Voter Fraud in Troy NY:
Below are links to a recent Case in Troy NY that made the news in late October from Fox News:
http://www.troyrecord.com/articles/2009/09/27/news/doc4abec354140b7343461158.txt
DNA evidence being used in Troy NY in voter fraud case:
http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/2010/10/21/dna-democrats-troy-voter-fraud-case-goes-lab
DNA testing Facts:
Could DNA evidence be useful in future Hoboken elections or even this last one given that there is evidence of the possibility of tampering?
Proper collection techniques for DNA evidence:
http://www.crimescene-forensics.com/DNA_Collection.html
How DNA testing works:
http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/life/genetic/dna-evidence.htm
Vote by Mail: Good or bad for fair elections/democracy?
Pro Vote By Mail Article:
This article discusses techniques used in Florida recently that could help stem voter fraud:
http://www.ethicalmarkets.com/2010/11/02/new-method-for-election-tallies-accurate-to-a-single-vote/
Recommended Vote by Mail Practices By Common Cause:
1) Election officials should provide candidates, parties, and interest groups with free lists of registered voters and update them at least twice a week as ballots are returned so that candidates, parties and voters can see whose votes have been received.
2) Voters who do not wish to vote by mail should be able to cast ballots in private booths at vote centers staffed with trained election workers in the days leading up to and on Election Day.
3) Vote by mail programs should adopt the practice of requiring voters to sign ballot envelopes and comparing those signatures to the signatures on the voters’ registration files. Election workers must also use statewide databases to ensure that only one ballot is cast per voter.
4) VBM should not be viewed as a solution to the deeper problem of complete non-participation by much of the eligible electorate. Other measures must be taken to address the lack of civic involvement that reduces the quality of our collective decision-making.
5) In states that currently have permanent absentee voter programs, moving to elections where every registered voter is mailed a ballot should reduce the demographic disparities in voter turnout because the benefits of added convenience apply to all voters rather than those who self-select to participate in the program.
6) In VBM elections, ballots must be sent to all registered voters, including inactive voters.
7) Vote by mail elections should be heavily publicized via mailings, newspaper ads, and radio public service announcements at the time ballots are mailed out and in the final days before an election.
8) Steps should be taken to deter, detect, and correct coercion and vote-buying while casting a Vote By Mail ballot.
9) Election officials should contact voters by phone, postcard, or e-mail if their ballot is deemed uncountable due to lack of a signature match and give the voter the opportunity to correct it.
10) Election officials should work closely with the U.S. Postal Service to ensure timely and accurate delivery of ballots.
11) Jurisdictions using Vote By Mail must also maintain in-person polling alternatives to allow disabled and language assisted voting on accessible equipment.
12) Election officials should allow citizens to use election headquarters as their voter registration address and then allow these citizens to pick up ballots at election headquarters during the entire VBM election period.
Bill Sizemore had this to say about the dangers of vote by mail in 2003:
"Making it convenient for citizens to cast their ballots is a good thing, generally, but not if the convenience undermines the integrity of the entire election process."
.......
"Truth is, vote by mail is a formula for election fraud. The flaw is obvious: From beginning to end, no real human ever has to see the voter’s face. No real person determines that you are who you say you are, or that the person you say you are even exists.
Unscrupulous people can easily mark someone else’s ballot and not get caught. Have any fictitious names you want to vote under? It’s easy. Who’s going to know?Some voter's ballots are mailed to a P.O. Box. The person picking up his mail throws the ballot in the trash if he or she doesn't want to vote on a particular issue. Anyone can retrieve those ballots out of the trash. "
You don’t need to show identification of any kind. You don’t have to demonstrate residency. After all, that would discriminate against the homeless. You don’t have to demonstrate citizenship, either. That would be an attack on minorities and immigrants. All you need is a name, address or a P.O. Box to which the elections division can mail all those official ballots.
When I said you could vote three or four extra times, that was because the folks at the elections division might get suspicious, if you have ten or twenty ballots sent to your little, two bedroom house. If, however, you are the manager of a large apartment complex, the sky’s the limit. You might be able to decide a local election single-handedly. Heck, 500 votes or so in Florida decided the presidency of the United States. Think big!
Bill goes on to comment on the reliance on handwriting analysis by untrained clerks and the possibility that one corrupt clerk could turn an election. His article is one of the best one's I have read yet on the perils of what should be an empowering process and how easily it can be manipulated.
To read the whole article on Vote By Mail , a Formula for fraud by Bill Sizmore click on the link below:
http://www.newswithviews.com/Bill/sizemore1.htm
From Common Cause Deceptive Practices, Legal and Policy Responses:
http://www.commoncause.org/atf/cf/%7Bfb3c17e2-cdd1-4df6-92be-bd4429893665%7D/DECEPTIVE_PRACTICES_REPORT.PDF
From Common Cause "Getting it Straight for 2008: What We Know About Vote by Mail Elections, and How to Conduct Them Well.":
http://www.commoncause.org/atf/cf/%7Bfb3c17e2-cdd1-4df6-92be-bd4429893665%7D/WHAT%20WE%20KNOW%20ABOUT%20VOTE%20BY%20MAIL.PDF
What Can we Hobokenites do to ensure fair elections in Hoboken going forward?
1) Write the Governor of New Jersey to tell him to put pressure on the AG's office to do an investigation on the recent 4th Ward election.
2) Write the NJ AG's office directly asking them to do an investigation.
3) Become a poll worker.
4) Become a challenger for a campaign which is less of commitment then a poll worker.
5) Remind residents of Hoboken of what you think went down during this election.
6) Record suspicious activities on your cell phone via video and report it to the authorities.If you get no response send your videos observations to me at Kurt.gardiner@gmail.com. Let me know how you want to be credited. Operation Bounty is still in effect with $2,000 for information leading to a conviction of voter fraud in this election.
7) Don't be intimidated by 300 pound men (myself not included since I am well north of that number) who stand in front of the polls trying to intimated people.
8) As Joe Bronco and Linda Walker can attest, keep you car in a garage around election day. The old guard was brutal in this last election.
9) Whenever Lane Bajardi says about moving forward, do the opposite. If he says clap, fold your arms. If he says there is nothing to find here, keep digging and talk to HHA members that know you as a neighbor.
10) Demand that our County Clerk's Office does their job even though it appears they have punted already.
11) Educate residents on the issues. Urge them to watch at least 15 minutes of a City Council meeting if they pay taxes in this City. 15 minutes of a a City Council meeting should be enough to convert some people into cause and concern for action.
12) Collect DNA samples from the usual suspects behind Hoboken's rigged 4th Ward elections. Watch the old guard all shave their heads out of paranoia. Just kidding :) Leave the DNA testing to the proper authorities.
Feel free to discuss in the comments below..... ◦
