I promised the occasional dispatch. Here is one for the past weekend. People are coming into New Mexico from Arizona, California, New York, California, Utah and South Carolina to volunteer at Kerry headquarters here. Nonetheless some voters are not sure whether in the two weeks of early voting plus Nov 2 they will be able to make it to the polls.
A lot of people are really really tired of hearing from politicians. My son for one will no longer answer the phone, since we seem to be on a list used by both sides of the extremely vituperative congressional race. There are a significant number of undecided voters, still. Possibly they like attention? Some people are getting four and five calls a day from different get out the vote organizations. There *will* be issues with the vote here. I myself have taken very credible reports of the County Clerk refusing to give out absentee ballots. There are apparently still no sample ballots available. Many people who have requested absentee ballots have not received them. People say that the County Clerk's office is, to put it politely, overwhelmed and not responsive to calls about these issues. The matter of whether new voters will have to provide ID seems to still be in court. Voter registration cards are getting mailed out with no precinct on them. I saw several pages of voter registration where voters from Valencia County were assigned to a precinct in Albuquerque fifty or sixty miles away and in another county. In my opinion, New Mexico is too close to call. A lot of Hispanics going Republican because they own small businesses and it's the party of free enterprise. Other people, mostly Anglo and presumably Fox viewers, are convinced Kerry is a liar or untrustworthy. The Asian community seems to be going Democrat. The Navaho seem to be split. No idea what the Apache and the Pueblo and doing. The ranchers in the SE of the state and the weapons scientists in the NE of town are leaning Republican. The college community and the New Age folks are overwhelmingly going Democrat. If John Kerry loses here it won't be for lack of trying. They sent out a huge mailing this morning, at least seven pallets piled high. The entire state is knee-deep in presidential politics. Kerry in Las Cruces, Bush in Alamagordo, Cheney in Farmington, Kerry in Albuquerque tomorrow. A lot of people are walking in off the street and offering their time. The location is very intelligent in that sense, on Central so it's approachable for the easily intimidated and yet in the gentrified bit of Central so that middle-class matrons feel comfortable parking their SUVs outside. The Kerry folks are also smart enough to keep feeding the volunteers so they don't wander out for food :) One incident on Friday night really incensed me. Chris Heinz, who would be Kerry's stepson, was in town to talk to volunteers at the headquarters and then to donors -- I think -- at a nearby bar. A bunch of Republicans showed up dressed as ketchup bottles, accompanied by a large yellow flip-flop and held a demonstration outside the bar. I thought of Mary Cheney. Way to keep families out of the debate, guys :P Dana deep in the heart of Alba quirky :) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Purchase from House of Fusion, a Macromedia Authorized Affiliate and support the CF community. http://www.houseoffusion.com/banners/view.cfm?bannerid=34 Message: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=i:5:132669 Archives: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/threads.cfm/5 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=s:5 Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.5 Donations & Support: http://www.houseoffusion.com/tiny.cfm/54
