Military Prevented From Voting In Virginia
October 22nd, 2008 by Admin
The Fairfax County Registrar—and possibly other Registrars in Virginia—is rejecting most Federal Write-in Absentee Ballots (FWAB) cast by our men and women in uniform.
The FWAB is a federally mandated write-in ballot that allows military servicemembers and their dependents to cast an absentee ballot when they have not received a ballot before the election. It is a safety net that allows a servicemember to vote even if the mail truck hasn't reached his or her remote base in Iraq or Afghanistan in time to cast a regular absentee ballot.
Why is the Fairfax Registrar rejecting these ballots? The Registrar states that the witness who signs the envelope containing the FWAB must include his or her address—but most of the ballots don't include the witness' address.
Virginia law does not require a witness address for any other type of absentee ballot. So, for example, a Virginia resident attending college out of state does not need to include her witness' address on her absentee ballot envelope. But the Fairfax County Registrar is holding servicemembers, including those currently defending their country in war zones, to a much more exacting standard, requiring the witnesses who sign their FWABs to include their address.
To make matters worse, the Federal form (SF-186A) that is used for the FWAB does not have a space for witnesses to include their address. And the Department of Defense's official Voting Assistance Guide, which it provides to servicemembers as an instruction manual for casting votes while overseas, does not tell servicemembers that they must include an address for their witness. The servicemember would thus have no way of knowing of this requirement.
Federal law does not allow this type of disparate treatment of servicemembers. The Uniform and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voter Act (UOCAVA), 42 U.S.C. § 1973ff-2, requires states to process FWABs "in the manner provided by law for absentee ballots in the State involved." (emphasis added). In other words, the FWAB must be treated like any other absentee ballot under state law and may not be subject to more restrictive requirements. Yet that is precisely what is being done here.
Express your feelings to the state directly:
Virginia State Board of Elections
Suite 101, 200 North 9th Street, Richmond, Virginia 23219-3485
Telephone: 804 864-8901 Toll Free: 800 552-9745 FAX: 804 371-0194
Heh, just called the Toll Free # and they are "experiencing a high level of traffic." Assuming it's every reader here calling them
SOUNDS LIKE SOMETHING THE MEDIA WOULD BE INTERESTED IN.
What if your blog could influence the elections in the last run?
What if, through your posts, your readers could get involved in the last run for the Presidential elections and bring help to the candidates on their strategic issues%u2026Right People for the President can do that for your blog. It%u2019s new, it%u2019s easy and fun, and it%u2019s free.
With a simple copy-and-paste procedure, you will include Right People for the President in your blog, and give your readers a new voice, enabling them to help the candidates on relevant campaign issues. Everyone can contribute, everyone could be %u201Cthe right person%u201D for the future President.
A contribution, a photo, and here your blog becomes a new source of ideas, with suggestions that may very well be useful to the candidates. Choose for your blog a dedicated player, focusing on one specific candidate, or choose our %u201CRandom player%u201D with either candidate, changing on each reload of your pages.
There is room for amusing contributions %u2013 perfect for creating a friendly atmosphere around your posts %u2013 and more serious ones. The best ideas coming from your blog will be forwarded to the candidates. A real solution, brought forward by one of your readers, may shape the future of politics. Should a candidate reach out to one of your contributors, you may be associated in their meeting.
Right People for the President means more readers, spending longer time on your blog.
Right People for the President is fun, spontaneous, and involving. For your blog, it means more visitors, spending more reading time on your pages, returning more frequently to read new stories or to vote for their favorite ones.
Right People for the President is viral, with readers inviting their friends to have a look at the player on your blog or to vote for their contribution, bringing you new visitors. Interesting and popular suggestions from your readers will be there to initiate a buzz around your blog.
Include Right People for the President on your blog in just 2 minutes
In a few clicks:
1. choose a dedicated player, focusing on either B.Obama or J.McCain, or our %u201Crandom player%u201D,
2. choose between our standard size or our column size, perfect for sidebars,
3. copy and paste the player%u2019s code in your blog
All details here: rightpeoplefo...resident.com
The Right People Team
[...] – would never dream of disenfranchising deployed servicepeople like the Fairfax County registrar is attempting to do: The Fairfax County Registrar—and possibly other Registrars in Virginia—is rejecting most [...]
Have sent this to everyone I know! This sucks, big time!
This is deplorable on so many levels. The country's MOST deserving citizens' right to vote completely obstructed…… It's unconstitutioal and should be treated as criminal.
THIS SUCKS, Our young men and women are old enough to put their life in HARMS WAY, but they are not allowed to have a vote in how this country is run. Please refer back to the first two words of this massage.
Jim Butler
of Tenn.
This is a perfect example of why Count US In (www.countusin.us) was formed. Our military — the very people fighting for our democracy and that of other nations, is thrown hurdle after hurdle when it comes time for them to exercise their rights. help us help them… speak up in Virgina and visit our site to help on a national level.
[...] this is in violation of the US law, which pre-empts in this case. ASP [A Soldier's Perspective] continues: 'Federal law does not allow this type of disparate treatment of servicemembers. [...]
Interesting site (www.countusin.us) and a very admirable cause.
I hesitate about labeling this censorship as the term refers to limiting voting based on who they are voting for.
NY-David
[...] Military Prevented From Voting In Virginia October 22nd, 2008 by CJ The Fairfax County Registrar-and possibly other Registrars in Virginia-is rejecting most Federal Write-in Absentee Ballots (FWAB) cast by our men and women in uniform. [...]
What is the status now?
I am outraged…. and have sent it to everyone I could like of and posted on a few of my other sites too. So yah think the lines are busy. And to think I live and vote in Virginia
Hey, you're being too hard on Rokey Suleman II(Fairfax County registrar), just because he's a lifelong Democrat and current Obama supporter, son of lifelong Democrat and Obama suppreter Rokey Suleman, and was involved in a contested election in Ohio before coming to VA, and stepped on 255 military votes.
You're implying that he was driven by partisanship, and antipathy to absentee votes. Why, nothing could be further from the truth! He's gone all out to collect SOME absentee votes. The right KIND of votes, you see. He (and the county Sheriff, who is entirely incidentally a lifelong Democrat and Obama supporter, and not in the least driven by partisanship) conducted a registration and absentee voting drive, in fact.
In the county jail.
dcexaminer.co...inmates.html
Meanwhile, Gov. Tim Kaine, (by purest happenstance a lifelong Democrat and Obama supporter, and not in the least driven by partisanship) has been frantically rubber-stamping restorations of voting rights for felons, as long as they don't show antisocial tendencies. (Not subsequent arrests, silly. That's OK with Kaine. He means, tendencies to vote against The One).
For whoever said the media would be interested in this, I would call FOX because I doubt MSNBC would be interested unless Democratic votes were being suppressed and the Army Times poll a couple of weeks ago made clear that military support McCain by more than a 2 to 1 ratio.
You bastards !!
I wish someone like Teddy Roosevelt would declare martial law and force those votes to be counted.
Posting this and linking to you. (I found it on Chuck Z)
[...] the insanity continues. When I found this – on A Soldier's Perspective here, and From My Position….here, I almost couldn't believe it. But both those sites are [...]
I just called the 800 number and got a recording because of high call volume, LOL. I left my message of outrage that our brave Heroes have to jump through hoops in order for their voices to be heard.
[...] Voting In Virginia And the insanity continues. When I found this – on A Soldier's Perspective here, and From My Position….here, I almost couldn't believe it. But both those sites are [...]
[...] it is happening again in another contested state Military Prevented From Voting In Virginia | A Soldier's Perspective [...]
Wonder what would happen if the military folks whose votes are rejected would show up at the offices of those who would deny their constitutional right. Of course they should show up with all the tools of their jobs with them. ie fully armed, locked and loaded. This might be something that the idiots would understand.
Gee, John. That's exactly what the military needs is to be known for using their weapons instead of their heads.
NY-David
Here is an update I found:
blueridgeforum.com/?p=207
Give our soldiers their right to vote. they are giving their lives for you!
[...] CJ at A Soldiers Perspective for more on the [...]
You have got to be kidding…seriously, this is a travisty. I can not believe there isn't anything being done about this, oh, yeah, I can, it just goes to show you, that especially now, the government only cares about one thing, making money, oh and I forgot, looking good. They preach about being here for us, but greed has taken over everything! They aren't worried about people's children, parents, loved ones dying in this war, they have their own concerns. They want the rest of the world to think that we are the most powerful country. We should have went over and bombed the hell out of everything and called it a day after 9/11. These war veterans are gonna get exactly what all the rest of our former war veterans have, NOTHING, including the right to vote! It's disgusting, but I see who is more important in this country, the asses that are running it, surely not our men and women fighting to save this country!
The Fairfax County Virginia web site has the following.
Oct. 28, 2008
Based on today%u2019s ruling by the Virginia State Board of Elections (SBE), all jurisdictions in the commonwealth, including Fairfax County, will now count federal write-in absentee ballots that were previously denied because of missing information.
%u201CI%u2019m very happy this issue, which was created by the legislature, has been resolved. We always wanted to count these votes, and I am pleased we now have the go-ahead to do so,%u201D said Fairfax County General Registrar Rokey Suleman.
According to Virginia Code § 24.2-702.1, a federal write-in absentee ballot that is being submitted as both an absentee ballot application and as a completed absentee ballot must include the signature and address of a witness. Some of the federal write-in absentee ballots received by Fairfax County that meet the above criteria are missing the address of the witness and were not going to be counted on Election Day, according to the state law.
The SBE ruling cited a conflicting federal law, which preempts the state law.
%u201CThis is a win-win situation for all parties,%u201D said Suleman. %u201CIn Fairfax County, we have already received 74,000 absentee ballots, which exceeds the number from any previous year. We look forward to assisting the remaining absentee voters while we continue preparations for what should be a record turnout on Election Day.%u201D
This makes me sick! Our brave military are overseas fighting for our FREEDOMS and that includes voting. I don't care if they plan to vote for Mickey Mouse. The votes should be counted!!!
My brother is in the military and this makes me sick. Every US citizen has a right to vote. Whether you're overseas fighting a battle, or sitting in your cube at work while those who are brave are out serving and protecting, giving us the ability to sit in our little cube! My brother's friend just died last week from a roadside bomb, fighting for our freedom. Putting themselves in harms way and Virginia is NOT letting them vote?!?!?!?! What has happened to our country? Our 4 fathers are tossing in their graves.
[...] our freedoms to the brave men and women who have served Her, and we owe our gratitude. Take note of injustices toward soldiers and be a voice for them when they are unable to personally represent themselves. Get involved if [...]