Georgia County Admits To Illegally Disenfranchising Voters

[GMDino]

http://thinkprogress.org/election/2015/08/26/3695039/county-admits-it-disenfranchised-voters-in-african-american-dominated-county/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=tptop3

Quote:Fulton County, Georgia admitted to illegally disenfranchising and misleading voters in the 2008 and 2012 elections in a settlement this month. For more than two dozen violations of state law — including improperly rejecting eligible ballots and sending voters to the wrong precincts — the county will pay a fine of $180,000. To make sure the problems do not continue in the future, the county has promised to spend an additional $200,000 on new training software for their poll workers.

Voting rights advocates who focus on the region, including Julie Houk with the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, praised the Secretary of State for investigating the violations but questioned whether the punishment fits the crime.

“What’s going to happen to that money?” she asked ThinkProgress. “How is the state going to use it? Is it wise to make the county pay a very large civil penalty in light of the economic crunch many of these counties are in? I wonder why a settlement couldn’t have been reached to set aside the money for remedial training to make sure the issues don’t happen again.”

The county, which includes Atlanta, has a heavily African American voting population and leans progressive, voting overwhelmingly for President Obama in 2008 and 2012. As detailed in the new settlement, county elections officials misinformed the precincts of who was coming to vote and when, failed to provide absentee ballots to voters who requested them, and failed to put voters who registered on time on the rolls, among other violations. The head of Fulton County’s elections office was fired last year, which she credits to her refusal to cover up the improper purging of voters in 2012.

“We’re happy that the [settlement] is over and we’re able to move forward,” Erica Pines with the Fulton County Democratic Party told ThinkProgress. “We want our voters, many of whom are minorities who’ve experienced a history of disenfranchisement, to remain confident in our elections system and not fear there’s going to be some type of issue when they go to the polls.”

Yet the problems facing voters of color in Georgia are not confined to Fulton County. When neighboring DeKalb County, another stronghold of African American Democrats, opened an early voting location in a popular mall, Georgia State Senator Fran Millar ® publicly lamented that “this location is dominated by African American shoppers and it is near several large African American mega churches.” He later added, “I would prefer more educated voters than a greater increase in the number of voters.”

Last year, during a tight race for an open Senate seat, more than 40,000 newly registered voters — most of them young, low-income, and black — vanished from the rolls. When voting rights groups sued the state and several counties to force them to process the registrations, the Secretary of State instead accused the groups of committing voter fraud — a move the NAACP and other civil rights groups saw as an attempt to scare them away from future voter registration drives.

A subsequent investigation found just 25 confirmed forgeries out of more than 85,000 forms—a fraud rate of about 3/100ths of 1 percent.
At the same time, the state has enacted policies that disproportionately burden voters of color. In 2006, Georgia enacted one of the country’s earliest and strictest voter ID laws. In 2012, the Secretary of State purged thousands of voters from the rolls a few months before the presidential election, and this year the state’s Director of Elections resigned after her office mistakenly canceled the registrations of hundreds of thousands of voters.

“There’s no question there were significant problems in Fulton County, but they’re being singled out,” said Houk. “The Secretary of State seems to have an inconsistent way of handling these issues.”

Over the past few years, the state has also cut the number of days of early voting from 45 to 21. Lawmakers unsuccessfully attempted earlier this year to further slash the available days to 12.

“Our state legislature is so far to the right that they’re introducing legislation every year to reduce early voting, which hurts in particular the minority community,” said Pines. “We always encourage early voting because if there’s a glitch or problem, we can take care of it prior to Election Day.”

Investigations by the Lawyers Committee and other groups say those glitches and problems are likely to continue. Georgia is one of a small handful of states to have a “exact match” system in which even a minor difference between the information on someone’s voter registration form and their DMV or Social Security records can result in their form being thrown out.

“People were rejected because there was a hyphen in their last name on their form, but not in the state records,” said Houk. “They were rejected for applying using their common name, like Tom versus Thomas. This happened to quite a few people in 2014.”

The state is also implementing a controversial policy that requires voters to provide proof of citizenship in order to register for state elections. A similar proposal in Kansas that would give voters 90 days to prove their citizenship is being challenged by lawmakers and civil rights groups. The Georgia law gives voters only 30 days.

“It’s an unnecessary deadline that prejudices people who may not have access to the proof they need,” Houk said.

[jakefromstatefarm]

OMG! They are going to require people to provide proof that they are a citizen in order to vote!!!

The nerve of those people!

[GMDino]

(08-27-2015, 04:51 PM)jakefromstatefarm Wrote: OMG!  They are going to require people to provide proof that they are a citizen in order to vote!!!  

The nerve of those people!

[jakefromstatefarm]

Wow, another meme.

Are you ever capable or articulating your own thoughts without memes and copy-pasta?

What's so wrong about a voter proving their eligibility in order to vote? I have to prove that I'm a licensed driver before test driving a car.

[GMDino]

(08-27-2015, 05:12 PM)jakefromstatefarm Wrote: Wow, another meme.

Are you ever capable or articulating your own thoughts without memes and copy-pasta?

What's so wrong about a voter proving their eligibility in order to vote?  I have to prove that I'm a licensed driver before test driving a car.

...sigh...

Why waste time telling you you didn't read the article but simply responded with a pat talking point?

At least looking up the appropriate meme is more entertaining than your responses.

But if it annoys you I am quite sorry.

[jakefromstatefarm]

Obviously I read the article or I wouldn't have questioned you about a portion of the article.

If you don't have an answer for it, fine with me.

Just post another meme. That'll show everyone you're right.

[GMDino]

(08-27-2015, 05:30 PM)jakefromstatefarm Wrote: Obviously I read the article or I wouldn't have questioned you about a portion of the article.

If you don't have an answer for it, fine with me.

Just post another meme.  That'll show everyone you're right.

No, it shows you are wrong. 

But seriously, if you did read the article are you not concerned about all the OTHER means of disenfranchising they ADMITTED to?  You're so hung up on one thing YOU think isn't a problem you completely ignored the rest?

Brilliant!

[jakefromstatefarm]

Where did you prove me wrong, other than stating that I'm wrong?

I don't see why it's necessary to have 45 days of early voting. I've voted in every election for the past 22 years, and only one time did I have to vote on a day other than election day. I did that by absentee mail-in.

I'm still waiting for you to highlight how asking someone to prove that they are a citizen and therefore eligible to vote is a bad thing.

Obviously it's racist...because any attempts to ensure legitimate elections are always labeled "racist".

As for the rest, I'd say that I'm glad that they cracked down on those idiots. Using the name "Tom" rather than "Thomas" on a voter registration card is no excuse to disenfranchise said voter.

Hope this clears up for you that I did read the article and maybe you can do away with the moronic daily kos means and address my questions.

[GMDino]

(08-27-2015, 05:38 PM)jakefromstatefarm Wrote: Where did you prove me wrong, other than stating that I'm wrong?

I don't see why it's necessary to have 45 days of early voting.  I've voted in every election for the past 22 years, and only one time did I have to vote on a day other than election day.  I did that by absentee mail-in.  

I'm still waiting for you to highlight how asking someone to prove that they are a citizen and therefore eligible to vote is a bad thing.  

Obviously it's racist...because any attempts to ensure legitimate elections are always labeled "racist".  

As for the rest, I'd say that I'm glad that they cracked down on those idiots.  Using the name "Tom" rather than "Thomas" on a voter registration card is no excuse to disenfranchise said voter.  

Hope this clears up for you that I did read the article and maybe you can do away with the moronic daily kos means and address my questions.

I'd say no matter what I say you've pretty much made you mind up as you ask and answer your own questions.  

[jakefromstatefarm]

(08-27-2015, 05:41 PM)GMDino Wrote: I'd say no matter what I say you've pretty much made you mind up as you ask and answer your own questions.  

So you demand answers to your questions, and then when asked questions in return, you refuse to answer.

That's clever.

[GMDino]

How this worked:

I asked a question.

(08-27-2015, 05:32 PM)GMDino Wrote: No, it shows you are wrong. 

But seriously, if you did read the article are you not concerned about all the OTHER means of disenfranchising they ADMITTED to?  You're so hung up on one thing YOU think isn't a problem you completely ignored the rest?

Brilliant!

You gave an answer.

(08-27-2015, 05:38 PM)jakefromstatefarm Wrote: Where did you prove me wrong, other than stating that I'm wrong?

I don't see why it's necessary to have 45 days of early voting.  I've voted in every election for the past 22 years, and only one time did I have to vote on a day other than election day.  I did that by absentee mail-in.  

I'm still waiting for you to highlight how asking someone to prove that they are a citizen and therefore eligible to vote is a bad thing.  

Obviously it's racist...because any attempts to ensure legitimate elections are always labeled "racist".  

As for the rest, I'd say that I'm glad that they cracked down on those idiots.  Using the name "Tom" rather than "Thomas" on a voter registration card is no excuse to disenfranchise said voter.  

Hope this clears up for you that I did read the article and maybe you can do away with the moronic daily kos means and address my questions.

I decided that arguing would do no good as you have a predetermined idea about the "idiots".

(08-27-2015, 05:41 PM)GMDino Wrote: I'd say no matter what I say you've pretty much made you mind up as you ask and answer your own questions.  

Now you want me to argue with you.

(08-27-2015, 05:44 PM)jakefromstatefarm Wrote: So you demand answers to your questions, and then when asked questions in return, you refuse to answer.

That's clever.

And while I know its a waste of five minutes out of my day:

Clearly *I* think anything that allows more people to get a chance to vote is a good move and anything that hinders a person's ability to vote is a bad thing.

In the story above the county admitted to deliberately trying to disenfranchise voters...by doing the things YOU think aren't wrong or disenfranchising.

[BmorePat87]

As someone whose mom misspelled his middle name as "Joesph" (she blames whatever they put her on after giving birth), I don't like the fact that a discrepancy between my SS info (which is spelt "Joseph" and my license (which is "Joesph") could cause me to be ineligible to vote.

[GMDino]

(08-27-2015, 06:43 PM)BmorePat87 Wrote: As someone whose mom misspelled his middle name as "Joesph" (she blames whatever they put her on after giving birth), I don't like the fact that a discrepancy between my SS info (which is spelt "Joseph" and my license (which is "Joesph") could cause me to be ineligible to vote.

Pfft.  You're just an idiot.  

[jakefromstatefarm]

(08-27-2015, 09:47 PM)GMDino Wrote: Pfft.  You're just an idiot.  

Apparently you missed the part where I gave props for them getting busted for doing such things.  Something as simple as that shouldn't take that long to clear up, and certainly isn't an excuse to justify disenfranchise them. 

It would sure be nice if you would address my question about how ensuring someone is a citizen and therefore a legitimate voter is a bad thing. 

I don't expect it though.  

[Rotobeast]

(08-27-2015, 02:14 PM)GMDino Wrote: http://thinkprogress.org/election/2015/08/26/3695039/county-admits-it-disenfranchised-voters-in-african-american-dominated-county/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=tptop3

[fredtoast]

(08-27-2015, 10:06 PM)jakefromstatefarm Wrote: It would sure be nice if you would address my question about how ensuring someone is a citizen and therefore a legitimate voter is a bad thing. 

I don't expect it though.  

Do you understand the difference between registering to vote and actually voting.  Every person who is registered to vote has already proven citizenship.  So the issue of voter fraud that you want to address has to do with voter registration instead of actual voting.

It is almost impossible for a person to commit voter fraud at the polls.  The person would have to know of another registered voter that they knew for certain would not vote.  That would only happen on such a small scale that it really would not make any difference.

Everyone knows that more restrictions on voter means fewer poor voters.  And that helps the Republican party.  


http://thinkprogress.org/election/2012/06/25/505953/pennsylvania-republican-voter-id-laws-are-gonna-allow-governor-romney-to-win/

This weekend, Pennsylvania Republican House Leader Mike Turzai (R-PA) finally admitted what so many have speculated: Voter identification efforts are meant to suppress Democratic votes in this year’s election.


At the Republican State Committee meeting, Turzai took the stage and let slip the truth about why Republicans are so insistent on voter identification efforts — it will win Romney the election, he said:


“We are focused on making sure that we meet our obligations that we’ve talked about for years,” said Turzai in a speech to committee members Saturday. 

“Voter ID, which is gonna allow Governor Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania, done.”

[Benton]

(08-27-2015, 04:51 PM)jakefromstatefarm Wrote: OMG!  They are going to require people to provide proof that they are a citizen in order to vote!!!  

The nerve of those people!

Cause that's what caused them to purge 40,000 voters before an election. The fact they didn't show up after they were removed with an id.

[*michaelsean*]

(08-27-2015, 06:43 PM)BmorePat87 Wrote: As someone whose mom misspelled his middle name as "Joesph" (she blames whatever they put her on after giving birth), I don't like the fact that a discrepancy between my SS info (which is spelt "Joseph" and my license (which is "Joesph") could cause me to be ineligible to vote.

Hey my dad's name is Patrick Joseph.  (Almost the same as yours )