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Election official: More time needed to count military ballots
Associated Press ^ | Tuesday, August 3, 2004

Posted on 08/04/2004 5:31:23 AM PDT by presidio9

Thousands of votes from U.S. troops overseas could go uncounted again in November without emergency legislation extending deadlines for the ballots, a Chicago election official warned President Bush in a letter Tuesday.

Nearly 30 percent of military voters who requested ballots in 2000 didn't get them in time to vote. Theresa M. Petrone, a Democratic member of Chicago's three-person Board of Election Commissioners, told Bush the problem could be solved if he proposed emergency legislation giving election officials up to 14 days after Election Day to collect and count ballots.

Deadlines vary, but most states, including Illinois, require that ballots be received by Election Day. Other states, including Ohio and Florida, count them for up to 10 or more days later, as long as they were signed by Election Day.

"Every election cycle, election authorities such as Chicago receive military absentee ballots days or even weeks after the deadline, thus disqualifying these votes from being included in the election tally," Petrone wrote. "With hundreds of thousands of military personnel serving overseas, the voting bloc obviously could determine the outcome of our next presidential election."

(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Front Page News; Government; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: militaryballots; militaryvote
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To: Sybeck1
Sheets Byrd of W.VA should be all in favor of this, right? right? Large military pop there right?

Riiiiiight. LOL

So help me if they disenfranchise these people I see slogging through the intense heat every day, going outside the wire into harm's way every day...so help me...

Can't even finish it, I'm so hacked off at the very thought.

Oh...and my damn vote had better count, too. Myself and my co-workers over here are overwhelmingly in favor of Bush.

And those slimebag RATs know it.

21 posted on 08/05/2004 8:43:20 AM PDT by Allegra (It depends on what the meaning of "is" is......)
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To: presidio9; Allegra; StarCMC

bump


22 posted on 08/05/2004 8:56:20 AM PDT by Soaring Feather
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To: presidio9; Allegra; StarCMC

bump


23 posted on 08/05/2004 8:56:21 AM PDT by Soaring Feather
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To: Ron in Acreage
>>>>>The dems will do enough to screw up the election<<<<<

Oh, they've already started that. I've heard someone is already crying that the new voting machines don't work! Prep-work!

24 posted on 08/05/2004 9:06:44 AM PDT by beachn4fun (NO.....I do not suffer fools gladly!)
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To: Allegra

LOL!! I had to remove my Sig from the emails to the democrats that pretend to represent me so that they wouldn't discount my email. (It's a Flush Kerry signature.) I emailed Fed. Senators, Fed. Representative,
State Sen & Rep, as well as the MO Attorney General, MO Sec of State and Attorney General AShcroft. Anyone else you can think of?? I didn't bother with our Gov. - he's a waste of bandwidth.


25 posted on 08/05/2004 9:06:55 AM PDT by StarCMC (It's God's job to forgive Bin Laden, it's our job to arrange the meeting.)
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To: Allegra; presidio9; Ernest_at_the_Beach; bentfeather; Old Sarge

I heard back from the MO SoS's office...thought I'd pass it on....



Ms. (me),

As a member of the Naval Reserves, Secretary Blunt understands the importance of protecting the voting rights of those men and women in the armed services who are protecting our freedoms abroad and at home. Because of this, Secretary Blunt has taken the necessary steps to allow military servicemen and women in hostile areas to fax their ballots to their local election authority rather than depend on mail service. In addition, this office has established a web page ( http://www.sos.mo.gov/elections/military/default.asp) desinged to assist military personel with registration and election information.

Thank you for your comments. Please let me know if I can be of further assistance.

Trent Summers
Elections Specialist
Elections Division
Secretary of State Matt Blunt's Office
(573) - 522-1476
Fax: (573) - 526-3242
summet@sosmail.state.mo.us


26 posted on 08/05/2004 2:20:17 PM PDT by StarCMC (It's God's job to forgive Bin Laden, it's our job to arrange the meeting.)
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