Thousands of troops may not get voting materials in time (CA)

[phoebe]

Concern is mounting that thousands of overseas U.S. troops might not get voting materials in time to cast ballots in the California recall election.

Many are National Guard members who didn't think about filling out absentee ballot requests when they left home. They didn't expect to be gone long and had no idea an election would occur.

Adding to the confusion is the election's tight time frame and the delay in getting military mail to America. County election offices must receive ballots by 8 p.m. Oct. 7.

snip

"They're helping a foreign country develop democracy and yet they can't even participate in their own democracy," she said. "I find that ironic and insulting."

more

http://www.bayarea.com/mld/cctimes/news/special_packages/davis_recall/6744293.htm

[demdave]

1. This is unacceptable, there should be a quick and easy way for them

to vote. All people in the armed forces should be cut some slack when it comes to voting. They are in the service to this country and do not have control over where they will be and when. Simple procedural nitpicking should never invalidate their votes. The arguements over postmarks on military ballots in the Florida election was disgusting and a slap in the face to our servicemen and women. It should not happen again.

[Bridget Burke]

2. There should be a way to get them ballots

To be completed within the legally designated time frame. The technology is available.

I doubt the government will be quite so anxious to help. One might guess that the military vote is no longer considered monolithically Republican. (If it ever actually was.)

[tlcandie]

3. Use some of that $87 billion?

:shrugs:

[Judi Lynn]

8. Florida has a history of absentee vote fraud

There was every reason in the world to question all ballots in the Presidential election coming from this area. The vote fraud history in Florida, centering on absentee ballots is LEGENDARY.

People would be wise to try to seperate the truth from the blatant lies on this issue:

(snip) The charges in the mayoral race centered around allegations that addresses and names of Florida voters were falsified and altered by campaign staffers shared by Suarez and then city commissioner Humberto Hernandez. The case was originally reported by the Miami Herald, which won a Pulitzer Prize for its coverage. Hernandez -- along with thirteen other volunteers and city officials -- was found guilty of the charges and received a 364 day prison sentence for his crimes.

Both Hernandez and Suarez were members of Dade County's ultra-conservative Cuban-American Community, which vociferously charged racism and anti-Cuban bias amongst the prosecution. Roberto Pineiro, the judge in the Hernandez case, said at the time that the defendant attempted to "deflect the focus of the vote-fraud investigation by playing…the race card."

The charges and ensuing controversy resulted in the ousting of Suarez as the city's mayor and the beginning of years of legal wrangling and back-and-forth accusations, with Suarez to this day claiming he is still the rightful mayor of Miami. While Suarez was intensively investigated by the Dade County Prosecutor's Office, he was never charged or officially found guilty of any wrongdoing.

However, a civil case was later brought by eleven Dade County absentee voters and resulted in overturning the Suarez election. In that case, the jury found that Suarez and his staff did engage in vote fraud, specifically tampering with 5,000 absentee ballots. In an interview this morning, Suarez told FEED that he was "in no way involved in any wrongdoing," and boldly promised to run for the office yet again in the next election.

What is most stunning, though, is that Suarez now sits on the executive committee of the Miami-Dade Republican party and was specifically involved this year in helping get out the Republican vote. Suarez, who told FEED that he is working to become the committee's chairman, said that leading up to last night's election he "helped fill out absentee ballot forms and enlist Republican absentee voters in Miami-Dade County." If the 2000 or so disputed votes in the Palm Beach area are in fact returned from Buchanan to Gore, these same ballots may very well decide the presidential election in the coming hours.

"Dade County Republicans have a very specific expertise in getting out absentee ballots," he said. "I obviously have specific experience in this myself." (snip/...)

http://216.239.57.104/search?q=cache:IdKa77kXu_cJ:www.commonplacebook.com/features/absentee.shtm+Florida+vote+fraud+absentee+ballots&hl=en&ie=UTF-8

[pw]

9. We know who the voters in question are

So just deliver the ballots to them and help them get sent back. The request is kinda implicit...

[Noordam]

4. The ACLU tried to delay this election over things like this

BUT OH NO the Repugs had to have it NOW.

[MaineDem]

5. "Many ... didn't think about filling out absentee ballot requests"

Well, duh, there wasn't an election scheduled when they left.

This whole recall election is absurd; every aspect of it.

[demdave]

6. I really don't care about the ACLU, the 87billion or the absurdity of the

recall. There is a much larger issue here. The people in the armed forces should have a way to vote for their local dogcatcher if that is the election on the ballot. This is not a recent problem, it has a history and deserves serious action and concern.

[BiggJawn]

7. The ReTHUGS KNOW they're toast on this one...

Because if they thought they had a ghost of a chance, you BET they'd make sure all those good, ReTHUGlican supporting (hey, GI, WHO is the one keeping you over there?) soldiers would have a chance to "participate" and vote for AHH-Nuld....

[DemVet]

10. This is bad and good

Bad - these people don't get to vote.

Good - their votes would overwhelmingly be for Arnold. As former military, I can guarantee you that.

[demdave]

11. You think it is a good thing to just not let the opposition's votes count?

You are such a splendid progressive /sarcasm/

I guess we really have sunk to their level.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

13. I don't think it's a good thing but remember these arguments were

contained in the ACLU's case which was first filed before the primarily republican supreme court of California who decided that was not enough of an issue to hold off the election until March..if anyone disinfranchised these troops..it was not the Democratic party but their own...

[demdave]

14. I have gone out of my way to point out it is not a partisan issue for me

This is about people in the service of our country getting to vote, not about pointing fingers.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

16. It is a partisan issue though....the entire recall is a partisan issue and

therefore, the military votes are a partisan issue..the Supreme Court was so partisan in the denial to hear ANY argument for when the recall should occur that they disenfrachised the military vote in the meantime.

[David__77]

12. Hopefully the 9th Circuit takes this into consideration.

We must uphold all voters' rights. We'll see how determined people are to defend these rights. I heard a rightist say yesterday that "voting is a privelige, not a right" yesterday. That's fascist-type nonsense. That's why we have the Voting RIGHTS Act, to answer those like this man who would deny the RIGHT to vote.

[TrogL]

15. Now they know what disenfrachisement feels like

Too far away

[teryang]

17. Someone voted for me

I registered in Virginia in 1984, then went into the Army 1985, I was stateside for about two years in Texas. Then I was stationed in Korea for about three years. Then I moved around awhile in Georgia and Florida. I moved to the Virginia area in 1991 to get a government job. The entire time I was in the military I didn't vote once. When I returned to the county election office in Virginia, I was told that I didn't need to register to vote because my I had voted in the last general election and two years had not elapsed since. That would be 1990. I hadn't been in the state over six years. For my registration to be current it meant that someone had voted for me in 1996, 1998 and 1990. I know I've told this story several times but it bears repeating.