[QUAD-L] here in Ohio

[River Wolfe]

If you people refuse to believe me, regarding the dirty tricks of the Republican party, here is another example:



Tell the Ohio Secretary of State, Ken Blackwell, to uphold Federal law and stop trying to disenfranchise voters.

With only 6 days left before the voter registration deadline, Secretary of State Ken Blackwell is trying to bar tens of thousands of newly registered voters from the polls.

1. Citing an arcane ruling requiring voter registration cards be printed on 80 pound paper stock, Blackwell is threatening to void registrations submitted on any other paper, demanding these registrants re-apply.  But there is no time to reapply which could leave thousands of new voters off the rolls.

Tens of thousands of Ohioans have registered online or with registration forms printed in newspapers, copied by friends, community activists, and even state offices.  These are valid applications that must be processed immediately.

2. Blackwell is also trying to impose strict rules on provisional ballots by not allowing voters to use provisional ballots if there are not in their correct voting site.  In 2000, nearly 23,000 provisional ballots were cast in Cuyahoga County alone.  Due to congressional redistricting after the 2000 census and the swell of first-time voters, confusion on Election Day will run high.  Provisional ballots must be made available to everyone who needs one, in accordance with the federal Help America Vote Act.

In 1964, President Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act granting every American citizen the right to vote.  Blackwell himself has been quoted as saying "voting preserves the freedom that we Americans cherish."

Don't let Ken Blackwell take us back to the days of restricted voting rights.

Call his office today and demand that he

(1)<x-tad-smaller>   </x-tad-smaller>revoke his ruling that ballots must be on 80 pound paper, and


(2)<x-tad-smaller>   </x-tad-smaller>that he allow registered voters who are in a wrong polling site to vote by provisional ballot, and to count their vote.


(3)<x-tad-smaller>   </x-tad-smaller>Blackwell’s number is: <x-tad-bigger>-466-3111</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>

</x-tad-bigger>(A large phone campaign helped force the Ohio Attorney General to release the prescription drug campaign’s initial petition in 2002.)

If you can’t call, then sign the on-line petition at this site:

Sign the petition to stop Ken Blackwell's latest dirty tricks.

http://www.act04.org/paperstock