Early voting gridlock spurs Democratic suggestion
October 29, 2008 at 4:19 pm by Scott Henry in NewsI don’t know what it’s like in Bainbridge or Waycross, but the lines for early voting around metro Atlanta have been crazy long. Down at the Fulton guvment building, the minimum wait runs about two hours, but it’s been worse in the ‘burbs. On Monday, Norcross voters stood in line for six hours, while some unlucky Clayton County residents had to wait up to 12 hours to cast their ballot! (I just realized the term “unlucky Clayton County resident” is probably redundant.)
In light of all the long lines, Jane Kidd, chairwoman of Georgia Democratic Party, has asked Secretary of State Karen Handel to call for an extension of poll hours across the state. She writes:
I urge you to contact the Department of Justice immediately and request clearance to keep the polls open longer during the week and over the weekend, as well as on Monday, Nov. 3.
Currently, state law does not allow for weekend voting or for polls to be open after 7 p.m.. And no doubt you’ve heard that, because of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, Georgia’s Election Division can’t take a dump — legally speaking — without first checking with the feds. So there are some practical hurdles to carrying out Kidd’s suggestion.
But even if there weren’t, what are the chances that our Republican Secretary of State would jump to follow a recommendation offered by the Democratic Party head? How ’bout a Republican Secretary of State whose top priority appears to be keeping Georgians away from the polls?
Kidd seems to recognize the long-shot nature of her request, so she takes a few rhetorical pot-shots at Handel, such as:
There is simply no reason for voters to wait in line, often outside a polling place with no place for seniors or disabled persons to sit and rest, because the Elections Division failed to provide the necessary resources for a turnout that has been predicted by both the Republican and Democratic Parties, the media, outside groups, and your office itself, to be extremely heavy.
And:
I am just mystified that your elections division is seemingly so unprepared for the wave of voters we all knew was coming.
Oooh, snap! Frankly, though, despite Handel’s partisan handling of the registration process, I’m not sure how much of the blame for long lines can be laid at her feet, with the exception of her office’s computer glitch on Monday. It’s the responsibility of each individual county to decide how many polling places to make available for early voting and to train poll workers. Handel could have urged them to set up more voting booths, and maybe she should have, but my guess is that most counties wouldn’t have spent the extra money.
Still, Kidd’s request is reasonable, if less than diplomatically worded. I, for one, would enjoy voting at midnight.
UPDATE: I forgot to mention that Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, a Republican, has already taken the step in that state that Kidd proposes for Georgia.
October 30th, 2008 at 10:09 am
Karen Handel had no problem breaking the rules when it came to purging voters off the rolls. She only falls back on the rules when it suits her Republican agenda of preventing as many people as possible from voting.
October 30th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
bullsh##