Hey, US Voters!!

[e_juliana]

Are you registered to vote?

Are you sure?

Here's why I ask.

Apparently there are groups out there who buy copies of the voter registration rolls, then send in new registrations for registered voters giving them a new address. It's really a more sophisticated version of the whole thing with the felony lists in Florida in the last election - however, people aren't being REMOVED from the voting rolls, and hence there's no red flag being raised. After all, people DO move and send in change of address, so there's no reason for them to suspect voter fraud. And there's really no way to trace this, so there's really no way to detect this. But in effect what it means is voters are removed from the rolls - after all, if you're unknowingly registered in another precinct, how can you vote at yours? I was lucky...I have the job flexibility and transportation to go down to the election board and find out the problems, but I'm betting a lot of the other people with the same problems don't. And there are a lot - at my precinct, during the period we were at the polls, which was pretty slow, there were only about five or six people in and out, including us. And of those, me and one other guy found ourselves off the rolls, and one woman said she'd had the same thing happen to her during the 2000 presidential election and had to spend the entire day down at the election board.

I've asked my local election board, and they say that there's been no such complaints with them. However, given the current political climate, I think that being incredibly pro-active about your right to vote is a good way to go. So, call and check. Make sure you're eligible and registered properly.

And hey, if you're a recently naturalized citizen? Make sure that you are registered in the party you actually want to be in.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Dario Cruz has lived in the United States for 16 years, but just became a citizen last week as he and about 200 other immigrants were naturalized.

Dario Cruz takes citizenship oath at the University of North Florida last week.

One of the things he had always wanted to was register to vote, but when he was offered the chance to do that right outside the ceremony, he knew something wasn't right -- the place on the form where you're asked to choose Democrat, Republican or independent was already filled out.

"It's like one side," Cruz said. "You don't get to choose."

According to Cruz and his family, every form was checked off Republican.

Comments

[noradeirdre.livejournal.com]

GAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

Interesting to see that they know they have to resort to dirty tricks.

Interesting until I remember that dirty tricks WORKED in 2000.

Then, it's just terrifying and aggravating.

[e-juliana.livejournal.com]

Then, it's just terrifying and aggravating.

Word.