Kerry left off some absentee ballots

[Sirius]

Some absentee ballots distributed to Hamilton County voters do not include the name of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry, local election officials confirmed today.

http://www.cincypost.com/2004/10/18/absen101804.html

 

[Royalbear]

I hate that that happened. However, when I go to the polls, or fill in my absentee ballott, if the candidate I am planning to vote for is not there, I will raise a stink. I mean, the presidential election is easy. However, this could happen to lesser candidates (ie dog warden candidates) and I wouldn't know that they were left off the ballot. Then there really may be a travesty of the election process.

By the way, does anyone really know who they are voting for when it comes to all those judges? My husband says he doesn't vote for anyone. I guess that is the most responsible thing you can do if you haven't researched the candidates. My mom votes for the name she likes the best.

 

[LisaZoe]

That sounds like a big OOOPPPSSS!!!

 

[LoraJ]

Doesn't anyone double check their work and make sure the ballot are correct once they are printed?

 

[LisaZoe]

It's not like he's a last minute addition either. I know here in Oregon there was some question if Nader would qualify to get on the ballot so they were not sent out until it was known for sure (he didn't make it). Kerry, though, has been a candidate for at least a month or two. I know I've heard him mentioned from time to time on the news...

 

[GaryAdams]

as i place my tin-foil hat on my head......................






its all Bushs fault!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
he did it,
ok well actually he had osama do it, gotta keep him busy till they unleash the Oct suprise and capture him.

 

[LisaZoe]

Originally posted by GaryAdams
its all Bushs fault!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
he did it,
ok well actually he had osama do it, gotta keep him busy till they unleash the Oct suprise and capture him.

Hey, we can have out conspiracy theories too.

 

[shortbun]

What the article does not tell you is that Hamilton County
is one of the largest conservative voter counties in our state.
I believe Kenneth Blackwell is very honest but I've got my
doubts about election officials in Hamilton County. This is
going to be very interesting. Watch Ohio. While I'm thrilled
by this election and very happy that my son gets to watch
it all come down, things like this and election officials saying,
"mistakes happen", don't give me such a charge. The punch
ballot thing is going to be big here too. Over 95,000 votes
were not counted in Ohio's 2000 election due to punch ballot error. No effort was made to change this problem over the last
four years either. Where do punch ballots get used in Ohio-you guessed it, predominantly poor and African American precincts. And who do those people normally cast their votes for? Yep, Democrats.
Watch Ohio for more irregularity.

 

[momof2inPA]

Ken Blackwell made a commercial for the coming election about voting carefully, even poking a little fun at a certain state by telling people to watch out for "Florida" hanging chads. Well, now I guess he can call these "Ohio" screwed up ballots

 

[Mamu]

I wonder if a Republican owns the company that printed the ballots. What ever happened to proof reading, kind of suspicious.

 

[Mermaid02]

I heard this last night- Does anyone really think it was done purposely? I can't believe anyone would be so stupid to think they could get away with this. I hope people wrote Kerry in if they wanted to vote for him, or said something to someone instead of just picking from the candidates listed!

 

[Royalbear]

You are insulting African Americans and poor Ohioans if you believe that they are incapable of noticing that a candidate they wish to vote for is missing from a ballot.

Or are you counting on the ABB (anbody but Bush) factor to get your candidate to win? Then, they wouldn't have to know who they were voting for, they would just vote for the candidate who isn't Bush.

By the way, I am from a middle class Ohio neighborhood and we have punch balloting--no computers or fancy machines. You can bet I will be checking my card this election to make sure my votes are counted.

Better yet, maybe I will take advantage of the "anywhere in the county" ruling to vote at several places of my choice. My father works at the polls and he sees this ruling as an absolute invitation to disaster--there is no way to tell if someone has voted at one place before they vote at another with the archaic system our board of elections has.

 

[momof2inPA]

Originally posted by Royalbear
You are insulting African Americans and poor Ohioans if you believe that they are incapable of noticing that a candidate they wish to vote for is missing from a ballot.

What are you talking about? No one was being insulted until you posted, except maybe Ken Blackwell.

 

[Royalbear]

Where do punch ballots get used in Ohio-you guessed it, predominantly poor and African American precincts. And who do those people normally cast their votes for? Yep, Democrats.

Well, it wasn't about the Hamilton county ballot, but it seems to me, AA and the predominantly poor are capable of learning from Florida's mistake just as much as anyone else. If they want their vote to count, they will check their punch cards just like I will.

 

[Disney1fan2002]

One thing I noticed on the ballot above, it does not have any spots for "write in" votes. Here in Mass, I have always seen the canidates to choose from, and then a "write in" box so we can vote for Mickey Mouse if we wanted to. Why does this ballot not offer that?

If Bush was left off the ballot here, I would just write him in.

Sorry this happened. Man, can we ever have an election without controversy?

 

[Gary M]

Is Cincinnati in Hamilton County? Jerry Springer was mayor of Cincy several years ago so maybe that explains it.

 

[Geoff_M]

Yes... and a few weeks ago it was discovered that Bush/Cheney were left off of some ballots in Missouri. People didn't run here to post that... give it a rest.

Bush, Cheney Left Off Mo. County Ballots

Thu Oct 7,10:01 PM ET

VAN BUREN, Mo. - Officials in one Missouri county are reprinting absentee ballots for the Nov. 2 general election after discovering that President Bush (news - web sites) and Vice President Dick Cheney (news - web sites) were left off.

The ballots were mailed beginning Sept. 21, and Carter County Clerk Becky Gibbs said several voters noticed the oversight.

"We are rectifying it," she said. "There was no intent to leave them off."

Fewer than 500 of the erroneous ballots were sent out, and some have already been returned.

Replacement ballots will be sent to everyone who requested an absentee ballot along with a letter explaining the error.

Terri Durdaller, spokeswoman for the Secretary of State, said that if absentee voters who previously returned a ballot send a new one, it will replace the previous one. If they don't return a new ballot, their first one will be counted.

"The key is just to make sure everybody does get the changed ballot," Durdaller said.

Ballots that other voters will use Nov. 2 have not been printed yet.

Gibbs said the cost to print replacement absentee ballots should be minimal.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/ap/brf_ballot_error

 

[year2late]

I see no conspiracy here.

I just have visons of the person who proof read it being added to the unemployment roster - can you collect unemplyment when you are fired?

 

[Gary M]

A couple of simple things could help in the integrity of elections.

1) Have all people who register to vote the first time, show proof of who they are and that they are legal voters. I don't know if all areas give voter registration cards or not, but I have one in my wallet. Give the card to legal voters and include a barcode on it with the proper info decided upon.

2) When a person votes show your voters ID card along with a picture ID. Run the barcode through the computer to show the person has voted.

3) To help keep a person from registering more than once and voting more than once have a nationwide system to check all registered voters and prosecute all cheaters.

4) Have the attorney generals office in each state approve the legality of all ballots. The chairpersons of each party in every county will approve the printed(names of candidates) ballots before being used.

I know this will not stop all cheating, but will help. If we can spend billions of dollars in foreign countries, we surely can afford to take our voting system into the 21st. century. It seems that both sides are suspicious of the voting system. I wonder if the politicians want reform, it doesn't look like it.

 

[Missy1961]

Originally posted by Gary M
A couple of simple things could help in the integrity of elections.

1) Have all people who register to vote the first time, show proof of who they are and that they are legal voters. I don't know if all areas give voter registration cards or not, but I have one in my wallet. Give the card to legal voters and include a barcode on it with the proper info decided upon.

2) When a person votes show your voters ID card along with a picture ID. Run the barcode through the computer to show the person has voted.

3) To help keep a person from registering more than once and voting more than once have a nationwide system to check all registered voters and prosecute all cheaters.

4) Have the attorney generals office in each state approve the legality of all ballots. The chairpersons of each party in every county will approve the printed(names of candidates) ballots before being used.

I know this will not stop all cheating, but will help. If we can spend billions of dollars in foreign countries, we surely can afford to take our voting system into the 21st. century. It seems that both sides are suspicious of the voting system. I wonder if the politicians want reform, it doesn't look like it.

Great ideas! At the very least, you should need to show photo ID before you vote.