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Election Day Problems Begin EarlyMany Voters Turned Away At PollsCLEVELAND, Updated 5:52 p.m. EST November 7, 2000 -- Many voters complained Tuesday that casting their ballots was a lot easier said than done.
As NewsChannel5's Tony Gaskins reports, there was quite a bit of confusion at the polls.
Tina Butler and her daughter have been waiting for Election Day -- a chance to exercise their right to vote -- but first, they had to find the right polling place.
"We left from the library to come over here, (and) now they (are) telling us to go to St. James, so where (are) we supposed to go?" Butler said. "We didn't get our cards in the mail, but we registered to vote."
The complaint has been heard over and over again from ward to ward and from precinct to precinct, WEWS reports.
"I'm working at the booth," one voter said. "I've been doing this 20 years, and I can't figure out where to vote."
At polling booths across town, voters are expressing frustration: Certain machines are not operating properly, there is a shortage of adequate parking at some polls and there is not enough staff to assist voters in trouble.
At Martin Luther King Civic Center, about 50 voters were turned away because their names were not on the list. Polling officials said that it's because many voters did not pay attention to where their new voting places were located.
"These people had (gotten) a notice where to go vote at," poll volunteer Paul Davis said. "They haven't read their notice."
But many voters claim that they received no notification card from the Board of Elections and expected to vote where they always did in the past, WEWS reports.
"People are coming out to vote, and they don't know where to go to vote," voter Levito Hill said. "And there's nobody to tell them where to vote. They changed where they've been voting for years."
NewsChannel5's Joe Pagonakis reports that many voters were incorrectly turned away from the polls. Many workers at polling places such as John F. Kennedy High School should have been offering provisional ballots to voters who were not on their lists. Instead, the workers were telling the displaced voters to go to the Board of Elections.
Voters who need a provisional ballot should go back to their precinct -- not the Board of Elections -- and show proper ID. Citizens need to cast their votes by 7:30 p.m. to ensure that their ballots are counted.
The Board of Elections voter hotline is taking hundreds of phone calls from confused voters. Those who have questions can call (216) 443-3298, although the lines may be busy from the abundance of calls.
The Board of Elections is urging all voters to report any irregularities that they may encounter at the polls.
Copyright 2000 by NewsNet5. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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