[EL] An Election Day Report from New Jersey

[John Tanner]

I voted in Essex County, NJ years ago, in the Central Ward of Newark.  The polling place was not marked   No signs, not even a street number on any nearby building. I asked several people, none of whom knew where the polls were, and tried several doors before finding an open, unattended door that led to a long, ill-lit flight of stairs.  Seeking the bubble reputation, i climbed the stairs and the top found the voting place.  Although almost all of the voters in the area were black, all of the poll workers were burly white men in, I would guess, their 40s.  I was the only voter., and they seemed surprised to see me   After I voted and left, I noticed a black couple looking around the street and pointed out the polling place to them.   They opened the door, looked up the stairwell, had an animated conversation for a couple of minutes - and then left.  

Sent from my iPad

On Nov 5, 2013, at 6:19 PM, Lori Minnite <lminnite at gmail.com> wrote:

> Lest anyone doubt it couldn't happen to you...Today is Election  Day in 
> New Jersey.  We are voting for governor, assembly and state senate 
> seats, township committee, as well as for/against amending the state 
> constitution to raise the minimum wage, and to allow some of the 
> proceeds from "games of chance" to be used to support veterans' 
> organizations.
> 
> In the summer of 2012, I moved to New Jersey from New York City.  I 
> spent days driving around and visiting federal and state government 
> offices to obtain a certified copy of my birth certificate and a new 
> Social Security card, to change my driver's license and do all the other 
> things one must to do to establish legal residency in a new state.  I 
> attempted to register to vote via the drivers' license process; sometime 
> later (about a month of two later, I can't remember exactly when it was, 
> but it was well after I changed my license), I went to the county Board 
> of Elections to check on my registration, only find that it had not gone 
> through yet.  I kept on top of things over the next several weeks 
> because I wanted to be sure I could vote in the fall.  Finally, I showed 
> up in the registered voters database and received my voter registration 
> card in the mail.  As it turned out, I had to be out of town on election 
> day, so I applied for and voted an absentee ballot.
> 
> Today, I realized I did not know where my polling place was, so I drove 
> to the county Board of Elections to find out.  With voter registration 
> card in hand, I was told that my registration had been "deleted" because 
> I had moved to New York.  I explained that I had moved FROM New York, 
> not TO New York and asked how it was that the sample ballot they said 
> they mailed to me in January got forwarded to New York City where I no 
> longer live.  I asked them why I get all of my other mail at my new home 
> address, including tax bills and water and sewer bills - they don't get 
> forward to New York City.  I asked them why they didn't call me to 
> verify whatever strange information they had when they got it.  They had 
> no explanation.  They told me that my polling place is a fire hall about 
> .1 of a mile from my home, and that I could vote a provisional ballot 
> there.  I drove back to the fire hall - it was fairly empty, and I voted 
> my provisional ballot.  I asked how I could be sure that it would be 
> counted, and was told "I don't know."  Before I was given the ballot, 
> the poll worker called the county Board of Elections to find out if he 
> had permission to give me the provisional ballot.  He asked them how my 
> registration would get straightened out and was told the county Board 
> would fix the problem based on the information I submitted with my 
> provisional ballot.  He told me to follow up again in about a month with 
> the county Board of Elections since "they make so many mistakes."
> 
> In the meantime, despite having notified the New York City Board of 
> Elections three times - once through the voter registration process in 
> New Jersey, a second time by personal letter sent First Class mail, and 
> a third time by phone - I continue to be listed on the rolls there, 
> although my registration is now coded "Inactive."  This has not stopped 
> the campaign literature from going to my old address (where a friend 
> saves it for me).
> 
> Just thought I would share.
> 
> Lori Minnite
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