Military Ballots Being Rejected in Virginia

human events ^ | Connie Hair

[Darnright]

>He said all of the other counties who are counting them are breaking the law.<

Well, aren’t we Virginians lucky that Rokey Suleman is here to teach us poor rednecks to wear shoes.

</ spit>

[Clinton's a liar]

Well, aren’t we Virginians lucky that Rokey Suleman is here to teach us poor rednecks to wear shoes.

Precisely.

[BellStar]

Block 7: Sign and date in the presence of one witness. The witness must sign and date the form.

NOPE NO WITNESS ADDRESS AASKED FOR!

[Ruth C]

Yes, the instruction do state a witness address is required. Virginia Absentee Voting Guide for Uniformed Services and US Citizens Overseas

http://www.fvap.gov/resources/media/vagVA.pdf

However, it is confusing because on page 392 of this form [from the above link] there is a bold section which says C. Notary/Witness Requirements FPCA: No notary or witness required except when a voter is unable to sign the application due to a physical disability or inability to read or write.

The stickler is FPCA, this refers to the Federal Post Card Application. If you then look at the opposite side of the directions for the FWAB [federal write-in absentee ballot] there is no bolded header about witness/notary, just a small included paragraph. Finally if you look at the actual ballots there is one small line for witness name and no room for the address. This ballot was changed in 2005 and I've heard the address line was removed [supposedly inadvertently]

Federal Write-in Absentee Ballot and instructions. http://www.fvap.gov/resources/media/fwab.pdf I have heard there is a federal law that says states can't make it harder for military to vote than anyone else. Does anyone know if there is such a law, I saw a reference to something like that but have no clue how to find such a law?

[Ruth C]

Where is that information on the federal law?

[pray4liberty]

Did you tape that conversation? Audio would be nice.

[Clinton's a liar]

The federal law is the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act. There’s breaking news on this from Human Events editor Jed Babbin:

Fairfax Registrar Must Count Military Ballots
http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=29220

[Ruth C]

Thanks, here’s hoping. I think the worst thing anyone can do is try to disenfranchise the military personnel who put their life on the line in their service to us.

[GOPJ]

bttt

[VigilantAmerican]

I just got off the phone with a man by the name of Gary Scott at Suleman’s office. He will not sleep easily tonight without some kind of sedative.

After Mr. Scott first spent a minute or so blabbering mumbo-jumbo about ballot technicalities and procedural protocols and administrative bureacratic horseshit, I cut to the quick and called him out on the information I’ve seen posted here and elsewhwere.

I basically about screamed a blood-curdling warning to him (even though I did make a pointed effort to say that I didn’t know him personally and meant him no particular disrespect or ill fortune—that is, unless he himself has anything to do with the deliberate or derelict disqualification of troops’ overseas ballots) and his entire operation that they’d suffer a horrible fate if they monkeyed around with our troops’ votes in the slightest.

The poor guy—he sounded nice enough, and at some point in the conversation he told me he himself is a veteran and all, along with others that work in his office...but I spent about 20 minutes creating a truly disturbing scenario in his mind wherein he’d be attempting to lay his head on his pillow and be utterly unable to sleep, haunted by the idea that vets like me and Freepers and various patriots had declared outright war on his entire office’s operation if there was any evidence WHATSOEVER that any military overseas ballots would be subject to some kind of Democrat effort to disqualify them based on a technicality.

Jeez, I was harsh with the unfortunate fellow. But from what I gathered they are getting lots of calls on this, and the initial pitch I got was from some lady who answered the phone and tried to deflect me with a claim that the media had gotten the story all wrong, but I just cut her off and snapped for her to put me through to Rokey Suleman. After another few seconds, I got the Gary Scott guy, and read him the riot act. I told him we would find out where they live, and how many creamers they take in their coffee.

I informed Scott that if Rokey Suleman or any other Democrat in that office or elsewhere think they can use the letter of the law to disqualify military ballots in violation of the spirit of the law(which is intended to eliminate fraudulent/ineligible voters, not to throw out earnest and eligible votes on technicalities), they’d be facing an unrelenting war until they counted each and every one of the valid ballots in question.

I really think Scott got the message, but I’m not gonna rest until we see this through to the end. If Virginia is a close race, and it appears even remotely that the military overseas ballots are being unfairly disqualified, heads will roll.

I just don’t trust the assurances we’re being fed about this. We will not let up until it is certain that Democrat underhandedness is eliminated from the results in this election.

[VigilantAmerican]

>Forwarded Message:
>Subj: News Release- STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS UNANIMOUSLY VOTES TO COUNT
>PREVIOUSLY DENIED FEDERAL WRITE-IN ABSENTEE BALLOTS Date: 10/28/2008
>11:38:08
>A.M. Eastern Daylight Time From: _Jessica.Lane@sbe.virginia.gov_
>(mailto:Jessica.Lane@sbe.virginia.gov) Sent from the Internet _(Details)_
>(aolmsg://09fd25d0/inethdr/2)
>
>
>
>
>News Release
>For Immediate Release:
>October 28, 2008
>For More Information:
>Susan S. Pollard, APR
>Director of Communications
>804-786-0282
>804-864-8901 (Press 3)
>STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS UNANIMOUSLY VOTES TO COUNT PREVIOUSLY DENIED
>FEDERAL WRITE-IN ABSENTEE BALLOTS
>~ Office of Attorney General’s Advisory Opinion - Federal Law Preempts
>State
>Law ~
>RICHMOND, VA - On Tuesday, October 28 the Virginia State Board of
>Elections
>reviewed and voted unanimously to accept the official advisory opinion of
>the
>Office of Attorney General regarding Federal Write-in Absentee Ballots
>(FWAB).
>Last week the State Board of Elections was alerted to a possible conflict
>between state and federal law leading to the denial of approximately 100
>FWABs. The Code of Virginia has stated since 2002 that all FWABs serving
>simultaneously as an absentee ballot application and an absentee ballot
>require both
>a witness’ signature and an address in order to be counted in the
>General
>Election. General Registrars correctly applied state law by denying
>these
>FWABs.
>Out of concern that these votes from the military and overseas could not
>be
>counted under state law, the State Board of Elections and Delegate Bill
>Janis
>requested the Office of the Attorney General to conduct a detailed review
>of
>a conflict between state and federal law. The Office of the Attorney
>General released an opinion Monday night stating “that the provision of
>§
>24.2-702.1(B) interpreted to require an overseas military voter submitting

>a FWAB to
>include the printed name and address of the person who signs the witness
>statement is preempted by the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee
>Voting Act
>(UOCAVA).”
>“I am pleased that we are able to count these votes, but also am pleased
>that our registrars followed the law,” said Jean Cunningham, Chair of
>the State
>Board of Elections. “Thank you to the Office of Attorney General for
>their
>extensive research, because of their review it allows SBE to count these
>votes under federal law.”
>For more information go to the State Board of Elections web site at
>_www.sbe.virginia.gov_ (http://www.sbe.virginia.gov/) .
>###