Who do we contact if we have a question about a county's absentee ballot procedure?

[Baitball Blogger]

For the last two elections someone had written a number on my ballot, and it was the same number. What that tells me is that there is a list of Absentee voters and clerks are marking the numbers down on the ballots in the same order as the names on the lists. It means that it wouldn't take much to figure out how someone voted.

First, if you're an absentee voter, was your ballot numbered?

Second, if not, is there a state number or office that I can contact to confirm if this procedure is acceptable?

[TreasonousBastard]

1. Start with your Board of Elections and see if they will, or can, tell you...

why they do it.

It could be entirely innocent and simply a method of tracking how many ballots are out there or a way to avoid duplicates.

[Baitball Blogger]

2. I'm sure that's the reason they are going to provide.

I'm just wondering if it's legal. You see, it wouldn't be too difficult to replace one ballot with another if you know what number to write down on the replacement.

[TreasonousBastard]

3. But you would still have one ballot. I'm not sure just what...

bad things can come from this. In my case, my absentee ballot is in an envelope that has my name, address, and signature on it, so they sure can tell who I voted for when they open it.

But, having been an election judge, I know that when they are opened a bunch of people from both (or more) parties are there and they just dump them all out and mix them up so you can't really tell.

Besides, who cares if they can tell? What horrible things are the BoE going to do to any of us because of how we voted?

[Baitball Blogger]

4. In this county the Supervisor of Elections allowed

a Republican operative to come into their office to change absentee ballots before the Gore v. Bush election.

So, it is best not to be too trusting.