From Oliver Diaz: Mississippi's Republican Secretary of State appears to have changed the size of the envelope for absentee ballots thus requiring extra postage. Without enough postage the ballots will be returned and not counted greatly affecting low income and sick and elderly. The state Democratic party is protesting the change and is concerned about the potential to disenfranchise many voters.
-----Original Message----- From: Terry R Cassreino <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: undisclosed-recipients:; Sent: Tue, 14 Oct 2008 5:18 pm Subject: Potential absentee voting problem If you don't already know about this potential problem with absentee voting, here is an AP story that recently moved late today. TERRY R. CASSREINO Here is the AP story on absentee voting; it moved on the wire today, Tuesday, Oct. 14. Voting absentee? In Miss., it takes extra postage By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS - Associated Press Writer JACKSON, Miss. -- Mississippians voting by absentee ballot this year should pay attention to their postage. Circuit clerks say envelopes for the ballots are larger than the standard letter size and will require extra stamps. Standard first-class postage for a letter is 42 cents. The Associated Press did spot checks with some circuit clerks around the state Tuesday, and they gave different amounts required for postage. In Lee County, for example, Joyce Loftin says postage is 83 cents. She said she puts a sticky note on the envelope telling the voter to use extra stamps. In Pearl River County, Vickie P. Hariel says the postage is $1.40 - and her office foots the bill. "It kind of keeps the voter from having to run around chasing after hours to find out that the postage may have increased after the ballot may have been returned," Hariel said Tuesday. The general election is Nov. 4. Absentee ballots that are mailed must be received by county election officials by Nov. 3. State law allows people to vote absentee for several reasons, including if they're going to be out of town or if they have to work on election day. Absentee voting in the state started Sept. 22. A voter may mail the ballot or go to the circuit clerk's office in person. Voter turnout in Mississippi is historically strongest during presidential election years such as this one. The state's ballots also include two U.S. Senate races - one for a regular, six-year term and a special election to fill the final four years of a term begun by Republican Trent Lott, who retired last December. There are also four U.S. House races. And there are races for state Supreme Court and Court of Appeals. Some circuit clerks are footing the bill for the extra postage for absentee ballots, but many are leaving that up to the individual voter. Loftin said she has told the post office to deliver absentee ballots with too little postage, and her office will pay the difference. Hinds County Circuit Clerk Barbara Dunn said a new law enacted this year made the absentee-ballot envelopes larger. The law requires a lengthy sworn statement on the back of the envelope for the voter to sign. Hariel said the new, larger envelopes allow the ballots to remain flat rather than be folded. She said the flat paper can be scanned more easily for counting. Mississippi Democratic Party spokesman Terry Cassreino said the need for extra postage is an urgent concern. "We've got thousands of people serving overseas and this could very well affect them," Cassreino said. Cory Adair, the political director for the Mississippi Republican Party, however, said he's confident that "our circuit clerks are doing their due diligence to get these ballots in by the deadline." In Rankin County, Adair said, the circuit clerk's office sent people to the post office and weighed the ballots to make sure the it "was not going to be over the weight limit." "We just want to make sure that every vote is counted and we're confident they are goi McCain or Obama? Stay updated on coverage of the Presidential race while you browse - <http://toolbar.aol.com/elections/download.html?ncid=emlweusdown00000002>Download Now! --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to Mark Crispin Miller's "News From Underground" newsgroup. To unsubscribe, send a blank email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] OR go to http://groups.google.com/group/newsfromunderground and click on the "Unsubscribe or change membership" link in the yellow bar at the top of the page, then click the "Unsubscribe" button on the next page. For more News From Underground, visit http://markcrispinmiller.com -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
