lansbury

Someone has been caught at the elections office tampering with the ballots.

http://www.wweek.com/portland/blog-2...ed_ballot.html

Bob

cracking county name that

Bluegrass Lass

That's actually rather surprising that a person would have the audacity to do that. But I guess that shows how naive I am about how low some people will stoop.

Anian

My father-in-law received two ballots. The mother-in-law implied it was Obama's fault.

yellowroom

My colleague says when he first went to vote in this area, it turns out the dead old lady who lived in the house before him had already voted. Unsurprisingly, he is now all for photo ID....

I don't understand why a system such as in the UK couldn't work - ie a voting register based on your residence, and a polling card arriving about 3 weeks before the election that you take with you.

Also, a question out of ignorance - can you trace votes over here? by that I mean, when you get issued your voting slip in the UK, they make a note of it's ID number against your name. In that case it is technically possible, if a pain in the arse, to find that slip afterwards and discount it in the event that fraud is proved. Note, I have no idea whether this is allowable or what, I'm just speculating.

Of course, I also forget that voting over here is not necessarily a matter of a simple piece of paper and a pen....

sir_eccles

AZ sends you a voter registration card with your name address where you vote etc on it. The poll workers love it when you actually bring it with to vote but it isn't necessary. They have a big book where they'll find your name check your card matches get you to sign and I want to say they wrote the ballot number in but I can't remember, I've only voted once before.

lansbury

Clackamas aka Clackistan

kimilseung

To the best of my memory, you did not need the polling card in the UK.

yellowroom

That's my recollection too - although I'm not entirely sure what happens if you don't take it. I've never had to show any other ID, but I don't know if there is discretion for the people in the polling stations to ask for it if they aren't happy.

Still, it would be relatively easy to tweak the regulations to satisfy those worried about voter fraud, to say either bring the card or other id (driving license, passport, utility bill in your name and at that address dated in the last 3 months?).

Considerably easier to meet those kind of ID requirements than in some of the states here - I'm thinking of the stories about elderly poor people who don't drive, don't have a birth certificate, and where there is no official record of their birth.

kimilseung

I think in the UK, you just needed to give a name and an address.

yellowroom

Do you know what would happen if someone else had turned up earlier and already used your name and address?

md95065

Actually that sounds more like "election fraud" than "voter fraud" which (in the US at least) seems to mean someone who is not entitled to vote showing up at the polling place and voting ...

... and, of course, all of the voter registration and voter id laws don't help in the least when it is an "inside job" like this ...

lansbury

If there is any doubt about the authenticity of the voter, they are given a different ballot form. When the boxes are opened those forms are put to one side, and are only counted in the case of a very close count if the candidates agree to include them.

yellowroom

Interesting! Thanks, didn't know that.