Phaedra, thanks for writing about our long day together as poll workers. So much happened during those 16 hours, I’m glad we were both there to observe it all...
What would I do to improve the process?
1. Go back to manual counting.
2. The ballots should be counted before leaving each polling station.
From the article: “She explained that the voting machine has different settings for each ballot type: Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, etc, and that part of the process is to separate the envelopes into batches by party registration and then run each batch separately through the machine.” Does that apply to also mail-in ballots too ? Really ????
I was a first-time poll worker in Union City (Alameda County) during the 2022 midterms; our process mirrored yours for the most part. While I did not notice any outright fraud, I still had “misgivings.” The main thing is that I thought we would do the counting at the end of the day, but after we closed, we packed up the ballots and another entity came to pick them up to be counted. That’s probably why it takes weeks to get results in California. 🤔
We had quite a few people who needed provisional ballots because they weren’t on the rolls. Also, no ID required. 😳
We did not have a lot of dramatic occurrences—except for one guy who came in to vote only to find out that someone had already voted “as him.” He and his wife kicked up a fuss about that, and I don’t blame them.
The workers I worked with were definitely not part of the political party that I was affiliated with, and they had no problems denigrating that party out loud. I challenged a couple of them—even the lead person. They needed to keep their opinions to themselves.
I applaud your keen, observational skills, and the fact that you innately knew when something was wrong and pushed back on it. I wish I had done more of that. Next time I will absolutely be more observant and speak out when needed.
The first time I ever got truly involved in a political campaign for a candidate was when I campaigned for Matt Gonzalez. He had the support of the entire working class of this city, his own green party, the libertarian party, and even many Republicans. He actually won the election but there was massive vote fraud because the disgusting powers that be wanted Gavin newsome in there. After the rigged election there were I think seven poll monitors who brought stacks of evidence to Matt showing him that the election was without a doubt rigged beyond belief. Gonzalez told them to stay silent and now he's a highly successful criminal defense attorney and is set for life. He betrayed his entire base
Never again. This and many other such examples are why I'm now an anarchist. Oh and let me not forget the bill to label GMO which has more than 70 percent support that was fraudulently defeated. Monsatan poured millions upon millions of dollars into defeating that bill.
I suggest looking into bev Harris and black box voting and even though I personally don't like him Greg Palast. They're both excellent journalists who have covered nothing but vote fraud for 2-3 decades now. They both do excellent work.
Thank you Phaedra for this detailed and eye-opening account! I worked at the polls many times in Contra Costa County several years ago, and have had similar experiences. I'm really glad you were able to do this, and experience the election system at a personal level in face to face encounters with voters, poll workers and election dept. officials. Some of my thoughts on issues you raise:
--People need to know that their political party affiliation is public information (as you note). Anyone can access voter registration lists with address and party affiliation. I've done that lots of times in order to do campaigning for local city council elections. Changing that would be up to legislative action. Also, party affiliation doesn't necessarily indicate who you vote for.
--The reason why rosters are posted with hourly updates about who has voted already is so that campaign workers can see who hasn't voted yet and call and remind them to vote or offer them a ride to the polls. This is especially helpful to grassroots campaign efforts with lots of volunteers. In theory, someone intending fraud could present themselves as a person who hasn't voted yet and sign the roster using that false name, but the risks are high in case one of the poll workers (who generally live in the neighborhood) happens to know the person. Also many voters don't show up until right before the polls close, and if it turned out someone else had already voted fraudulently under that name, it would be reported, and I'm not aware of large numbers (or even any) issues of this nature coming up, though it would be worth researching.
--When the person came saying they are not registered to vote but want to vote anyway, my sense is that you were instructed to give them a provisional ballot because elections departments generally like to err on the side of not turning anyone away. If that person is indeed not registered, their provisional ballot will end up being invalidated.
--You're correct that the couple should not have gone into the voting both together. Good for you for reading the ballot to "Bob" and not letting his helper intimidate you.
--As I recall, you can't turn in a mail ballot for anyone other than yourself unless that person has authorized you by name to do it on the outside of the envelope (and maybe also be a close relative? Can't remember specifically). I don't know if poll workers check that anymore.
--That medical emergency sounded crazy! I've never experienced anything like that and it sounds like you and one of the other poll workers made the best of a really difficult situation!
--You asked why no ID is required to vote. It's about ensuring no one is disenfranchised. In poor rural areas, and among homeless there are many people who don't have a government photo ID for various reasons. There are organizations that provide homeless people with an address that can be used for voting purposes. To register, they do have to affirm they are US citizens.
--The risk of non-citizens voting is minimal IMO. When registering to vote, you have to check a box and sign under penalty of perjury that you are a US citizen, and doing so fraudulently can cause you a lot of trouble if found out. What immigrant would risk potential prosecution and deportation just to cast one sole vote? Well, maybe a few, but I don't see this as a big problem.
--About those electronic voting machines. I've never been a fan. For nearly 2 centuries, election results were hand tallied by poll workers in each precinct after polls closed (my mother did this in our neighbor's garage). But if we must have electronic machines, printing and keeping paper records of every ballot is essential, so that recounts and audits can be done.
--While our voting systems can always be improved, for me that is not the major problem of our so-called democracy. A far bigger problem is the obscene concentrations of money that can be and are used to "legally" buy political parties, candidates, and ballot measures, while silencing or destroying others, via mechanisms that border on bribery, blackmail, propaganda, and manipulation.
Thank you again for your service and for this report!!
Oh and Jo Jorgensen the libertarian candidate for president last time around got six percent of the vote so I've been told which means that they should get public funding and be allowed into the debates but is that happening? Nope. This neo fascist system is broken beyond repair. I'd really like to be wrong in my assertion here but seriously doubt that I am.
Phaedra, thanks for writing about our long day together as poll workers. So much happened during those 16 hours, I’m glad we were both there to observe it all...
What would I do to improve the process?
1. Go back to manual counting.
2. The ballots should be counted before leaving each polling station.
3. IDs necessary!
Great post!
But I read it, all the while SMH.
Thank you for your service! Sounds like voting is as "safe" and "secure" as Covid vaccines were "safe" and "effective."
Also, this day seems eminently adaptable for the big screen. After Hours-meets-Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.
Thanks Phaedra, this was an engrossing read.
Wow - thank you for sharing !!!
From the article: “She explained that the voting machine has different settings for each ballot type: Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, etc, and that part of the process is to separate the envelopes into batches by party registration and then run each batch separately through the machine.” Does that apply to also mail-in ballots too ? Really ????
I was a first-time poll worker in Union City (Alameda County) during the 2022 midterms; our process mirrored yours for the most part. While I did not notice any outright fraud, I still had “misgivings.” The main thing is that I thought we would do the counting at the end of the day, but after we closed, we packed up the ballots and another entity came to pick them up to be counted. That’s probably why it takes weeks to get results in California. 🤔
We had quite a few people who needed provisional ballots because they weren’t on the rolls. Also, no ID required. 😳
We did not have a lot of dramatic occurrences—except for one guy who came in to vote only to find out that someone had already voted “as him.” He and his wife kicked up a fuss about that, and I don’t blame them.
The workers I worked with were definitely not part of the political party that I was affiliated with, and they had no problems denigrating that party out loud. I challenged a couple of them—even the lead person. They needed to keep their opinions to themselves.
I applaud your keen, observational skills, and the fact that you innately knew when something was wrong and pushed back on it. I wish I had done more of that. Next time I will absolutely be more observant and speak out when needed.
Thank you!
If only we had a candidate who was worthy of all this vigilance!
Love the title of Vodka Diplomacy, btw.
The first time I ever got truly involved in a political campaign for a candidate was when I campaigned for Matt Gonzalez. He had the support of the entire working class of this city, his own green party, the libertarian party, and even many Republicans. He actually won the election but there was massive vote fraud because the disgusting powers that be wanted Gavin newsome in there. After the rigged election there were I think seven poll monitors who brought stacks of evidence to Matt showing him that the election was without a doubt rigged beyond belief. Gonzalez told them to stay silent and now he's a highly successful criminal defense attorney and is set for life. He betrayed his entire base
Never again. This and many other such examples are why I'm now an anarchist. Oh and let me not forget the bill to label GMO which has more than 70 percent support that was fraudulently defeated. Monsatan poured millions upon millions of dollars into defeating that bill.
Never fucking again!
Thank you and be well.
I suggest looking into bev Harris and black box voting and even though I personally don't like him Greg Palast. They're both excellent journalists who have covered nothing but vote fraud for 2-3 decades now. They both do excellent work.
no ID req’d in Orange County either… officially removed my name from the rolls but they send me ballots anyways.
Thank you Phaedra for this detailed and eye-opening account! I worked at the polls many times in Contra Costa County several years ago, and have had similar experiences. I'm really glad you were able to do this, and experience the election system at a personal level in face to face encounters with voters, poll workers and election dept. officials. Some of my thoughts on issues you raise:
--People need to know that their political party affiliation is public information (as you note). Anyone can access voter registration lists with address and party affiliation. I've done that lots of times in order to do campaigning for local city council elections. Changing that would be up to legislative action. Also, party affiliation doesn't necessarily indicate who you vote for.
--The reason why rosters are posted with hourly updates about who has voted already is so that campaign workers can see who hasn't voted yet and call and remind them to vote or offer them a ride to the polls. This is especially helpful to grassroots campaign efforts with lots of volunteers. In theory, someone intending fraud could present themselves as a person who hasn't voted yet and sign the roster using that false name, but the risks are high in case one of the poll workers (who generally live in the neighborhood) happens to know the person. Also many voters don't show up until right before the polls close, and if it turned out someone else had already voted fraudulently under that name, it would be reported, and I'm not aware of large numbers (or even any) issues of this nature coming up, though it would be worth researching.
--When the person came saying they are not registered to vote but want to vote anyway, my sense is that you were instructed to give them a provisional ballot because elections departments generally like to err on the side of not turning anyone away. If that person is indeed not registered, their provisional ballot will end up being invalidated.
--You're correct that the couple should not have gone into the voting both together. Good for you for reading the ballot to "Bob" and not letting his helper intimidate you.
--As I recall, you can't turn in a mail ballot for anyone other than yourself unless that person has authorized you by name to do it on the outside of the envelope (and maybe also be a close relative? Can't remember specifically). I don't know if poll workers check that anymore.
--That medical emergency sounded crazy! I've never experienced anything like that and it sounds like you and one of the other poll workers made the best of a really difficult situation!
--You asked why no ID is required to vote. It's about ensuring no one is disenfranchised. In poor rural areas, and among homeless there are many people who don't have a government photo ID for various reasons. There are organizations that provide homeless people with an address that can be used for voting purposes. To register, they do have to affirm they are US citizens.
--The risk of non-citizens voting is minimal IMO. When registering to vote, you have to check a box and sign under penalty of perjury that you are a US citizen, and doing so fraudulently can cause you a lot of trouble if found out. What immigrant would risk potential prosecution and deportation just to cast one sole vote? Well, maybe a few, but I don't see this as a big problem.
--About those electronic voting machines. I've never been a fan. For nearly 2 centuries, election results were hand tallied by poll workers in each precinct after polls closed (my mother did this in our neighbor's garage). But if we must have electronic machines, printing and keeping paper records of every ballot is essential, so that recounts and audits can be done.
--While our voting systems can always be improved, for me that is not the major problem of our so-called democracy. A far bigger problem is the obscene concentrations of money that can be and are used to "legally" buy political parties, candidates, and ballot measures, while silencing or destroying others, via mechanisms that border on bribery, blackmail, propaganda, and manipulation.
Thank you again for your service and for this report!!
Wow. I’ve worked a polling place before but it was completely quiet and boring compared to this!
I can’t believe they’re not asking for IDs. 🤯
Oh and Jo Jorgensen the libertarian candidate for president last time around got six percent of the vote so I've been told which means that they should get public funding and be allowed into the debates but is that happening? Nope. This neo fascist system is broken beyond repair. I'd really like to be wrong in my assertion here but seriously doubt that I am.
Thank you both Sane and Phaedra. I appreciate what you both put into this