"Voters need to read the fine print on mailers like this because there are specific requirements for absentee voting in Missouri."
"Currently, to vote absentee, voters are required to have an excuse, like being out of town on Election Day. If they falsely make such a claim, they could be prosecuted with a felony and lose their right to vote."...Voters in Michigan, Colorado, Iowa, Nevada and several other states have reported receiving automated phone calls from the McCain Campaign, asking for permission to send an absentee ballot. Several voters in Colorado have complained they were then sent ballots with the return address of an Ohio Election Board, and similiar reports from other states have complained the ballot had the incorrect return address or some other mistake which would disallow the ballot.
North Carolina.
McCain Confusing NC Republican Voters by Greg Flynn. Thu Sep 11, 2008 (Flynn is in Wake County NC, Pictures of mailers at link)
The Campaign of John McCain has begun sending out misleading information to North Carolina voters about absentee voting. ......The critically missing piece information is the date of birth...(Note - NC Verified Voting has contacted the NC State Board of Elections to find out what will happen to these requests that are incomplete.)**Update The North Carolina State Board of Elections advised by email today that the ballot request mailer in North Carolina would be accepted in most cases by County Boards of Elections.
Ohio.
Ballot snafu endangers votes Sept 9, 2008. ...In Ohio, the McCain campaign printed and sent out about a million of these. The campaign made a mistake: the form included an unnecessary located the question asking if the voter was eligible to vote at the top of the form where it was missed by many voters. If the voter failed to check the box by the question, he or she is stating that he or she is not eligible and the application has to be rejected by law.
Oregon
My McCain Absentee Ballots by weazley (a DKos blog) Fri Sep 05, 2008...I found it funny they were including my "Vote-by-Mail" application when all Oregon elections are done by mail. Then I looked closer at the instructions: "Request your absentee ballot in 3 simple steps" and the address on the two "Absentee Ballot Request" Cards: "Director of Elections, 420 Holmes St, Bellefonte, PA 16823".It appears John McCain would like me to register to vote in Pennsylvania, presumably knowing (they had to get my current address somehow) that I've registered and voted 3 or 4 times since I last lived in Pennsylvania (2002-ish) in two different states (Washington and Oregon) at four different addresses....I'm not up on the logistics or checks involved in dual voter registrations, but it seems like asking a registered Oregon voter to request an absentee ballot from Pennsylvania might be barking up that tree.
Pennsylvania.
Election fliers confuse some BY DAVID SINGLETON STAFF WRITER Sunday, September 14, 2008...Some county residents recently received a mailer from Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain with a pair of absentee ballot applications already addressed to Ms. Young’s office attached. The flier includes the appeal, “Vote early by mail — it’s as easy as 1-2-3.”
“Well, it’s not (that easy) everywhere — 1-2-3 is different from state to state,” Ms. Young said. “People are calling and asking, ‘Is this OK?’ ”
Although many other states have moved to give voters the right to cast their ballots in advance of Election Day, either in person or by mail, there is no provision for it under Pennsylvania law....An absentee ballot cast under improper circumstances — by someone who just didn’t want to be bothered to leave the house, for instance — could be subject to challenge and disqualification, she said.
Virginia:
Be careful if you receive unrequested absentee ballot application WDBJ7 September 10, 2008"Why is a Republican, Democrat, anybody sending out an unsolicited request?" wonders Murdock.City of Salem registrar Dana Oliver say this type of mailer is not illegal since campaigns do have access to voters' information. Martha Brissette, a representative with the State Board of Elections, agrees. However, the application does raise a red flag for both officials because it doesn't include instructions.Election officials say the instruction page is critical to making sure voters fill out the application correctly so they won't be denied. If they are, the voter would have to fill out a new application, cutting it close to the absentee deadline.Still, Murdock wonders why she was the only person in her neighborhood to receive an absentee application."I don't know why the Republican party feels I need an absentee ballot and why they'd send me something that would urge me to vote absentee," she says. "It seems like it's opening the door for problems in the long run."
Wisconsin:
McCain's mailer creates controversy By MARK PITSCH 608-252-6145 FRI., SEP 12, 2008 mpitsch@madison.comThe state elections agency is investigating complaints about a massive campaign mailing Republican Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign has directed toward Wisconsin Democrats and other voters.... in some cases, the incorrect clerk's address is printed on the application, leading some Democrats to wonder if the Arizona senator's campaign is deliberately trying to get them to apply for absentee ballots in places where they aren't eligible to vote."They're trying to knock me off the rolls," said Democrat Beverly Jambois, of Middleton. "I can't tell you how upsetting it is to me. This is how you win elections? By disenfranchising other voters?"Her household received the flier this week addressed to her husband, Robert, a lawyer for the state Department of Transportation. The couple are registered to vote in Middleton, but the absentee ballot application was addressed to the city clerk's office in Madison....A Wisconsin paper calls upon McCain campaign to set things right:When it comes to the right to vote, it is not enough after a dramatically inappropriate move to say, "Oops."
The campaign of Republican presidential candidate John McCain has dispatched a mass mailing to Wisconsin voters -- including many Democrats and liberals who are not likely to be McCain backers -- that encourages eligible voters to send their applications for absentee ballots to clerks in communities where they do not reside.
Following the instructions of the McCain mailing could lead voters to run afoul of election rules and regulations -- and that might lead to the disqualification or even the prosecution of an innocent citizen for supposed wrongdoing.
1 | 2
