[EM] Observations of a poll worker

[Anthony Simmons]

>> Why is ID checking against the law?! And, what happens if
>> someone comes and votes under my name and then I come to
>> vote? They don't let me vote?! And they don't know who was
>> voting instead of me and how he voted.  . . .


At a meeting, someone asked our County Auditor, who is in
charge of elections in this county, about this.  She said
that as a matter of experience, there is no problem with
people impersonating voters.  On the other hand, there have
been problems in the United States with just about any
requirement that makes it more difficult for people to vote.
Such requirements have, throughout history, been used to
disenfranchise minority voters.

And the number of people who would not have the correct
official ID would be much greater than the number of people
who vote fraudlently, so the total number of errors would be
increased.

We are very serious in the United States about not getting
ourselves into a situation in which the will of the voters
gives way to a decision made by a few well-placed judges.

Oops.  Never mind.


>> . . .  That means that his
>> vote still counts and mine does not. I find that quite
>> strange.


I don't see any reason why you'd be denied the right to vote
just because someone else impersonated you.


>> > I encourage everybody hear to vote whenever there are elections in your
>> > area, and volunteer at the polls.

>> So you volunteer at the polls? Does that mean that you do
>> not get paid? Is that the practise in whole US?


As far as I know, the general practice is that volunteers get
paid.  They are called "volunteers" because they volunteer,
as opposed to doing it as part of another job or whatever.
And because the payment is comparable to jury duty (enough to
live on if you were a squirrel).


>> Thanks,

>> Jurij