RED ALERT: Federal Observers And Monitors Heading To Polls - CNN

[WillyT]

<snip>

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Justice Department plans to dispatch more than 800 federal observers and monitors to 20 states to protect voting rights in potentially troubled polling locations, officials announced Tuesday. That is a record number of federal officials watching polling stations in an off-year election.

"Yes, the anticipated closeness of races is one factor in our decisions about where we'll be sending people," said Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Wan Kim. Kim said he would not identify until Monday the more than 65 cities and counties to which the observers will be sent.

The locations where federal observers will be stationed are selected because of past polling problems, an uneasy history among ethnically or racially diverse groups, or where fears and allegations of potential violations are asserted. The Justice Department is reluctant to make public plans for elections observers. One official said that is because observers are viewed, in part, as frontline collectors of data that could be used to construct cases against local jurisdictions.

An influential non-governmental group, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, has asked the Justice Department to send monitors to seven locations in Alabama where black candidates are challenging white candidates. The organization also asked for monitors in Alaska where, it said, "the Native Alaskan community faces multiple barriers to voting access."

The group also called on Attorney General Alberto Gonzales to watch for problems at locations in Arizona, Louisiana, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Virginia. The group's concern in Virginia is centered on Chesterfield County, where in 2004 armed guards were placed at polls to "ward off terrorists." Would-be voters were incorrectly told while in line that they needed an identification card to vote.

<snip>

Link: http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/10/31/justice.elections/

Hmmm... November Surprise perhaps???

:shrug:

[951-Riverside]

1. *yawn* Really doesnt mean anything.

[WillyT]

12. Oh... There's All Sorts Of Things That Mean NOTHING !!!

:evilgrin:

[alittlelark]

27. uh, yeah..... The same Justice dept that legalized TORTURE

will ensure that our votes are tallied correctly!!!!


I feel sooooo swell about that!!!!:D ....:mad: :puke: :eyes: :mad: :mad: :mad:




edited for lame grammar.

[rurallib]

2. Why would we trust someone from the Justice Department?

I mean Alberto "the torturer" Gonzalez and friends?

[BobRossi]

3. Will they be wearing brown shirts?

Likely there to ward off the likes of Bev Harris.

[april]

4. take a camera when you vote!!!

[bdamomma]

8. Report anything you see that does not look right to your Election board.

[Quixote1818]

5. {"armed guards were placed at polls to "ward off terrorists."}

So are they going to say their is a terrorst threat if you go vote? :wtf:

[bdamomma]

6. Is the ACLU going to be included in this?

[Quixote1818]

7. And so these ass holes are going to say everything was peachy keen

and everything was on the up and up, when thousands come forward about voter fraud?


"Everything looked fine and dandy to me. I didn't see any wrong doing" They will say.

:mad:

[bdamomma]

9. under the direction of Gonsalves they probably say that.

[meldroc]

10. This is worth nothing. I don't trust the feds anymore.

Not when people like Gonzales, Cheney and Bush are the bosses.

[stillcool]

11. "challenge"

I'm not sure if they're laying it on now, so that anyone with a natural fear of the law will stay home, or if these 'challenges' are going to play a bigger role in our voting experience.
OHIO POLLING PLACE ALERT
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2923241

GOP already challenging voters in NY state Senate battleground
By JIM FITZGERALD
Associated Press Writer
October 30, 2006, 7:18 PM EST

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- Apparently anticipating another close election next week, Republicans have already begun challenging the right of some registered voters to cast ballots in the 35th state Senate district, where Nicholas Spano won re-election by just 18 votes two years ago.

This year's race is a rematch, with the Democrats again nominating Andrea Stewart-Cousins, the Westchester County legislator who put a scare into Spano and the state Republican hierarchy and set off a recount that lasted three months in the Yonkers-dominated district. As in 2004, the district is considered a key to Democrats' hopes of closing the GOP's margin in the Senate, now 35-27.
During the recount, GOP lawyers successfully challenged hundreds of paper ballots cast by likely Stewart-Cousins voters. This year, they have filed 5,929 challenges based on change-of-address cards received by the U.S. Postal Service

Spano spokesman Anthony Giambruno said the challenge "isn't ours, it's the lawyers"' and referred calls to Ciampoli.
Two deputy commissioners at the Westchester County Board of Elections, Republican Melissa Nacerino and Democrat Jeannie Palazola, said in a joint phone interview that the board had no choice but to immediately act on each of the affidavits, which all are signed by the same person.
If a challenged address matches the voter rolls, the board sends first-class and certified letters to each person. If the letters come back undelivered, police are asked to visit the address and see if the registered voter lives there.
The elections workers said the process could not be completed before Election Day, which is Nov. 7, but files would be kept on challenged voters and their votes could be challenged after the election.

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny...

Ohio election officials said that by state law, the parties' challengers would have to show "reasonable" justification for doubting the qualifications of a voter before asking a poll worker to question that person. And, the officials said, challenges could be made on four main grounds: whether the voter is a citizen, is at least 18, is a resident of the county and has lived in Ohio for the previous 30 days.

The purpose of a challenge is to question the eligibility of a voter to vote at that precinct.
An election judge and an authorized challenger or other voter?may challenge an individual whom the person knows or has reason to believe is not eligible to vote at that precinct. Minnesota statutes 204C.07 and 204C.12 address challenges to voters.
Challenger Appointment
Partisan appointments - Major political parties can appoint voters from that party to act as challengers.
Non-Partisan appointments - Non partisan candidates can appoint voters to act as challengers at the polling place for each precinct.
Only one challenger for each candidate or from each party is allowed in the polling place at any given time.

[WillyT]

13. Anyway To Get A Little 'K & R' On This One, Please???

:shrug:

Wouldn't normally ask, but there IS an election coming up.

Thanks

:hi:

[smokey nj]

14. K&R

[Straight Shooter]

17. K&R

'cuz you asked so sweetly. :)

[coffeenap]

15. k and r

[ralps]

16. K&R, Thanks WillyT

:hi: :loveya: :hug: :pals: :woohoo:

[EFerrari]

18. I don't know anything about this group. Would have to check with

the NAACP to know if they're legit or one of those RW groups with an Orwellian name. :shrug:

K&R for more info!

[Ellipsis]

20. Leadership Conference on Civil Rights info

The Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR) was founded in 1950 by three giants of the civil rights movement —A. Philip Randolph, founder of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters; Roy Wilkins, Executive Secretary of the NAACP; and Arnold Aronson, a leader of the National Jewish Community Relations Advisory Council. It is the nation's premier civil rights coalition, and has coordinated the national legislative campaign on behalf of every major civil rights law since 1957. LCCR consists of more than 192 national organizations, representing persons of color, women, children, labor unions, individuals with disabilities, older Americans, major religious groups, gays and lesbians and civil liberties and human rights groups. Its mission: to promote the enactment and enforcement of effective civil rights legislation and policy.

http://www.civilrights.org/about/lccr/

[EFerrari]

21. Thank you!

:)

[bleever]

23. Look at their voter empowerment cards.

I don't like the happy "Go ahead and vote on a provisional ballot!" part.

Maybe I'm too suspicious. Maybe I'm not suspicious enough.

[upi402]

19. remain silent as your vote flips or you will be disappeared

these are the camels nose under the tent and a Saddam style vote is in the offing.

Or maybe I'm just paranoid like I was 20 years ago when I started sounding my own loony little red alerts too.

You're right WillyT. Beware this government election monitoring, I say.

[bleever]

22. What is the overlap between this DOJ effort and Rove's mobilization

of political appointees and operatives?

When did this DOJ ever go out of its way to ensure that every vote counted?

This stinks from the get-go.

[valerief]

24. Will they microwave us if we try to vote Dem? nt

[Change has come]

25. K&R

[babylonsister]

26. I read this a week ago, I think. Good, so they will monitor

their own?
In the meantime, Dems have 7,000 (?) lawyers on hand and poll watchers.
Let's rumble.
It won't be ignored this time.

[farmboxer]

28. Fox guarding the hen house!

Republicans monitoring the election?!

[SoCalDemGrrl]

29. Uh Oh! I'm from the government and I'm here to help.. we're screwed

[WillyT]

30. Morning Kick !!!

:kick:

[mom cat]

31. Calling on Gonzales is like asking the fox to investigate the

chicken massacre.

[WillyT]

32. Kick !!!

:kick:

[goforit]

33. 800 riggers!!! Is that reality DUrs?