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"It is not the votes that count. It is the people that count the votes that count."
On Tuesday, I was an election judge. I thought those of you have never experienced such a "thrill" might be interested to know how the voting process works- behind the scenes.
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This is the second time I was a judge. I also did this in 2008.
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First of all, it is a lot of hours- for me this year it was 3 1/2 hours of training and 16 hours on the actual election day- but I think it is worth it. I think it is part of our civic duty to serve as judges to ensure a fair election. Espcially when you are the minority party in your county- that is when it is most important to volunteer to serve. (Well, maybe it isn't really serving. You get $150- but compared with the hours, it is pretty measly).
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Why is it important to have both parties represented?
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It would be VERY easy to cheat the voting system if both sides were not watching.
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For example, on Tuesday an elderly man came in to vote who could not read the ballot. Both I and a member of the opposing party who was also a judge read the ballot for him and filled it out. If only one party was watching, you could fill in whatever box you wanted for this man and he would never know.
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Also, a member of each party has to count the ballots, check the seals to make sure they are correct, and generally just watch to make sure no shady business is being done.
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It is very interesting being a judge. You see all sorts of interesting people.
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Most people are happy and excited to be doing their civic duty and voting. They love the "I Voted" sticker they receive. They come prepared and are ready to cast their ballot.
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Sometimes, however, you meet idiots.
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Case in point: One man came in and needed to cast what's called a provisional ballot instead of a traditional ballot. He had received a ballot in the mail, in fact he told us that he had his ballot at home. However, he didn't want to fill that one out.
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When you vote at the polls, your ballot is 100% anonymous. Once it is cast, there is no way to know which one was yours. If we allowed this man to vote a traditional ballot, he might have voted twice- we had no way of knowing on that day if he had or had not sent in his mail-in ballot, and if he had and then we let him vote a traditional ballot, he would have voted twice. Does this make sense?
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So, he needed a provisional ballot. This is a ballot where you write on an envelope outside the ballot your name, address, precinct, etc. so the county can make sure you didn't already vote somewhere else before your vote is counted. This process takes up to 10 days. But you can see why you have to do it that way, right?
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Well, this man was livid. Beyond livid. He was furious his ballot wouldn't be voted that night.
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Reason would simply say, "go home and get the ballot that you admit is on your table, fill it out, and bring it back and put it in the ballot box."
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But, this man way beyond reason. It was rediculous.
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So, there are, unfortunately, stupid people who we allow to vote as well.
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Most of the day, however, is spent sitting around waiting for people to come in and vote. A book is necessary when you are a ballot judge. Also necessary is lots of food. You do not have a lunch break. Or a dinner break. Or a breakfast break. So, you pack all your food with you and brown bag it all day.
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There is a rush in the morning and the evening as we set up and take down the equipment. There is a series of overcomplicated procedures we must go through. There are rediculous amounts of forms to be filled in and weird protocals to be carried out. There are a million ways I could think to simplify the voting process. One example: There are three different types of seals for three different bags, and each seal must correspond with the correct bag. Why not use the same type of seal on all bags? A seal is a seal, regardless of the shape. Oh, well.
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Overall, a good but LONG day. Provided we don't switch to all mail-in ballots, I think I will continue to do this. I enjoy it. And I feel very American doing it as well.
