Posted on 10/21/2004 6:03:41 AM PDT by Preachin'
I am proud to announce that I will be a poll worker for the first time this year.
They were good to me and let me work at my own precint, which is 2 miles from my house. I live in Cherokee County Georgia.
Honestly, my major reason for doing this is to be on the lookout for election fraud, and campaign activities going on within the campaign-free zone.
My hope is that some of the posters here with this type of experience can tell me what to be looking for, so that I can get with the precint manager to have the problems corrected.
In addition, I am hoping that some of the other FReepers will volunteer in their own precints, if time still allows (which I doubt).
If you live in a battleground state, consider taking the day off and driving several friends to their precinct.
If you belong to a church, take the lead and encourage all of your fellow members to vote. The Christian vote will make us or break us this year.
I don't think you'll have much problem where you live. Nonetheless, I'm glad conservative eyes like yours are watching.
I am going to be a poll watcher at two precints...closing my business and work all day until the polls close. Even though I live in Maryland and there is not a remote chance for Bush...I want to make sure we get as much popular vote as possible. The headquarters is having a training session here for ALL poll watchers.
I've been a poll worker.
1) don't discuss politics
2) though it's boring, don't give into temptation to read the paper, etc. Stay alert.
3) if a problem arises, start making notes at the beginning...don't wait til later: Note the time, voter name, and details of the complaint and response from poll workers.
Most likely, it will be non-eventful. But you can feel proud for having served your country. Well done!
Just make sure everything is by the book. Especially AFTER the polls close and the vote count begins. That is a really dangerous time. Especially if you notice your co-poll workers are rabid Dums.
Ask your trainer, but I'm pretty sure you can call the police if they're violating the restrictions on campaigning too close to a polling place.
My precinct manager told me that she and her father-in-law have consecutively held the position for over 40 years. I do not know her party affiliation, but she seemed trustworthy.
From the video I watched, the machines hold the votes in three different locations. This will safeguard the votes in the event of power failure, and hopefully prevent vote fraud.
I am hoping to be there the entire shift, so that I can monitor the vote tally in the end. I report at 6am, and staying the whole day amounts to a long day. It'll be worth it. It is the precinct manager's discretion to keep me there, or send me home.
I am told that each precinct manager has a certain gesture to signal to the precinct manager that something is possibly wrong.
One precinct manager keeps a hat on each table, and the workers simply place it on their heads to quietly get the manager's attention.
That's pretty clever, I think.
Thanks for doing this. We need more patriots.
I've done it when I lived in Corpus. Actually the day goes fast, try to stay if you can. It's important.
Have you ever wonder if this happens simply because conservatives became so discouraged at one point that they quit working/observing the polls?
Especially from one who just registered yesterday, right?
POLLWATCHER TIP: Make sure the number of ballot applications exactly matches the number of ballots cast.
Yeah, reminds me of last minute airplane passenger's with no luggage paying in cash.
I've been a board worker in the same district for about 14 years. But where I live is predominately middle class with a close mix of Pubs and RATS, with a few undeclareds.
The local RATS sometimes flinch at the shenanigans pulled at the national party level.
- If you have a microcassette recorder, put it in a shirt pocket and discretely hit the record button if there is something worth recording (i.e. union goon intimidation, RAT scheming).
- Take a digital camera or disposable if you don't have one and keep it ready to capture anything worth capturing.
Use these only as a last resort - otherwise, they'll be trying to pin things on you and make you the issue.
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