Primary Day
Polls have opened across Cuyahoga County ushering in yet another voting system--the optical scan ballot.
The ballots are supposed to be simpler for voters to understand and use. But it will take voters longer to work their way through the ballot since they have to manually fill out the selection ovals for their choices.
How was was your experience at the polls? Did you find the new ballot easier to use than the touch screen system? Were there any problems at your polling station?
The ballots are supposed to be simpler for voters to understand and use. But it will take voters longer to work their way through the ballot since they have to manually fill out the selection ovals for their choices.
How was was your experience at the polls? Did you find the new ballot easier to use than the touch screen system? Were there any problems at your polling station?
posted by lbarr at
9:08 AM
39 Comments:
South Euclid at the Community Center was a disaster. It took me 35 mins to complete a provisional ballot-no one seemed to know what they were doing, I saw people leaving without voting!
I vote in North Ridgeville on a touch-screen and was at the polls at 6:30 am. I was surprised to see about 30 people already voting. Other than the poll workers who are slower than molassess in a January snow storm, there were no problems. In and out in about 15 minutes. It took longer to register than it did to vote!
I live in Fairview Park, and I was surprised that more voters weren't out this morning. I thought for sure I'd have to wait in line, but I got right in. I did not like the new voting system with the pens. It was too time consuming and I felt like I was taking a multiple choice test in college. I liked the electronic voting a lot better.
There were problems at precinct 8-B in Cuyahoga Falls. A number of us were listed as "non-partisan" when we should have been listed as democrat. I have always voted democrat and others in line were stating the same. The poll workers were becoming very frustrated and it was only 7:00am! One woman grew tired of waiting and left. I arrived at 6:45 and waited for about a half hour whick I didn't think was too bad.
When I went to my polling place today there was a “Tab A” that they told me to tare off after I was finished voting but on “Tab A” it said DO NOT TARE OFF OR BALLOT WILL NOT COUNT. The poll worker told me and showed me the instruction that the Board of Elections gave them saying to tare off “Tab A”. There was confusion at the polling place and I saw two people that put there ballots in with the “TAB A” still attached. Whose Ballot will NOT count?
It normally takes less then 5 miutes to vote, but it took 25 minutes to vote this morning and the line was short. Very confusing, sending people from table to table. Not much privacy during the vote.
Back to the drawing board.
I am glad that they had the bubble sheet ballot. It is soo much easier than the electronic ones. When I was voting, the poll workers got a call and they were told not to remove the stubs from the ballot. I looked at the stub and it clearly said not to remove the stubs.
Big problems at 6:40 a.m. General confusion. I was given a ballot for the wrong precinct. It was not a good start. I continued to work the polls as a canvasser and the turnout was light this morning. Obviously, the weather is a big factor. Yuck.
The only issue I had was with "Tab A." When the ballot was removed from the book, "Tab B" remained there, while "Tab A" was still attached. After you completed your ballot, the instructions were to remove "Tab A" and give it to a poll worker. Printed on "Tab A" is DO NOT REMOVE OR YOUR VOTE WILL NOT COUNT We needed to call the Board of Elections, things were clairfied, and I removed "Tab A." My understanding from the conversation with the BOE is the opposite of the printing is true. Why they would print DO NOT REMOVE on something that needed to be removed is very confusing.
I would go with what the operators said. I mean it is written, laminanted and read the the voter. If we get a low voter turnout then well, we know what happened. Also, they took the stub from me and placed it in an envelope.
The Iowa Basis Skills type of voting is ridiculous. Who came up with this nonsense? If people couldn’t figure out poke a whole in paper how are they supposed to handle fill in a circle? I can’t believe this is more efficient than previous formats.
I don’t believe that the electronic voting was too difficult for our esteemed state voting officials to get right. How can American Idol handle millions of votes cast by phone call and text message two days in a row for weeks on end and get it right and these idiots in Columbus can’t get it done a few time s a year?
Shameful.
I voted just before 7:00am in No.Olmsted. No line, got right in. The problem was that the booths were against the wall and the light was behind and overhead in the middle of the room. As I moved close to fill in the ovals, my body blocked the light, making a tedious task even more difficult. As a teacher, I'm always telling kids to "carefully" fill in the ovals and I'm not sure how well I did myself given the poor light! I did not like this system at all. Slow and cumbersome!
Forget the hanging chads, this year it'll be overfilled bubbles.
Can our poll workers please get it together? I had a voter in front of me who had to show the poll worker where her name was in the book. At that point, when she saw the voter was 17, she asked another poll worker about the process for her, and moved the girl on to get her ballot. After the young woman voted, she reminded the first poll worker that she hadn't been asked to sign the book.
I am extreamly upset with the way the primary elections are set up. I feel my right to vote as a US citizen was compromised. I was listed as Non-Partisan. In order to cast a vote for who I wanted I had to vote for canidates listed under that particular party. So...I had to declare either Democrat or Republican in order for my voice to be heard. All I was allowed to vote on were "city" issues. It is my right as a US tax paying citizen to cast my vote for whomever I want even if that means voting for a Republican for one office, and a Democrat for another. I was denied my Constitional right to vote. I was told that in order to change the way things are set up, I will need to contact the State of Ohio Secretary of State which are more bureaucratic excuses for what is in my opinion liberal communism.
As the old saying goes, "if it ain't broke don't fix it". What was wrong with the old "poke a hole" system? It was faster, you didn't have to depend on furnished pens. I would imagine also that this new system is harder for some of our senior citizens that may have arthritis, or other afflictions that make it difficult to hold a pen. Also, it was obvious that these ballots were printed a while ago, since Dennis Kucinich is on there as a democratic nomination, when he hasn't been in the running for weeks now! Whoever thought to change the system to this should be fired!
I feel my Constitional right to cast my vote was compromised this morning at the polls. I was listed as Non-Partisan. The only thing I could vote on were "City" issues. I was not able to cast my vote for the canidate I wanted because I had to declare Democrat or Republican. Perhaps I wanted to vote Democratic in one area and Republican in another. Our rights to vote as tax paying citizens are compromised when we are told who we can vote for based on political Party. Is that not controlled liberal communism? I am disappointed that I was unable to vote for the canidates I wanted because they happen to fall in opposite Political Parties. Showing up this morning was a waste of my time. As a tax payer I am not happy with the way our Government operates. I am one small voice in a sea of Political bureaucracy.
I voted in rocky river and was given a giant voting ballot to vote. This is 2008 NOT 1968!!!. As I tried to carefully fill in the ovals my voting booth constantly shook back and forth. When I got done I was told to place my giant paper ballot in a cardboard taped up box !! Where in the heck is the security locked metal boxes?? Also everyone and poll workers could see who I voted for!!
BRING BACK TOUCH SCREEN VOTING !!
I live in Ravenna - today when to my polling place (Tappan School) exactly at 6:30 a.m. The polling people could only get two of the electronic machines working - there already was a line of about 15 people waiting and they asked if we were in a hurry!!!! They didn't even know how to put one of the machines together!!! Plus they need some younger folks working. The person couldn't hear she kept asking "what" and then she had to tell the person next to her where and on what page to write voter information!! What should have taken 5 minutes took 25 minutes! Plus the machine I used made a grinding noise when it was trying to print the ballot! Hope my vote counts!
I voted the last two times electronically and think it's still the way to go. The OCR ballot takes longer and the process is cumbersome. More troubling is the perception it perpetuates, that of an area which remains in the stone age populated by Luddites.
I voted at the South Euclid Community Center at about 9 AM. There was a steady stream of voters, but no lines. There were plenty of voting areas, the ballots were easy to read and fill out, and the poll workers were pleasant and friendly!! It was an excellent experience and took less than five minutes. I trust the paper ballots MUCH more than the Diebold electronic machines, which were shown to be easily tampereed with. GOOD JOB to all and GO OBAMA!
We voted in Kirtland, we had very helpful, and friendly poll workers. We are lucky to live in a democratic country where we can vote without fear of retaliation people.....be grateful!!!
I'd like to know why, when I made it a point to change my address with the BOE immediately after my move 6 months ago...why, when I've been receiving mailings at my new address from the BOE...why, when my name and signature sample was very clearly and correctly displayed in the correct precinct book and I had all required ID - I was told I had to vote a provisional ballot?? All the info was correct, but there it was as a big black mark in the book - "you must vote a provisional ballot." I've NEVER had this problem before, and I've moved several times since living in NE Ohio.
Will the Cuyahoga Co. BOE please pull their heads our of their nether-regions and get this crap straightened out?!?! I do not trust the provisional ballot process and feel like I may have wasted my time this morning.
Only "problem" is you have to show your drivers licence and you do NOT sign the voting book. The poll workers had me Fold and crease the ballot in order for it to fit into the box. I guess that's 'job security' so someone downtown has to unfold and hopefully it feeds ok into the optical reader. Voting at 6:45 took 15 minutes -- read make a choice and mark the ballot. Wait until November.
The real problem was having only crooks and thieves on the ballot.
3 years and my name is still spelled wrong after the kind ladies I deal with at my polling place have tried to have it corrected. Throw out $22 mill in electronics, and go to paper? can't fix my name with the appropriate paperwork and channels,
I'm real confident now, prepare for the late nite talkshow jokes!
I voted in Strongsville. I was told that I had to "declare" Republican or Democrat to vote for anyone other than the issues. I had to sign a form declaring Republican or Democrat. I could have "declared" either Republican or Democrat, but when I declared I obviously got the vote form for the appropriate party. So if people who "are" Republicans actually wanted to impact the Democrat election, they could have easily "declared" Democrat and voted as such.
Bring back the old Secretary of State. This pinhead we have running things now has really screwed up the voting process. What will it be next year? Stone Tablets, or perhaps we can get some old used pushbutton and lever machines from the Smithsonian. I'm ashamed to be identified as an Ohioan.
I voted in North Royalton today. The staffers were very friendly and helpful. My problem was with the outdated and cumbersome way in which we cast our ballots. Why not just roll out a stone and chisel? I just know Ohio, particularly Cuyahoga County, will be on National TV again reporting on how the BOE screwed up the process. It would be laughable if it wasn't such an important election! How do other States manage to make it look so easy??
I voted early this morning in Strongsville, after getting the "instructions" read to me, i looked at the form i was giving, and it I looked at Stub A, and it said DO NOT REMOVE in BOLD letters! After going back in forth with the poll workers and confused some of them , other people had finally looked and read that it said do not remove. They try and make things "easier" on us but looks like they had screwed up again!
Again, Strongsville here. I think there should be an age limit on who can volunteer for the polling stations. They were so confused and bewildered they didn't know what they were doing. I asked a question and was either ignored or they couldn't hear what I was saying. It was unorganized and confusing.
I voted in Ashtabula about 1:30 p.m. I didn't fill in the holes on my "fill in the oval" sheet since I didn't want to vote in races where I wasn't familiar with the candidates. When the scanner read my sheet at the time of my leaving, a buzzer went off and one of the older pole workers blurted out "You didn't vote on every race." Whose business is that? The scanner should require you to confirm your vote but make it everyone's business!
I have a question. My poll worker, who seemed barely awake tore off the tabs at the bottom of my ballot. Did this person just invalidate my vote???
I voted in Lake County, Boy am I glad they have touch computer screens. I certainly don't want to go back to the STONE AGE using paper ballots. Get with it J Brunner and grow up. We are not a bunch of idiots.
This election gives me no confidence. First they challanged my signiture. My dad same name as myself signed in my spot over eight years ago and they still havent fixed it. Then they sat people in chairs to vote using a peace of cardboard. What happened to your vote being privite. I can only guess how bad it will be come November.
I voted in Lake County. Boy an I glad I used the touch voting machines. Who wants to go back to the STONE AGE using paper ballots.
Ohio, once again, is the LAUGHINSTOCK of the nation! We screwed up with and ultimately trashed computerized voting, and have gone to paper ballots. Now we hear that it is possible, even probable, that we won't get the election results tonight (other states did), and it even my take DAYS before results are made official!!! Is it any wonder late night talk show hosts continue to diss Ohio, especially Cleveland???!!! Short answer: NO.
This post has been removed by a blog administrator.
I voted in Denmark Twshp., Ashtabula County. Easy and fun. The folks working there were friendly and fun. The voting booths were simple. The form was simple. A sheet of paper with choices listed simply on both sides. Fill in the circle with a black pen provided by the booth. Then feed it into a simple machine that scanned and asked if you were okay with it then press accept. I did and was done in no time! So simple. Why do you folks in the big cities have to try to fancy it up and make it ultimately more difficult?
Ron Paul!
I voted in North Olmsted at St., Clarence without a problem. It went VERY smoothly. I like the paper ballots - no electronics, no shads. Back to basics!
I have a complaint that I believe needs to be heard regarding the ballot for primary presidential election.
I reside in Cleveland, Ohio, and I understand that Ohio is an important state in this election.
When I went to vote, they asked me if I was voting democrat or republican, and when I said republican, they said they did not have any republican ballots and they only had democrat. At first I thought they were joking, but it seemed like they were not. So until I raised my voice a little, another volunteer came over and said that they had two different ballots Democrat and Republican.Why would anyone hid a person's right to vote for whom they choose, and be disrespectful towards a person and particular party other than whom they want to win? Who are these people to tell me which party I should be voting for?
This is America and telling anyone who they should or shouldn't vote for, and even hid a presidential ballot is absolutely wrong!
**So shame on the volunteers at Brooklyn Hts, United Church of Christ.**
Best Regards,
Anonymous
Post a Comment
Links to this post:
Create a Link
<< Home