Early voting begins ... late
Early voting for the June 13 primary runoff elections is supposed to begin today, but many counties are not ready to start.
Ann Clements in the secretary of state's office says that they do not have a comprehensive list of which counties have delayed early voting, but coordinators in their office are talking to county officials and should know more by tomorrow.
Part of the problem is that counties are still recounting or otherwise completing tabulation of the May 23 results. In addition, the new touch-screen voting machines have not been reprogrammed for the runoff by their manufacturer, Election Systems and Software (ES&S).
"ES&S informed us that the Ivos [touch-screen voting machines] would be ready by the end of this week," Clements said.
Early voting started this morning in Pulaski County, according to Susan Inman, director of the Pulaski County Election Commission. But that's because she decided not to rely on ES&S.
"We did our own programming and are proceeding on our own," Inman said. "We didn't want to find ourselves in same position we were in before, or the same position other counties are in right now."
Clements added that all Arkansas counties were contacted at the end of last week and instructed to open the polls as soon as voting was practicable by any means they can use, including lever machines and paper ballots.
Clements stressed that counties don't always begin early voting on time, especially when runoff elections follow so closely after an initial vote.
Comments
I cannot find a record of what has happened vote-wise in Phillips County anywhere. What is going on in the state senate race and the race for state representaive over there. There will problably be a run off in both races, but who is in it? Who lead the tickets? Who ran second, who ran third? What was the total vote?
Does anyone know?
Posted by: Old Blue Eyes | May 30, 2006 01:35 PM
What an f-ing mess. Max, you and others need to stop making excuses for Daniels. The buck (no pun intended) stops with him. You should not defend him just because he's got a Republican pointing out his failures.
Posted by: aDem | May 30, 2006 01:59 PM
i believe fair elections in bagdad will occur,before they do in phillips county
Posted by: Anonymous | May 30, 2006 02:13 PM
The whole voting fiasco of last week and now this makes Florida look like nothing. This is an embarassment to our state!! There were multitudes of problems across the state. This is inexcusable.
Posted by: Anonymous | May 30, 2006 02:14 PM
I went to our local courthouse to vote and no ballots. Others had to be turned away.
Posted by: Cato | May 30, 2006 03:04 PM
Charlie Danielss bought $15 million worth of boat anchors.
Posted by: pen and paper person | May 30, 2006 03:16 PM
Well, ain't this a fine mess!
It appears that everyone took a long weekend off and forgot the voters.
No one will take credit for this and fingers will be pointing in all directions.
What a shame and embarassment!
Posted by: Jim | May 30, 2006 04:10 PM
Move to South Arkansas where your vote counts! Columbia, Ouachita, and Union Counties all went with the Shouptronic machine, not an ES&S machine in sight and we actually had a free and fair vote down here. I'll be heading down to vote on those machines again real soon!
Posted by: South Arkansas | May 30, 2006 04:30 PM
Hey Charlie,
what did she look like?
Posted by: an interested observer | May 30, 2006 05:07 PM
These machines that are put out by the companies that backed the Republicans always have problems, it seems.
Is that a bug, or a feature?
Boy, that Help America Vote Act is another one of those misnamed laws the Republicans put out, like the Clear Skies Initiative and Healthy Forests thing. It's actually the Stop Americans From Voting and Stop Them From Having Their Votes Counted Right Act.
Maybe we should call it the Screw Up Voting Act, or the Make it Difficult to Vote Act.
Posted by: rablib | May 30, 2006 05:08 PM
"I cannot find a record of what has happened vote-wise in Phillips County anywhere. What is going on in the state senate race and the race for state representaive over there. There will problably be a run off in both races, but who is in it? Who lead the tickets? Who ran second, who ran third? What was the total vote?Does anyone know?
Posted by: Old Blue Eyes"
from
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/files/elections/2006/by_state/AR_Page_0523.html?SITE=ARLIDELN&SECTION=POLITICS
State Senate - District 16 - Dem Primary
74 of 74 Precincts Reporting - 100.00%
Willis 3,879 34.54%
Crumbly 3,864 34.41%
Simes 3,486 31.04%
State House - District 13 - Dem Primary
57 of 57 Precincts Reporting - 100.00%
Brandon 1,778 36.17%
Hall 1,776 36.13%
Mitchell 1,362 27.71%
Posted by: phillips county results | May 30, 2006 05:28 PM
Well, ol' Charlie Daniels doesn't seem very concerned about this mess, but that's all right. I'm going to help send his worthless ass AND all his damn relatives to the state of unemployment this November. Kudos to Ms. Inman, who can at least recognize a clusterf*** and respond appropriately.
Posted by: Bye-bye, Mr. Charlie, Byyyyyeeeeee!!! | May 30, 2006 06:42 PM
http://www.itworld.com/Tech/2987/041102evoteprobs/
E-voting problems reported as election gets under way
In Columbus, Ohio, overcharged batteries on Danaher Controls ELECTronic 1242 systems kept machines from booting up properly at the beginning of the day. Election workers quickly resolved the problem and those systems were brought online. No polling place had to suspend voting because of the problem, said Jeff La Rue, a spokesman for the Franklin County Board of Elections.
Additional problems with Election Systems & Software (ES&S) iVotronic machines occurred in Louisiana after officials improperly formatted ballots so that systems labeled nonprovisional ballots as provisional, and vice versa, he said. Provisional ballots are being given to voters whose registration is found to be in doubt when they go to vote.
Posted by: hey shouptronic guy: shoups a crooked bastard | May 30, 2006 07:31 PM
http://www.votersunite.org/info/messupsbyvendor.asp
Mess Ups by voting machine vendor.
Take your pick: ES$S and Danaher (shouptronic)
btw, Ransom Shoup was imprisioned for the bribery of public officials, much like former Sec. of State Bill McCuen who took bribes from ES&S and their rep, Todd Erschberger. Let's don't forget Jerry Fowler, LA's Election Commissioner who took $8 million in bribes from Sequoia pacific.
Posted by: Anonymous | May 30, 2006 07:34 PM
Phillips County's election woes continue. Election woes and misery abound in Phillips Co.
iVotronic votes DO NOT MATCH UP
"Hours later, other problems popped up, as the paper ballots inside the Ivotronic machine, and those stored in the Supervisor Personal Election Ballot, failed to match".
She was asked whether the contract with ES & S included a laptop for Phillips County to use to help tabulate the ballots from the Ivotronic system. She was informed that this was one of the problems the county election commission ran into with the electronic devices. She stated that she could not confirm each instance, or each county, and was not sure about Phillips County but it was a phased implementation. Short answer: NO they didn't have the laptop, aka central vote tabulator to tabulate their votes. They left a note on the door instead stating no ballots would be counted due to the ES&S vendor not supplying a chip for their tabulator.
http://www.helena-arkansas.com/articles/2006/05/25/news/news1.txt
Phillips County's election woes continue
Posted by: Anonymous | May 30, 2006 07:40 PM
RE::Ann Clements in the secretary of state's office says that they do not have a comprehensive list of which counties have delayed early voting, but coordinators in their office are talking to county officials and should know more by tomorrow.
Why the hell not? His staff got a big fat pay increase last year and they can't even compile a list of counties? What do those people do?
Posted by: WTH???? | May 30, 2006 07:43 PM
"We did our own programming and are proceeding on our own," Inman said. "We didn't want to find ourselves in same position we were in before, or the same position other counties are in right now."
Clements added that all Arkansas counties were contacted at the end of last week and instructed to open the polls as soon as voting was practicable by any means they can use, including lever machines and paper ballots.
Clements stressed that counties don't always begin early voting on time, especially when runoff elections follow so closely after an initial vote.
_____
First of all, Susan Inman I want you to explain what 'programming' your own means and what exactly that entails. Why are you programming machines that your favorite vendor ES&S can't even program? Do you have some kind of magic software the rest of the state doesn't have? Afterall, all ES&S machines use Unity software.(when ES&S ships it) So why are you programming your own?
Ann Clements hon, you are clueless. Yes, early voting has been delayed several times under Charlie Daniels direction due to ES&S not providing the ballots in a timely fashion. Ask St. Francis county about being delayed early voting by one entire week in 2004 thanks to ES&S. And what did the SOS office do then about ES&S triffling with our election laws?
Nothing.
All these election 'officials' are officially worthless and need to be fired.
Posted by: Anonymous | May 30, 2006 07:52 PM
If you could not/cannot vote for any reason e.g. couldn't cast vote once you got to the polls due to lack of ballots, software blew up, candidate names not on ballots whatever: Make sure you report it in the form of a complaint. Here's what to do next.
File a formal complaint with the local election commission. Call your county clerk for the commission's address.
http://www.arcounties.org/
File that formal complaint with the State Board of Election Commission. Director Susie Stormes: sstormes@sosmail.state.ar.us
File that same formal complaint with the Sec. of State's office. ph. 501-682-1010 Deputy Janet Miller Harris
jlmiller@sosmail.state.ar.us
All voters in this state need to file a formal complaint with the attorney general.
Cuz it sure won't do any good to file complaints with those responsible.
Better fight for your vote while you still can...
Posted by: Anonymous | May 30, 2006 08:15 PM
...Still waiting for one of you HatHornites to come and get your boy's sign improperly, if not illegally, placed on school property at Terry Elementary in Little Rock. The polls closed more than a week ago as of this post. Quit whining about your tail-whupping and clean up your mess.
Posted by: Tired of Campaign Litter(ature) | May 30, 2006 08:44 PM
"Quit whining about your tail-whupping and clean up your mess."
Why don't you quit your whining and take it down yourself if it's bothering you that damn much. Also, I bet you never even bothered to contact Hathorn's campign, right?
Posted by: didn't vote for Hathorn, won't vote for Halter, and could care less | May 31, 2006 01:33 AM
"Why don't you quit your whining and take it down yourself if it's bothering you that damn much. Also, I bet you never even bothered to contact Hathorn's campign, right?"
Posted by: didn't vote for Hathorn, won't vote for Halter, and could care less | May 31, 2006 01:33 AM
..Not my job to take it down OR call HatHorn's campaign crew. THEY put it up (where it never should have been to begin with); it's their bleeping job to go get it. Besides, plenty of his folks read and post on this blog; they've got the message by now.
Your blog name says it all. You must be a Republican, because they are very selective when it comes to personal responsibility issues like this.
It's always somebody else's fault, right?
Posted by: Tired of Campaign Litter(ature) | May 31, 2006 06:38 AM