Los Angeles: Friday, March 7th Hearing on the February Primary Vote

[Wilms]

Hearing on the February Primary Vote

Join Secretary of State Debra Bowen for a Joint Informational Hearing by these California state government committees:
Assembly Committee on Elections & Redistricting;
Senate Committee on Elections, Reapportionment and Constitutional Amendments;
Senate Select Committee on Integrity of Elections;

Regarding Problems Faced by Voters in the Feb. 5 Presidential Primary Election.

Friday, March 7, 2008
1:00pm - 4:00pm
Ronald Reagan State Building Auditorium
300 South Spring Street
Los Angeles, CA 90013

Please arrive early if you plan to testify. If you encountered problems during the February primary:
SPEAK UP about your Election Day experience, if there was a snafu... SPEAK UP about problems that need to be addressed.

SHOW UP to support your fellow citizens who lost their vote and their voice on Election Day.

There will be time allotted for public testimony. If you experienced or know of any problems on this past election day, WE URGE YOU to prepare a short testimony (have it on paper to hand in, in case you don't get on the roster.) And, yes, there were problems. Now, why did we have them?

You've undoubtedly heard of the massive voter disenfranchisement of those non-partisan voters (at least 50,000, likely many more) who wished to vote Democratic in the recent primary election: they unfairly had to take an extra step (marking a special ballot entry, or "bubble") which was unknown even to huge numbers of poll workers. Less reported by the press were other problems, including absentee ballots that never arrived in time and unusually high registration problems.

What you likely don't know is that, at separate meetings, multiple activists warned the County Registrar's staff of potential trouble from the extra "bubble" EIGHT DAYS BEFORE the election-- plenty of time for meaningful alerts to be sent to every poll inspector. One especially prescient citizen suggested that the electronic readers used to check for voting errors be programmed to check for this extra bubble - a warning that was ignored (hey, those machines only cost you $25,000,000 - oh well).

[diva77]

1. Dastardly timing: Logan asks Board to "declare official" the vote 3 days before the hearing!!

Item 13 on the LA County Bd of Supervisors agenda for the March 4:

http://bos.co.la.ca.us/Categories/Agenda/cms1_084413.html



13.Recommendation: Declare Official the results of the Presidential Primary
Election held February 5, 2008. NOTE: Documentation not available at
printing of agenda. Documents expected to be available in the
Executive Office on Monday, March 3, 2008. (Registrar-Recorder/County
Clerk) (08-0458)
:mad:

People should go to the Board Mtg. on Mar. 4th and speak out!!!

[JanusAscending]

2. What????

I thought I read on DU that they were beginning to count all those "extra bubble" ballots by hand !!! That's the reason I'm in your forum tonight. I was looking to see if there were any results yet. Now what's up with this turn of events ???

[diva77]

4. it's typical behavior for LA County elections officials & the Bd of Supes

they'll do anything to keep elections results & elections officials (i.e. McCormack & Logan) from scrutiny

a fellow DU'er calculated that the # of undervotes in the Feb. 5th primary in LA County totaled 226,711

which according to her, is a whopping 10.38% undervote rate.

[diva77]

5. not sure whether those numbers are correct -- will update tomorrow hopefully

am awaiting clarification from other election integrity watchdogs...:hangover:

[robinlynne]

7. They did NOT count them by hand. they counted some of them, by machine!

Although they were given 3 separate proposals of ways to count all the ballots, they chose not to.

[kster]

3. K&R..nt

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

6. thats the largest loss of votes EVER in the US

you guys have been screwed royally and the media is silent!!!

[robinlynne]

8. We have been sending out press releases and only 2 radio stations were interested, so far.

[diva77]

9. Link to Friday's hearing

http://www.senate.ca.gov/ftp/SEN/COMMITTEE/STANDING/EL/_home/HEARINGS.HTP

[rumpel]

10. thanks, diva

I am coming in late to this...

Hats off, and great work to everyone!

I don't know, but is this not the first time citizens stood up and voiced their concerns and be "really" heard in such a big way?

I am proud of all of you.

:yourock: