I think I know how dead people vote... (1 Viewer)

[Bill Slack]

Don't talk about actual voting here... I'm just curious if other people run into this:

I went to vote today, and they asked me my address. Turned to the page, I pointed to me name. And that was it! No need to show ID or anything crazy like that, in order to vote.

This is actually the first time I've ever voted (I'm a bit ashamed to say) but it kinda freaked me out. I asked one of my friends, and she gets the same thing -- but the person at the polling place is aquainted with her, so it's a little different. These people had no idea who I actually was. Is this typical??

 

[Jeremy Brown]

Here in NY (my part anyway), they have you sign your name, and they compare it to your signature for when you registered. They still don't ask for ID, but it's better than what you've got.

 

[Todd Hochard]

Weird. I have to show valid ID, with address that matches the registration. And, the signatures are compared with what's the registration record.
See, not EVERYTHING is screwed up in FL.

 

[Clinton McClure]

When I used to vote, all you had to do was tell them your name.

 

[Patrick Sun]

Really? No DNA swab of the inside of your mouth? What's the world coming to?

 

[Lee L]

In NC all you have to do is state your full name and address. I guess if you knew someone who was out of town you could go to their precinct and vote for them. The reason many states have what we consider lax voter ID proceedures is because of the days when some states and towns, ashamedly so, my own, tried to make it as difficult as possible for certain segments of the population to vote, 99% of the time it was to keep African Americans from voting. The legislators and local voting officials had all kinds of stringent requirements designed to be able to be applied to those who they did not want to vote. When the Civil Rights movement changed all that, the states had to pass state laws that overrode local ordinances and basically eliminated all roadblocks to voting. Now it seems we have realized things have gone too far the other way.

 

[Malcolm R]

All I do is tell them my name. They cross it off and hand me a ballot. No address, no ID, nothing but verbal name.

I've actually contemplated voting twice by also using my father's name, as he seldom votes except for President.

 

[JamieD]

Really? No DNA swab of the inside of your mouth? What's the world coming to?

Could have used a smiley there.


2 words. Fingerprint Database. Fixes a number of potential security issues.

 

[Jeff Kleist]

The head of polls here has known me since I was a baby, no need for iD

 

[Moe Maishlish]

If it makes you guys feel any better, it's pretty much the same deal here in Canada (well, at least in Toronto).
Basically, you tell the person your name, they check it off, hand you a ballott, you vote, you place said ballot into the ballot box, and you leave.
Of course, if I told them my name was "Judy Smity", I'm sure I'd probably get a funny look and be asked for ID.
Moe.

 

[Leila Dougan]

No ID necessary here either. In fact, they didn't ask for my address either. They had a list of everyone eligible to vote at this location on a wall outside the voting room (ie no one was watching). You're supposed to find your name and associated number, then when you go in the voting room you just tell the workers your number, sign your name, and go vote. The problem I see with this is not only do they not make sure you are who you say you are, but that you have plenty of time to stand outside and pick any name off the list you desire. Don't even have to KNOW someone to use their "slot".

 

[Evan S]

What's funny here in CT is that you DO have to show ID (they only look at the picture), but the address does not have to correllate.

For instance, I am registered in Wethersfield, CT (where my parents live and the town I USED to live in) and I still vote there (figure I will kill two birds with one stone...vote and visit the folks). But my licence specifically says Manchester, CT. Yet I vote in Wethersfield...go figure.

They don't have me sign anything...just give an address and a photo ID.

 

[Evan S]

Dang! The dreaded double post!

 

[D. Scott MacDonald]

I had to sign my name and that was it. The funny thing is that I didn't even give them my "correct" name. As they recently redistricted, I wasn't sure which district I was in, so I asked if they had a "Scott MacDonald" on their list. They said no, but they had a "Donald" (which I do not go by, but is my first name). That's me, I said, and no further questions were asked.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

Here in Michigan you fill out a form that asks for name, birth date and street address. You also must sign the form. In 22 years of voting, I've never been asked to show any identification. On yesterday's ballot, there was actually a proposal for voting procedure reform that would require showing identification, along with several other reform requirements.

 

[Craig Robertson]

here in Oregon, you can register by mail and vote by mail, all without having to prove you really exist.

 

[KyleS]

2 years ago when I voted in Nevada they had a comparison of my Signature to look at and I had to sign next to it AND show ID which I felt was pretty good. In Oregon all voting is done by Mail ONLY which makes me wonder how they can keep people from cheating.

KyleS

 

[Trevor Harveaux]

Wait a sec, Scott, your folks named you Donald MacDonald? I'm sorry. I guess they arn't planning on going to a GOOD nursing home when they get older. Is there some family name I don't know about, that just seems like a mean thing to do to a kid.

 

[Danny R]

I'm a poll worker. Here in Georgia you do have to have to show a valid id, and we have to mark down what type you show as well. Then you sign the slip with your name on it, which includes a sworn statement verifying that it is indeed you.

If you don't have any of the identification cards needed, the poll manager has to administer a pretty strongly worded oath where you say you are who you say you are.

Its thus very possible to lie here, but you'd have to do so in a very public way drawing attention to yourself.

The biggest problem in my opinion isn't dead people, but people who move out of state. I was told by family members that several relatives that were still listed on the polls no longer lived here, and indeed were voting in their new locale. States are apparently pretty lax in notifying other states about who is registered where. I would bet it would be fairly easy for a brother for instance to borrow an old ID card and vote twice.

I only ran across one actual error where a person was listed twice, and that was because someone mistyped their birthdate and their registration came up as new rather than an address change. Unfortunately this was noted not just this time, but the last election as well, and yet still wasn't corrected.

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

The head of polls here has known me since I was a baby, no need for iD

You have been voting since you were a baby? How did you get away with that?