New Hampshire Students Say They Were Illegally Turned Away From the Polls

[eridani]

http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/35108-new-hampshire-students-say-they-were-illegally-turned-away-from-the-polls

Plymouth State senior Jack Swymer headed to the polls around 11:30 a.m. to cast a ballot for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). He tried to take advantage of the state’s same-day registration process, but a poll worker told him that since he didn’t have a proof of his residence, he couldn’t vote.

“I live off-campus, and the bills are in my roommate’s name,” he told ThinkProgress. “I wasn’t familiar with all the voting laws, so I just did what the poll workers’ advice because I figured they knew what they were doing.”

It turns out, they did not.

Smymer, who grew up in New Hampshire and now studies graphic design, left the polling place dejected, assuming he couldn’t vote, when he ran into a team of volunteers from the non-partisan environmental organization NextGen. They informed him of his right under the state’s new voter ID law to vote by signing an affadavit, and he went back in and demanded one.

“All I wanted to do is vote,” he said. “It’s important for everyone to vote, but especially students. We are the future, and our voice should be heard.”

As hundreds of thousands of New Hampshire residents cast their votes today in the nation’s first presidential primary, voting rights organizers feared that the state’s newly implemented voter ID law would create confusion, long lines, and cases of voter suppression — especially impacting New Hampshire’s younger voters.

[mgmaggiemg]

1. this is

a classic example of how important voter education is...it's important to show young voters how they can access all this information on line at their sec of state's website...in what ever state they are in ...pass it on...cheers, Maggie

[gyroscope]

2. Take your cellphone with you and get it on record

some of these poll workers need to be prosecuted

[Lochloosa]

3. Recording at most poll locations is illegal.

[gyroscope]

6. Why would that be?

don't want their shenanigans caught on tape?

the legality depends on your local laws, but it is not illegal in most places.
its usually just illegal to record your ballot on video, but you can record everything else in most cases.

if not then they'll simply tell you to put the camera away.
but why would they tell you that unless they have something to hide?

we (supposedly) live in a free open democratic society and have the right to record a public polling station.
these are not private businesses they are public domain and their activities should be transparent not hidden from public view.

[Freddie Stubbs]

7. Ballots are supposed to be secret

[gyroscope]

8. I'm not talking about ballots

eom

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

9. I don't even see the reasoning behind making recording your own ballot illegal.

I can see recording someone else's being illegal, but you bloody well should be able to record your own. There can be no excuse for making that illegal than making it easier to alter the outcome of the election. Imagine if all of us were able to post our own ballots in public if we so chose. You wouldn't be able to 'undercount' those votes, and if there were enough of them posted, you'd be able to see if some polling places were recording so many opposing 'votes' that the total added up to more voters than were in the district.

[-none]

14. An example would be, if say your boss wanted some proof of how you voted.

Like if he were an anti-union and wanted you to vote for Cruz or some other wingnutz.
Its happened often enough, it's made illegal in most places. It helps stop coercion on voting.

[BlueJazz]

12. What gyroscope said.

[Gothmog]

5. Video taping at a polling place is illegal in Texas

[Lochloosa]

19. Actually, I was wrong about recording being illegal. I thought that was the case.

Here is a link for each state. Most do not prohibit it....so record away.

http://www.dmlp.org/state-law-documenting-vote-2012

[Gothmog]

4. The Texas voter id law is far stricter compared to N h law

You can not use student ids and there is no way to vote without is

[ChiciB1]

10. Thanks For Posting This...

The RULES have changed and while it's disgusting, fighting it now is almost impossible. Video taping rules or not I'm sure whatever pressure they want to take they will take. It seems that some poll watcher could interpret ANY rules in ANY ways they want.

Yeah, so much for DEMOCRACY!

[Amimnoch]

11. Be informed. Laws by state

Note, this list is from 2012 so there may have been some changes since then, but I imagine it is likely mostly accurate:

http://www.dmlp.org/state-law-documenting-vote-2012

Looks like video taping the interaction was well within the law there.

I may be on the other side of aisle when it comes to the primary, but voter disenfranchisement disgusts me. What's used against my candidates opponent today could very well be used against my candidate tomorrow.

EVERY measure should be taken in EVERY election to ensure EVERY citizen has the BEST opportunity to vote their choice.

[Orsino]

13. The Establishment has always benefitted from residency requirements.

Homeless and transient people are easily rendered invisible by such laws.

It's hardly a Clinton conspiracy, but rather a problem with Constitutional interpretation. The burden of proof rests on the individual voter to cough up whatever pieces of paper might be required on a given Tuesday. I believe that the right to vote ought to be the default assumption, and that a government ought to have to jump through hoops to disenfranchise anyone.

Ultimately, Big Money benefits, and certain candidates are more likely to gain an advantage thereby.

[cynzke]

15. It Takes Only A Few Minutes...

To access voter guidelines on the net. Don't assume you know everything in advance. ESPECIALLY out of state students. There is no excuse not to be prepared.

[brooklynite]

17. Also, don't assume the election workers are part of a conspiracy to keep you from voting...

...They doe this once every year or two, and are not always well-trained.

[jeff47]

21. And it takes only a few minutes for those guidelines to change.

My state's new ID requirement has changed several times in the last year, due to legal challenges.

Some of those changes would require starting the ID process long before election day. Some were overturned, but if they are put back in force by a higher court, there's plenty of people who would be screwed.

[1939]

16. Establishing residency is hard if you live with someone else

When we sponsored my wife's sister and her family for immigration some years back, they lived with us for four years. Since all of the utility bills and real estate tax bills were in our name, we had to establish residency for them to get learners permits and later drivers licenses. What we had to do was to get them a savings account and wait for the first monthly statements from the bank in their names before the "coffee coolers" at the DMV would admit they existed. Green cards by themselves wouldn't establish residency.

[jeff47]

22. It took me 9 tries to get a NY driver's license.

I had a valid Colorado license, and had moved to NY. My gf-at-the-time-now-wife set up the utilities, so they were in her name. Also, what I was required to show the clerk changed in 7 of those 9 attempts.

[George II]

18. When was the last time anyone ever saw an election in which there wasn't someone from both....

....or all sides complaining that they weren't "allowed" to vote or there were voting irregularities?

[dembotoz]

20. lesson learned???? do not do last minute

actually a good general rule

don't register to vote at the last minute
don't do your valentine reservations at the last minute
or xmas shopping at the last minute


too much opportunity for shit to go wrong

[SoCalDem]

23. Exactly

If voting is important to you, you should GO to the Voting Registrar's office with everything you have..birth certificate, passport, student ID, any bills in your name at your address, Costco photo ID...the works....register there..and then check online (in most states probably) to make sure you are registered..

Do not wait until voting day to register

[countryjake]

24. K&R!