Sound Politics: County Council postpones forced-mail voting vote

May 30, 2006

County Council postpones forced-mail voting vote

The home page of the King County Council says that the vote on Deanron's proposal for forced-mail voting, originally scheduled for today, "is expected to be re-set for the following Monday [June 5]".

I haven't seen any indication yet that the Council will schedule public comment before the vote.

Meanwhile, even if the pro-forced-mail-voting Councilmembers aren't interested in hearing citizens' concerns, concerned citizens continue to speak out against this lunatic proposal. Today's P-I has an op-ed by Gentry Lange and Juli Pettengill, who explain why they chose to change their registrations from permanent absentee to permanent poll voter last week . Lange, who was the Green Party candidate for County Executive last November, also has a longer critique of mail-voting on his own website.

Posted by Stefan Sharkansky at May 30, 2006 10:31 AM | Email This

Comments

1. It might be worth pointing out that this issue is being driven by the "Democrat-controlled" County Council, Democrat Ron Sims, and his Democrat Elections fixer Dean Logan. And while the "County Council" is going to adopt all-mail voting next week, it is really a purely Democrat plan to introduce more, not less, opportunity for fraud into our elections process.

Unlike the Federal Government, where 41 Democrats in the Senate can halt one-party rule by the Repulbicans who control both Congress and the Executive Branch, there is no similar tool for the minority party to use in either King County or Olympia. Both county and state governments are completely controlled by the Democrats who deserve sole responsiblity for all legislation coming out of either body.

Makes you think that any legislation that would change the election process would mandate approval by at least the two major parties, shouldn't it? But hey, this is Washington, where Democrats won't even maintain the $30 tabs that the people have told them multiple times to leave alone.

Posted by: MJC on May 30, 2006 10:55 AM

2. I'm a democrat and I oppose forced VBM. It is shameful that this is being pushed through in such a partisan manner. It is suspicious when any party in power wants to make changes in elections without the approval of the minority party.

BTW, Gentry, Jonathan, and I are credited for the op-ed but Jason Osgood did the writing with input from many people. Thanks Jason!

Posted by: Juli Pettingill on May 30, 2006 11:40 AM

3. http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis.cgi/web/vortex/display?slug=webuwmed21&date=20050721&query=UW+billing+errors

1 Several years ago I switched to PAV (Permanent Absentee Voting) because I was working late and missing the 8pm poll closing
2 I still wait to the Monday b4 Election Day to fill out the mail in ballot, and because I'm cheap end up depositing the ballot at my polling place
3 Because I worked for two (2) Big Eight International CPA firms, I assumed that the Department of Elections, the County Auditors, and the Secretary of State had a system of internal controls to assure accuracy and reconciliations were done properly and timely
4 WRONG
5 While I am sure that Mr Logan and Mr Reed are pleasant people to have a meal, they have been in office 33 months and 65 months respectively
6 Given the close elections for US Senator in 2000, the Seattle Monorail, and Washington Govenor in 2004, it is "reasonable, right, and proper" to expect better.
7 King County and Washington State have already settled two (2) Enron cases for 35 million w/ the Medicare billing irregularities that occurred at UWMC and Harborview
8 NJSMD (The New Jersey School of Medicine and Dentistry) is under active oversight by the Department of Justice for Medicare billing irregularities
9 Democratic Acting Governor Cody and new Govenor Corzione both said the actions at the New Jersey were unacceptible
10 The people deserve better

Posted by: Green Lake Mark on May 30, 2006 11:40 AM

4. Yep, the PI only allows so many authors, or we would have listed all 6 protestors. Much gratitude to Jason, and others who all contributed to the cause.

Posted by: Gentry on May 30, 2006 12:45 PM

5. I wonder whether King County really cares about absentee voters switching back to poll voters at all? Those doing it are a drop in the bucket considering the potential for illegal and invalid votes cast and COUNTED!

Democrats are not pushing for all-mail voting because honest voters will vote any differently, but they're doing it so more illegal voters will cast ballots and they have a pretty good idea that they strongly swing towards Democrats and Democrat causes.

An honest voter will cast an honest and valid ballot regardless of the system used. It's the dishonest voters we're all worried about - all of us except Democrat politicians. The illegal voters are the ones that the system must restrict to one legal vote each, and they are exactly the people that will take advantage of an all-mail system to cancel out my vote and the votes of thousands or tens of thousands of other honest voters.

Posted by: MJC on May 30, 2006 03:22 PM

6. Although I too am concerned about illegal voters, it is not my top concern. My top concern is the use of electronic voting equipment that is hackable and also error prone and the fact that our current absentee ballot system is so error prone. If we go to forced mail voting we would have the choice of using a Diebold Touchscreen at one of the remaining polling stations or a mail ballot counted with a Diebold central tabulator. With poll voting we also use Diebold machines to count our votes, but I think the possibility of fraud is somewhat less since the ballots are accounted for and the voter has custody of his or her ballot.

We have been encouraged to consider the mail ballot as equivalent to the poll ballot. This is not true. Although MLC writes "An honest voter will cast an honest and valid ballot regardless of the system used". I will counter that an honest voter using a mail ballot can be disenfrancised (invalidated) a whole lot easier than a voter using a poll ballot. The mail ballot has to run the gauntlet of the post office, the mail sorter, the signature verification,etc. There are many more opportunities for fraud and errors with mail ballots.

Posted by: Juli Pettingill on May 30, 2006 04:25 PM

7. Why is there no public comment ? I think we can all figure this out - the public doesn't count here. Much like the countries that profess the hammer and sickle and this comment does not come non-chalantly. In numerous areas such as the CAO and most recently Brightwater Wastewater Treatment plan this is the MO of King County and Ron Tax to the Max Sims and his minions.

It appears that the only recourse is to sign up to be poll voter, as Gentry has done.

Posted by: KS on May 30, 2006 10:28 PM

8. KS,
There is no public comment because the majority party on the County Council - the Democrats - simply don't want to hear from the public. They don't want the press to report on the testimony from citizen debunking all the bologna being spewed in favor of more fraud.

Just as the Democrats didn't want to hear from Stefan on the evidence of fraud and illegal votes, or the improper counting of invalid votes by Deanron's machine, county Democrats know exactly what the people would say about all-mail voting so it's easier to just shut the people out and do what they wish.

And they'll get away with it too.

Posted by: MJC on May 31, 2006 08:13 AM