Re: poll worker training tomorrow (Saturday)

At today's poll watcher training at state Dem headquarters in Denver, we were told that we don't have to worry about getting names of people who have voted. That will be handled by GOTV (Get Out the Vote) people. I was told there will be another training for poll watchers in Boulder County the Saturday before election day.

Margit

On Sat, Oct 18, 2008 at 6:01 PM, Paul E Condon <pecondon@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

In Boulder Co, the public announcing of each voter name has been
dropped. I learned this at judge training last week. I asked for
confirmation. The responce was quite esplicit. Yes we required that
in past, but it is no longer required. The explanation was that it
caused unnecessary noise. Also, Boulder has something 'Voter Sign-In
Slip' which is a small two part form - one sheet white and one sheet
yellow. As each voter deposits his ballot, the ballot box judge
separates the two sheets and places them in separate stacks, white and
yellow. Poll watchers are allowed to touch the yellow stack and record
names off it.

In re. Denver voter number vs. voter name. This number is likely
a unique number that is assigned to each entry in the master register
of voters. Persons interested in tracking the election process can,
in Boulder Co. anyway, get a copy of the database with name and number.
If so, it might help speed the work of poll watchers:

1) the organization that is sponsoring the watching produces, for the
watchers, lists of voter numbers of the voters that they are tracking.
These list should be sorted in numeric order by voter number.

2) as each voter number is announced, the watcher strikes that number
from the list for the precinct in which he is watching.

I wonder what is the law that underlies these two different
procedures. Surely differences like these can be 'harmonized' (in the
EU sense).

The Boulder two part form seems to me to be a good idea, except that
there is some voter confusion. It is called a 'Sign-In Slip', but they
are supposed to _print_ their name, not sign it. It also serves as to
carry information from one judge to the next through the check-in and
identification cheching process. IMO, it is crazy to have differences
in the touch labor steps between counties.

On Fri, Oct 17, 2008 at 11:38:19PM -0600, Neal McBurnett wrote:
> More surprising and worrysome to me from what Michael Scarpello said
> today was that in Denver they do not have an election judge publicly
> announce the name of the voter. In Boulder we always did that, and I
> understood it was so that neighbors, pollwatcher, etc would be able to
> tell if there was any question of identity. It always seemed
> appropriate to me and a nice way to be proud of being there.
> I don't know what the Colorado law or rules say about it. What is
> Boulder doing this year?
>
> Neal McBurnett http://neal.mcburnett.org/
>
> On Fri, Oct 17, 2008 at 10:22:56PM -0600, Mary Eberle wrote:
> > Dear CFVIers,
> >
> > A curious thing that I learned today while interviewing Denver Elections
> > Director Michael Scarpello is that the poll watchers in Denver precincts
> > will not be given voters' names. They will be given the voter's voter
> > number (hand transcribed onto a list by an election judge), which they
> > will have to take outside the polling place and call to someone who can
> > look up the number on a Web site, correlate the number with a name, and
> > thus create a list of people who have voted in that precinct.
> >
> > Boulder County gives the voter's name directly to the poll watcher via a
> > sign-in sheet (not the poll book itself).
> >
> > Mary
> >
> > Ivan Meek wrote:
> > >Hi All,
> > >
> > >For those of you that are new to poll watching, I want to make sure
> > >you all aware that poll watchers are basically representing their
> > >political party and that their obligations are fundamentally set by
> > >the party. In addition to looking for problems, poll watchers for
> > >the Democratic Party are usually expected to record the names of the
> > >voters that have voted and transfer that information to the local
> > >headquarters. They then cull the list to voters that have not already
> > >voted. The intent is to call and "get out the vote" for those
> > >remaining as the election day comes to a close. I don't think it
> > >works but the party feels it is important.
> > >
> > >You MUST be a registered member of the party you are representing to
> > > be a poll watcher. No Unaffiliateds. There is only one poll
> > >watcher allowed in each polling place for each party. In the past, I
> > >have never seen a Republican poll watcher at any of my polling places
> > >but then I have not strayed outside of Boulder County.
> > >
> > >The Democrats have, in the past, had a number to call to resolve
> > >issues and to, if necessary, a lawyer to call if the law is being
> > >violated. I suspect you will find most of the problems to not be
> > >willful but will be because the election judges don't know the law
> > >but feel that because of their tenure that they are the law. It is
> > >common for election judges to give poll watchers grief for various
> > >reasons.
> > >
> > >The depth of involvement of the Obama campaign is unpresentented. I
> > > will not be surprised if they have ideas for poll watching too.
> > >
> > >Good luck to all of you who choose to do this task!
> > >
> > >-ivan
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >----- Original Message ----- *From:* Margit Johansson
> > ><mailto:margitjo@xxxxxxxxx> *To:* Deb Adams
> > ><mailto:debsueadams@xxxxxxxxxxx> ; Harvie Branscomb
> > ><mailto:harvie@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> ; Geof Cahoon
> > ><mailto:gcahoon@xxxxxxxxx> ; David Larson
> > ><mailto:dave@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> ; angielayton@xxxxxxxx
> > ><mailto:angielayton@xxxxxxxx> ; Ivan Meek
> > ><mailto:ivan.meek@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> ; joseph richey
> > ><mailto:richey80304@xxxxxxxxx> ; Mary Eberle
> > ><mailto:m.eberle@xxxxxxxxxxxx> ; Cliff West
> > ><mailto:clifwest@xxxxxxxxxxx> ; Tom Morris <mailto:Tmmco1@xxxxxxx> ;
> > >Dan Leftwich <mailto:dleftwich@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> ; CFVI Attendees
> > ><mailto:attendees@xxxxxxx> ; Citizens for Verifiable Voting
> > ><mailto:cvv-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> ; amaynard_1@xxxxxxxx
> > ><mailto:amaynard_1@xxxxxxxx> ; Richard Bowles
> > ><mailto:rjb3445@xxxxxxxxxxx> ; Dr. Charles E. Corry
> > ><mailto:ccorry@xxxxxxxx> ; AlKolwicz <mailto:alkolwicz@xxxxxxxxx>
> > >*Sent:* Friday, October 17, 2008 2:25 PM *Subject:* poll worker
> > >training tomorrow (Saturday)
> > >
> > >Hi All,
> > >
> > >Did you know that according to the SOS election Rules (as amended
> > >7/11/08), you can be a poll watcher in any Colorado county, not just
> > >your own? See page 18, 8.1.2. <http://8.1.2./>
> > >
> > >Tomorrow (Saturday) there are *poll watcher trainings* for both Dems
> > >and Reps.
> > >
> > >*Dems*: at state headquarters in Denver at 777 Santa Fe Drive, there
> > >is poll watcher training from *1-3 PM Saturday, October 18th. * The
> > >address is: 777 Sante Fe Drive, Denver. It's okay if you haven't
> > >decided where you will poll watch yet.
> > >
> > >*Reps:* There are poll watcher trainings at: 10AM at 5950 S. willow
> > >Drive, suite 306 in Greenwood Village AND 2PM tomorrow at 1350
> > >Indepenence St, Lakewood, suite 201.(For future trainings, call
> > >Jennifer at 303-486-2008.)
> > >
> > >Margit
> > >
> > >Margit Johansson 303-442-1668/ margitjo@xxxxxxxxx
> > ><mailto:margitjo@xxxxxxxxx>

--
Paul E Condon
pecondon@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx