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Special to Konnectivity: Voter Education, by LeTeria Washington
LeTeria Washington is a Senior Chairperson for her district election site in Wayne County, MI. Below she gives us some information and tips on how to cast your vote successfully. Please pay close attention, and please forward it to everyone you know!
You’re all set to vote – registered early, check! Voter registration card with voting site listed, check! Your sample ballot to make this quick and easy, check! You get geared up – nice jeans, air force ones and of course, gotta rock that Obama, Yes We Can white T, right??? Get to the polling site and they say, you cannot come in. WHAT?? You did everything right?? What’s the deal?
Well here it is. Any t-shirt, button, or item of clothing worn that depicts or names a candidate is considered election paraphernalia. You are therefore “electioneering” for that candidate and electioneering is illegal at a polling site. Whenever you approach a polling site, you are inundated with flier after flier handed to you by guess who? An electioneer. They are required by the state of Michigan to stay 50 feet away from the polling site entrance. This is very serious so pay attention to this part: If you carry those pamphlets in and lay them around – the poll workers are required by law to throw them out. It may seem silly but electioneering is quite effective. Do you remember the names of three of the people that ran for Wayne County Executive? No, chances are you only remember the one that won. MOST elections into minor offices (by minor, meaning non-Mayoral, Senatorial or Presidential) are won on name recognition alone. So if I hand you a pamphlet the says Washington and it’s the last one you see and the only one you can identify on your ballot, you are more likely to pick that candidate. It’s the power of suggestion at its finest. Chances are you are voting for a presidential candidate this upcoming election and have NO idea what else in the way of proposals are even up from discussion.
It is important to remember that voting is a right but also a responsibility. The system will not take care of you as an individual; you must take care of yourself.
*Remember to show up on Election Day – don’t expect your candidate to win just because everyone you know is voting for that person. Believe it or not, you only know a few people compared to the millions of voters that will show up that day.
*Remember to bring your ID – the state of Michigan requires you to bring a photo ID. This is a new law within the past 2 or 3 years.
*If at all possible, remember to bring your voter registration card – recently a news article explained how voters would be challenged based on foreclosure notices. If you have your voter registration and your valid photo ID, you cannot be turned away from voting at that polling site. The burden of proof then shifts to the challenger to prove that you are not at the correct location or that you are ineligible to vote. If they can’t do it on the spot, it doesn’t count.
*Don’t think that if you change your license to get Southfield car insurance rates, that you can still vote in Detroit. First off, that’s illegal. Secondly, you can only vote where the QVF allows you to vote. The QVF (Qualified Voter’s File) is hand delivered by the police to the polling site and is picked up by the police at the end of the day. It is sealed and signed for to avoid tampering. It is divided into voting precincts and updated constantly.
*DO NOT vote a Provisional Ballot. If you end up at the wrong polling site – it is your responsibility to find out the right site and go there and vote. The polling place will have a manual that will tell you where you belong or they can call the Department of Elections in your area and find out. It’s well worth the trouble to find out. If you vote a Provisional Ballot, it will not be counted that day. In case you weren’t aware, candidates declare victory on election night. Provisional Ballots are not counted until later in the week and in a close race, may tilt the vote. But unless the losing candidate or some other official requests a recount, you’ll never know. Basically, don’t vote Provisional because at the end of the day, it doesn’t count.
*It is your responsibility to know the candidates. You have the right to go to www.michigan.gov and view a sample ballot for your area ahead of time. This is powerful because it gives you a chance to research the party, the person and the purpose.
*You have the right if you are hearing impaired or vision impaired to bring someone along with you as an interpreter. If you have no one, you have the right and responsibility to make it known at your polling site. Accommodations will be made for you for impairments as well as interpretation should you speak a foreign language. If a poll worker helps you with your ballot, the law states that an additional poll worker must be looking on. This is to ensure that you are not being unduly influenced and that your selections are actually being marked.
*You have the right to vote in peace. This means that if someone is in any way impeding the voter process, they are breaking the law and must leave. If there is a television on or radio on, they must be turned off – this is also the law.
You’re all set to vote – registered early, check! Voter registration card with voting site listed, check! Your sample ballot to make this quick and easy, check! You get geared up – nice jeans, air force ones and of course, gotta rock that Obama, Yes We Can white T, right??? Get to the polling site and they say, you cannot come in. WHAT?? You did everything right?? What’s the deal?
Well here it is. Any t-shirt, button, or item of clothing worn that depicts or names a candidate is considered election paraphernalia. You are therefore “electioneering” for that candidate and electioneering is illegal at a polling site. Whenever you approach a polling site, you are inundated with flier after flier handed to you by guess who? An electioneer. They are required by the state of Michigan to stay 50 feet away from the polling site entrance. This is very serious so pay attention to this part: If you carry those pamphlets in and lay them around – the poll workers are required by law to throw them out. It may seem silly but electioneering is quite effective. Do you remember the names of three of the people that ran for Wayne County Executive? No, chances are you only remember the one that won. MOST elections into minor offices (by minor, meaning non-Mayoral, Senatorial or Presidential) are won on name recognition alone. So if I hand you a pamphlet the says Washington and it’s the last one you see and the only one you can identify on your ballot, you are more likely to pick that candidate. It’s the power of suggestion at its finest. Chances are you are voting for a presidential candidate this upcoming election and have NO idea what else in the way of proposals are even up from discussion.
It is important to remember that voting is a right but also a responsibility. The system will not take care of you as an individual; you must take care of yourself.
*Remember to show up on Election Day – don’t expect your candidate to win just because everyone you know is voting for that person. Believe it or not, you only know a few people compared to the millions of voters that will show up that day.
*Remember to bring your ID – the state of Michigan requires you to bring a photo ID. This is a new law within the past 2 or 3 years.
*If at all possible, remember to bring your voter registration card – recently a news article explained how voters would be challenged based on foreclosure notices. If you have your voter registration and your valid photo ID, you cannot be turned away from voting at that polling site. The burden of proof then shifts to the challenger to prove that you are not at the correct location or that you are ineligible to vote. If they can’t do it on the spot, it doesn’t count.
*Don’t think that if you change your license to get Southfield car insurance rates, that you can still vote in Detroit. First off, that’s illegal. Secondly, you can only vote where the QVF allows you to vote. The QVF (Qualified Voter’s File) is hand delivered by the police to the polling site and is picked up by the police at the end of the day. It is sealed and signed for to avoid tampering. It is divided into voting precincts and updated constantly.
*DO NOT vote a Provisional Ballot. If you end up at the wrong polling site – it is your responsibility to find out the right site and go there and vote. The polling place will have a manual that will tell you where you belong or they can call the Department of Elections in your area and find out. It’s well worth the trouble to find out. If you vote a Provisional Ballot, it will not be counted that day. In case you weren’t aware, candidates declare victory on election night. Provisional Ballots are not counted until later in the week and in a close race, may tilt the vote. But unless the losing candidate or some other official requests a recount, you’ll never know. Basically, don’t vote Provisional because at the end of the day, it doesn’t count.
*It is your responsibility to know the candidates. You have the right to go to www.michigan.gov and view a sample ballot for your area ahead of time. This is powerful because it gives you a chance to research the party, the person and the purpose.
*You have the right if you are hearing impaired or vision impaired to bring someone along with you as an interpreter. If you have no one, you have the right and responsibility to make it known at your polling site. Accommodations will be made for you for impairments as well as interpretation should you speak a foreign language. If a poll worker helps you with your ballot, the law states that an additional poll worker must be looking on. This is to ensure that you are not being unduly influenced and that your selections are actually being marked.
*You have the right to vote in peace. This means that if someone is in any way impeding the voter process, they are breaking the law and must leave. If there is a television on or radio on, they must be turned off – this is also the law.
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