Tales from the local elections.

[Morganite]

Well, we all know how the big item went. Anyone have anything interesting happen closer to home?

Here's a few items from Iowa:

-Due to redistricting, one of our House races was between two long-standing incumbents - Tom Latham vs. Leonard Boswell. Boswell had the somewhat dubious distinction of running the most negative campaign I've ever seen. I heard precisely one unique ad of his where he had anything good to say about himself.

-I'm not sure exactly who it involved, but apparently one of our state legislature races had a difference of 29 votes. That's apparently startlingly close even for a local election. That's just people who voted yesterday though, and doesn't include early voting, so maybe that'll resolve it.

-In another local race, Steve Sodders apparently had some advertising saying his opponent (Jane Jech) opposed access to cancer screening.

Jane Jech's mother is apparently dying of cancer.

FAUX PAS.

-There was a ballot issue about one county getting a loan which was promoted as for "water conservation". However, it's entirely acceptable under the fine print for them to spend it building bike trails, and some people think that's exactly what they'll do. (This area already has bike trails that no one uses in various places...)

-And speaking of early voting, there seem to be a lot of people who had absentee ballots that never actually got where they were going. Does not appear to be an attempt at actual tampering, since I've heard reports from people identifying as members of both parties. But it's making some people kind of wonder if pushing early voting so much is in fact a bad idea.

-Morgan.

[robkelk]

... -And speaking of early voting, there seem to be a lot of people who had absentee ballots that never actually got where they were going. Does not appear to be an attempt at actual tampering, since I've heard reports from people identifying as members of both parties. But it's making some people kind of wonder if pushing early voting so much is in fact a bad idea.

Sorry to derail the thread so early... Does your system not have early voting in person? In Canada, one can vote by mail ("absentee voting") or at the riding's (district's) Returning Officer's office on particular published days before the general election day ("advance voting"), and we consider these to be two different types of early voting.
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Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

[ECSNorway]

Here in New York, we have an amusing report from an actual Senate candidate of blatant attempts at voter intimidation and fraud.

Wendy Long, running against Kirsten Gillibrand, went in to vote... and had a poll worker take the ballot out of her hand, look at it (which they're not supposed to do at all!), and then tell her the machine won't accept it... because she hadn't filled in all the 'D' circles.

Let me see if I have this straight: A poll worker is telling an actual Republican US SENATE CANDIDATE that her ballot is invalid unless she votes a straight slate of the other party?

There have also been reports from Pennsylvania of duly-appointed election monitors forced away from the polling places at gunpoint.

Yeah. Congratulations, the Chicago Way of Stealing Elections works. Vote early, vote often, and make sure the other party doesn't get a vote.
--
Sucrose Octanitrate.
Proof positive that with sufficient motivation, you can make anything explode.

[Dartz]

US elections are nothing more than contests between thieves as to which one can pull the heist off first...

I guarantee if Romney won the same stories would be worming out in a different colour.

All jokes aside. That may not be too far wrong. From what I' reading, the Democrat campaign used a frankly staggering amount of data mining, analysis and profiling to get out there and get in contact with people who might want to vote for them, and encourage them to vote. I was reading that, in some states, democrat voters were phone-called to remind them to go vote. It was a true information-era campaign.... it wasn't a campaign, it was a bombardment at ground level.

And possibly just a little bit creepy when you think about it.
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--m(^0^)m-- Wot, no sig?

[LynnInDenver]

I had at least 4 stops that I can verify from Obama supporters to actually face to face remind me to go out and vote last week. Two I was home for. The other two they left papers behind as a reminder because I wasn't home at all.

It would be far creepier if they showed up at my workplace to remind me...

I did do the early voting thing, dropped off my mail ballot in the middle of last week. Very much convenient.
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"You know how parents tell you everything's going to fine, but you know they're lying to make you feel better? Everything's going to be fine." - The Doctor