endarkenment]

8. Check again - your ballot might not count.

It seems there was a section on the ballot itself you had to check - unless that is what you meant. My sister also voted early and had no problems - it was everyone else she ran into the rest of the day who did.

[nadinbrzezinski]

9. Will check it

[nadinbrzezinski]

10. Nope, no such requirement, here is a link to MY PDF Ballot

http://www.co.san-diego.ca.us/voters/Sample_Ballots/Eng/DEM-088.pdf

[fed-up]

11. compare your clear choice ballot to my offset bubble ballot

http://clerk-recorder.buttecounty.net/elections/root0205/95928chi.htm

[nadinbrzezinski]

12. That's what I used this morning

Exactly a ballot like that

We only had to initial the roster that we requested that ballot

[Warren Stupidity]

13. Your report appears to conflict with this:

"City Attorney Concerned About Reports Of Voter Confusion


KNBC-TV
updated 13 minutes ago
LOS ANGELES - Citing concerns that the votes of nonpartisan voters will not be counted because of "bubble trouble," Los Angeles city leaders Tuesday called on election officials to count all ballots where voters marked their pick for a presidential nominee.

Los Angeles County voters registered as "nonpartisan/decline to state" but who want to vote for an American Independent or Democratic candidate in the presidential primary must mark the box labeled "Democrat" or "American Independent" at the top of the ballot.

However, since voting began Tuesday morning, the Courage Campaign, a statewide voter mobilization group, and elected officials have received complaints from voters who did not realize they needed to check the box on the ballot in addition to choosing a corresponding candidate. "

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23018378/from/ET/

Was LA off on its own with this nonsense?

[Throd]

14. Everything went smooth for me

Took less than five minutes

[kineneb]

15. voted this morning, no problems

same old "fill-in-the-little-rectangle" ballot as always. Got my little "I voted" sticker. No ID needed; of course this being a village, I knew at least one of the people behind the table. I have reason to believe that he recognized me.

[robinlynne]

16. and more. Hundreds or thousands of people who registered to vote non-partisan, i.e. independent,

found themselves registered in the American Independent Party, a JOhn Birch Society party. They were unable to vote in the presidential primary!