Election Monitoring in 2004: Notes from the Field III

read part 2
read part 1

There were, of course, real problems also – things that I didn't see myself, but that I heard about from other poll workers around the country. Some of them were really scary stories about voter intimidation. How would you feel if when you drove up to your polling cite there was a person there writing down your license plate number and who-knows-what information about you? There were polling sites where people were told that they couldn't vote if they had outstanding parking tickets. There were even sites where people were warned that their papers with the INS would have to be checked over after they voted. I don't know what you would think if someone told you that, but if it was me I'd think I'd better be safe and not vote at all.

Simplest of all – and scariest, too – was the polling sites where official-looking individuals in dark suits standing near the entrance to the site with a clipboard. They didn’t even have to be writing anything, but the feeling of being watched made the air electric around them. No one wants to be put under a microscope – especially when they’re doing something as personal as voting.

For some of the problems we saw, we were only about to record them and report about them to the press – at the least, this made sure that people knew what was happening. At other times, though, we were able to get in touch with election officials who would then send the trouble-makers away.

Remember – the right to vote is a right ALL Americans have. A lot of people don’t know this, and we need people there to tell them – otherwise, folks from the other side end up keeping them away. No one should be afraid to vote because their CAR isn’t properly registered (and yes, that happened too). When you’ve got poll watchers there, those things aren’t as likely to happen.

We learned a lot from the 2004 elections. We might not have been able to stop every problem at the polls, but we exposed the voter suppression that has been going on for years, largely unnoticed. The more people we get this time around, the better the election will run in two weeks. Here in Virginia and across the country, we need election monitors to make sure that we can keep accidents from happening at the polls, keep the other side honest, and make sure that no one gets away with the honest-to-god-scams that someone will almost certainly try.

This time around, every vote is going to count. We’ve seen the problems before, we know what to look for, and we’re ready for it. So get out and vote, email us if you’re interested in volunteering as an election monitor, and let’s win this thing on nov. 7th!

The more stories we can get out, the more we’ll be ready for this election, so please comment and let everyone know what you’ve faced if you’ve ever worked as an election monitor.

Stay tuned for more stories from the field...

Election Day Monitoring 2004: Notes from the Field I

Right now we're going to step into the way-back machine, and take a look at how things used to be. This post will be the first in a series of posts from people who've worked as election monitors in the past. By hearing their stories, by listening to the challenges they faced, their failures and successes, we can be that much more prepared this time around.

I was placed in a very rural part of the country – my town was probably 2,000 people. Polls were opened and closed by people identified with one party or another – because in such a small town, everyone knows everyone, and there's only so many people to work the polls. I'm sure this is the same all in small towns all over the country, and that's fine. It just makes having someone from both parties at every polling site very important.

First of all, I think it's important to remember that people who volunteer their time to sit at a polling place all day have very good intentions. I wish more people were like that. I wish more people gave back to the democratic process the way these people do.

That said, I saw things, and heard about things, that we all need to be careful of. This year in Virginia, we can make sure that every vote is counted the way it should be.

A common problem that we faced was people not being allowed to vote because they weren't registered to vote at that particular polling place. Poll watchers were able to inform voters that they could go to a central location and find out where he or she was in fact registered to vote. Procedures vary from state to state, but many people were turned away from polling because of this issue.

... to be continued

Do you have any stories from the polls that you'd like to share? Any challenges you've faced? The more we know, the better prepared we can all be.