Montgomery Election Nearly Goes South (Florida invoked)

[MountainLaurel]

It's minutes until the polls close, and people are on the verge of being disenfranchised. In the sleep-deprived fluorescence of the Montgomery County Board of Elections, lawyers and party activists are baying, frantic. They're in three-conversations-at-once mode. BlackBerrys, cellphones, naked shouting. A ringtone cacophony. The communication sounds coded, crazy.

Seven-o-six has no ballots!

Thirteen-twenty-one knows nothing; they're not going to stay open past 8!

We're hearing from precincts with judges who don't know squat about this!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/13/AR2006091302219.html

[skids]

1. In the article someone asks "how could they screw that up?"

Three words: political patronage job.

Besides the outright fraud it's a problem both parties need to address. People on BoEs need to be hired for their skills, not their contacts.

[jwirr]

2. When this happens can the people sue in a class action suit

to be able to vote after the poles have closed? Some other solution? There has to be something that can be done to quarantee our right to vote.

[MountainLaurel]

4. I wish I knew

But if anywhere in the country someone would be able to sue, it would be these counties, since the DC area has one of the highest numbers of attorneys per capita.

[Kelvin Mace]

3. It's not like these people weren't warned

They were.

And this one is the complete responsibility of the Maryland Democartic party who ignored two reports, a dozen experts, and the experiences of other states.