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Scott Brown, who's all upset about election violations, encourages election violations
By adamg on Fri, 12/04/2009 - 4:38pm
David at Blue Mass. Group lays out the charges: Basically, Brown, who wants voters to show ID when they vote, is encouraging supporters to vote by absentee ballot - and to get their friends to do so - even though that would violate Massachusetts law, since in Massachusetts, absentee ballots are legally only for people who know they won't be able to get to the polls on Election Day - not for people who just feel like voting early.
Free tagging:
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Comments
Huh?
Upset at whom? And while I'm here, how about some love for Liam Clancy, who passed away today in Ireland?
Still?
Your headline reads, in part, "who's all upset at about election violations." Look closely - The Editor doesn't bust out his virtual red pen for no reason.
Brown not upset about election violations; he wants law changed
Your title says that Brown is "upset about election violations." But that's not what he's arguing -- he wants the law changed so that people are required to show their ID, not that he's upset people are getting away with violating current election law. The BMG link references to text that Brown "has tried repeatedly to persuade the Legislature to support statewide voter identification."
Voting by absentee ballot ,
Voting by absentee ballot , by those really committed to a candidate is a stupid thing to do to begin with. They get left off those surveys that organizations do and they also only get counted if needed. I feel it inihibits the momentum of the race for the candidate.
AVs go in the pot
In MA, our absentee ballots are scanned as though the voter showed up at the poll. They come in an envelope to the proper poll, the clerk or warden opens them, checks them in and out on voter lists and runs them into the scanner.
The only way they don't count is if the voter goofs up (like voting for more than legit number of candidates). If a present voter does that, there are up to two more ballot tries to get it right. If you goof up on a mailed-in ballot, there's not much to be done.
Are you confusing absentee ballots with provisional ballots?
Absentee ballots count exactly the same as in-person ballots do. Provisional ballots might only be counted if there is a need for them and they are verified as eligible to vote.
I'd write something nasty about this idiot, but
I don't want him to come to my high school and yell at me in front of my friends.
Unlike Democrats, right?
"Sunshine State Democrats - mindful of the fiasco in 2000 which gave the Presidency to George W. Bush - are being urged daily to vote early or by absentee ballot to provide a huge cushion of Blue votes before November 4th."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ron-levitt/absentee-...
Hypocrite.
Different states, different laws, dude
Some states actually encourage people to vote by mail (doesn't Oregon have mail-only elections in some cases now?). Massachusetts isn't one of them. So it's not hypocritical to ask that a candidate here conform with laws that may not apply elsewhere.
I think we should encourage
I think we should encourage people to vote early, especially since I am apparently wrong in my thinking that the absentee ballots were not counted automaticly. I still think it does not help with the momentum of the campaign because they are kept away from pollsters and people at the polls holding signs, in a way voting early is much less dramatic and public.
I can see why politicians would not want people to vote early. For starters the more time they have to get to you the better. It is easier to build a machine around getting people out to vote for one day. If people can start voting weeks in advance that confuses things a little bit, you now can not get to this person. Considering that many people do not get involved in campaigns until late in the campaign season you may be getting your volunteers just as crucial every election voters are voting for a candidate. Seeing as how politicians make the rules, I do not see them changing the dynamics anytime soon.
The Truth
As a person who has volunteered 50 or so hours on the Scott Brown phone bank, I can say categorically that this is FALSE. I have, nor have I ever heard another volunteer, encourage a voter to vote by absentee ballot. The "script" used on the phone calls requires us to ask if they willo be available to get to the polls on January 19. If they are out of state, or if they are disabled, we offer to order them an absentee ballot.
In my experience, I have requested only one absentee ballot, for an 87 year old woman who couldn't get around without a walker and was deathly afraid to go out of her house for fear of falling and breaking her hip. She feared January weather....
Please tell the truth. Lying to get support for your cause is unethical.