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BUSH, CHENEY ABSENT FROM ABSENTEE BALLOTS

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BY KRISTEN CATES
THE SOUTHERN
[Tue Oct 19 2004]

RANDOLPH COUNTY -- Although he's lived out of Randolph County for more than 20 years, David Blow is registered as an absentee Republican voter from the county.

A member of the United States Air Force stationed in Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Blow opened his absentee ballot in early September only to be surprised that President George Bush's name did not appear as the Republican candidate for President.

"My initial thought was, wow -- I already got my ballot," the former Ellis Grove man said.

But as he kept looking through the eight sheets of paper sent through the mail, he noticed he was looking at a special write-in ballot with a separate sheet, where voters were expected to list the office and their choice for candidate.

"My initial thought was something's missing. It was very vague," he said. "I could see how there could be some confusion. My next thought was Florida."

But according to Randolph County Circuit Clerk Pat Laramore, Bush's name was left off what she said is called the "special write-in absentee voters' blank ballot."

The special ballots, Laramore said, were sent to U.S. citizens serving in the military or overseas to make sure their votes were counted.

According to the Illinois State Board of Elections, she said, all county clerk offices are required to have "a sufficient number of ballots printed and available for mailing to persons in the United States Service or their spouse" by Sept. 3, 2004.

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But in Randolph County, the punch-card ballots were not printed by Sept. 3, so she had to send out these special ballots, according to the state board of elections' rules.

"I did what the state board of elections said I should do," she said.

Finally, when her office received the proofed punch-card ballots, they were sent out to all absentee voters. To date, she said more than 900 have been sent out for Randolph County, including the 63 military ballots from the area.

Blow said he never filled out his special ballot, because to him it looked suspicious.

"There was no real instructions on how to properly fill it out," he said. "I thought I could wing it."

But Laramore said voters shouldn't worry about their vote not being counted. All of the special ballots will be discarded if the person sends in their regular punch-card ballot.

If they don't send in the punch-card ballot, she said the special ballot votes will be calculated by one Republican and one Democratic tabulating judge.

It was a culmination of things that lead to this pre-election problem, she said.

For one thing, the Republican National Convention was late this year (Aug. 30 to Sept. 2), which lead to Bush's name not being included on the first ballots sent out.

Plus, since the 2000 election when military votes were left out of the race across the country, there has been more pressure to get ballots out to servicemen and women overseas, she said.

"The intent here is to make sure the military had the right to vote," Laramore said. "To me, my biggest concern was to let the citizens in Iraq have the right to vote."

But with daily changes in election regulations and rules, many county clerks said they are just trying to play catch up.

In Jackson County, for example, county clerk and recorder Larry Reinhardt said he decided not to send out the special write-in ballots because it would have meant excess work and it could jeopardize voter confidentiality.

"My problem with them is we have to repunch them -- security is out the window," he said.

Instead, absentee punch-card ballots were sent out the first week in October, he said.

The confusion is a direct result of the Republican National Convention being set so late this summer, which conflicted with the dates county clerk offices were supposed to have their ballots certified, he said.

"Basically, the Republican party did this themselves," said Reinhardt, a Democrat.

But, with the Help Americans Vote Act brought about after the 2000 election, clarifying the voting process has just muddled it, he said.

"This year nobody knows what the law is," he said. "We're getting directives from the state board every couple of days. As election officials, we're doing the best we can."

In Williamson County, the only absentee ballots that were sent out were the write-in ballots, which did include the president's name, said county clerk and recorder Saundra Jent.

Those absentee ballots were sent out Sept. 7, she said.

"Since the 2000 presidential election, it's getting ridiculous," she said. "We're doing everything but picking people up out of their beds and putting them in the car. I'll be glad when this one's over."

In Randolph County, Laramore said it's become more of a political attack than anything else.

"To me, a Republican is upset with me for what his party did," she said.

But to Blow, it's about clarity.

"There's no hidden agenda for me," he said. "I just want to make sure my vote counts."

kristen.cates@thesouthern.com 618-529-5454 x15804
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BK

[neverforget]

Right, they didn't know Bush-Cheney would be nominated.
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US Army Security Agency
1965-1971