Wednesday, December 08, 2004
New Report Blasts Myth of "Smooth" Election
Members of the nonpartisan Election Protection coalition have
released a preliminary report, "Shattering the Myth: An Initial Snapshot of Voter Disenfranchisement in the 2004 Elections."
"The idea that the election ran smoothly, the idea that the problems we saw in 2000 did not recur in 2004, is simply a crock," said Ralph G. Neas, President, People For the American Way Foundation. "Too many people faced too many barriers to the ballot box, from impossibly long lines to outright voter intimidation and misinformation. It's time to shatter the myth and work toward an election system that is more fair and more reliable for every American."
The report highlights widespread systemic problems, not just isolated incidents. In addition to the long lines and unreasonable waiting times that kept many people - disproportionately urban minority voters - from being able to vote, the top five problems overall were registration processing, absentee ballots, machine errors, voter intimidation and suppression, and problems with the use and counting of the new provisional ballots mandated under new federal law.
Among the most disturbing reports were the more than a thousand reports of voter suppression or intimidation at the polls, including:
released a preliminary report, "Shattering the Myth: An Initial Snapshot of Voter Disenfranchisement in the 2004 Elections."
"The idea that the election ran smoothly, the idea that the problems we saw in 2000 did not recur in 2004, is simply a crock," said Ralph G. Neas, President, People For the American Way Foundation. "Too many people faced too many barriers to the ballot box, from impossibly long lines to outright voter intimidation and misinformation. It's time to shatter the myth and work toward an election system that is more fair and more reliable for every American."
The report highlights widespread systemic problems, not just isolated incidents. In addition to the long lines and unreasonable waiting times that kept many people - disproportionately urban minority voters - from being able to vote, the top five problems overall were registration processing, absentee ballots, machine errors, voter intimidation and suppression, and problems with the use and counting of the new provisional ballots mandated under new federal law.
Among the most disturbing reports were the more than a thousand reports of voter suppression or intimidation at the polls, including:
- Police stationed outside a Cook County, Illinois polling place requesting photo ID and telling voters if they had been convicted of a felony that they could not vote.
- In Arizona voters at multiple polls were confronted by an individual wearing a black tee shirt with "US Constitution Enforcer" and a military-style belt that gave the appearance he was armed. He asked voters if they were citizens, accompanied by a cameraman who filmed the encounters.
- Numerous incidents of intimidation by partisan challengers at predominately low-income and minority precincts
- Misinformation campaigns delivered through anonymous flyers or phone calls with a variety of intimidating or vote-suppressing messages, advising voters to go to the polls on November 3rd rather than November 2, or giving other false information on voting rights. A few of the most outrageous examples include:
- "If you already voted in any election this year, you can't vote in the Presidential Election."
- "If anybody in your family has ever been found guilty of anything you can't vote in the Presidential Election."
- "If you violate any of these laws, you can get 10 years in prison and your children will be taken away from you."
- "If you already voted in any election this year, you can't vote in the Presidential Election."
Thursday, December 02, 2004
Jesse Jackson In Ohio
On November 28, Rev. Jesse Jackson came to Ohio and raised the issue of the Ohio presidential election back into national attention. He said that A GOP "pattern of intentionality" was behind the suspect outcome, which cast serious doubt on George W. Bush's assumed victory.
"We can live with losing an election," Jackson said. "We cannot live with fraud and stealing." He stressed that the underlying issue was "the integrity of the vote" for which "too many have died."
Jackson will return to Ohio for a rally on the Statehouse Lawn at 1 p.m. on Saturday, 2004. Also speaking will be Greg Palast (journalist and author of The Best Democracy Money Can Buy), Ian Solomon (Dean of Yale School of Law), Bill Moss (former Columbus school board member), Bob Fitrakis (Columbus Free Press), Reuben Herrera (Adelante - Latino/Latina Democrats), Anita Rios (Green Party), Cliff Arnebeck (lead litigant in the Contest of Election suit) and Jad Hummeidan (Council on American Islamic Relations).
"We can live with losing an election," Jackson said. "We cannot live with fraud and stealing." He stressed that the underlying issue was "the integrity of the vote" for which "too many have died."
Jackson will return to Ohio for a rally on the Statehouse Lawn at 1 p.m. on Saturday, 2004. Also speaking will be Greg Palast (journalist and author of The Best Democracy Money Can Buy), Ian Solomon (Dean of Yale School of Law), Bill Moss (former Columbus school board member), Bob Fitrakis (Columbus Free Press), Reuben Herrera (Adelante - Latino/Latina Democrats), Anita Rios (Green Party), Cliff Arnebeck (lead litigant in the Contest of Election suit) and Jad Hummeidan (Council on American Islamic Relations).
