If you are interested in volunteering to be an observer in the Ohio recount please visit http://www.votecobb.com or contact your local Democrat headquarters. Please, this is very important. We have a chance to prove that Ohio went blue - don't have any regrets - Volunteer! Recounts will be starting next week and training for volunteers is being held this weekend at various locations - so please sign up ASAP!

Wish I could!!!!!

But if there is anything I can do from a computer... anything from a phone, let me know!

If you can email anyone interested in fair elections in Ohio, or call them and ask them to volunteer, it would be appreciated. Also it will help to keep this bumped for the next few days. Also, posting this throughout the net would help!

Thanks!

I'll help to keep it bumped. These are "blackout" days at work (we can't take off to go shopping!). I even have to work next Saturday.
(So much for the myth of public school holidays! The kids get 'em, we don't!)

But, I can make phone calls. Anybody got all those voter lists we called in Ohio on the phone banks? I KNOW there are some p**ssed off voters there, because I talked to them on the phone and I know how hyped they were before the election.

I wish I had some call sheets. About ready to stalk the parking lots looking for Kerry bumper stickers and approaching them when they return to their cars! Just kidding, but is a thought

That's going to be one of the tests, getting enough volunteers. If there are plenty of volunteers it sends the message that many people are very upset, trouble getting the minimum number of volunteers sends the message that protecting our votes isn't important.

Exactly! I think the people feel helpless. They saw Florida recount in 2000 and the Supremes stop the action. They feel the same thing will happen again and are afraid to regain hope. Everyone I have called to ask to volunteer has said yes, but I need more names to call.

I notice the website in the original post is from Cobb (Green). I'm sure the Ohio Dems would have call sheets. In fact, I see two press releases asking for help (immediately under the holiday party notice ):

Source: http://www.ohiodems.org/

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Contact: Dan Trevas at (614) 229-4149 or dan@ohiodems.org

Recount Witness Fact Sheet

The Ohio Democratic Party is recruiting 500 to 700 volunteers to serve as witnesses to the 2004 presidential election recount. Witnesses play a key role in three areas of the recount. According to Election Attorney Donald McTigue, volunteer witnesses during a recount are involved in these three processes.

1. The 3 Percent Hand Count

The Boards of Elections do a hand count of 3 percent of the votes cast in the race. This is for another test of the computer programming. Before a recount, the Boards of Election test each machine to ensure its tabulation system is working correctly. To do the hand count, the board usually picks the precincts ahead of time. Witnesses should ask that each of the candidates be permitted to select and equal number of precincts instead of or in additions to the ones picked by the board. Come prepared with a least two precincts.(Ones in which you suspect the mechanical count may be incorrect.)

The count is conducted by board employee teams composed of one Democrat and one Republican. A team will be given on precinct at a team.. Candidates are entitled to one witness per team. Depending on board procedures, a team will jointly count the ballots or each team member will count half and then switch and count the other half. Ballots will first be separated into stacks by candidate and a stack for overvotes and one for undervotes. The ballots will then be counted and the number written on a form. Witnesses should keep track of the count. Each stack of punch card ballots will also be held up so that person may see completely through the punched ballot position. Ballot inspection, discussed in the next section, should be included in the hand count unless all of the ballots are inspected before the hand count. If the ballot inspection and the hand count occur at the same time, witnesses may dispute ballots as discussed in the next section.

After the precincts are hand counted, the ballots will be run through the computer and the results compared. If they are the same, then the board will/may count the remaining precincts using its computer tabulation system. If the hand count of a precinct is different than the computer count, then the precinct will be hand counted a second (and maybe a third) time. If there is still a discrepancy, then all ballots must be hand counted.

There is not a statutory right to hand count all ballots. However, a BOE may choose to hand count all ballots, which is not very likely. The campaign will decide whether to make this request.

2. Ballot Inspection

Witnesses have a statutory right to see (inspect) every ballot to look for any irregularity that may affect how it is counted, i.e. whether all apparent votes are counted. Witnesses have a right to see both the front and back of a ballot. This process takes place only if requested by one of the candidates. The campaign will decide whether to make the request if it is not otherwise made by one of the other candidates. The BOE will establish teams of board employees (1 D and 1 R). Each candidate is entitled to one witness per team. Generally, a witness may not be substituted during the same day. Replacements generally are permitted on subsequent days.

Disputed ballots: During inspection, if there is a question regarding how a ballot is marked, i.e. whether it contains a vote that may not have been counted, a witness may ask that it be reviewed by the board or, if delegated by the board, the director and deputy director. This may occur on the spot or the ballot might be held to be reviewed with all such “disputed” ballots at one time.

What to look for: Punch Cards: Two usual methods for conducting inspection: ballot placed on the table or ballot held up. Some BOE procedures automatically show the witnesses the front and back of the ballot; others require the witness need to ask to see the back of a ballot. Some boards allow witnesses to stand behind teams; others require witnesses to sit across from teams.

First thing is to know your candidate’s ballot position (number) for the precinct that you are inspecting. Have something on the table or in hand that tells you the position. Know where the position is on the back of the ballot from its relative position to printing on the back of the ballot. Ask board employees to show you.

Concentrate only on your candidate’s ballot position. The number is above the chad area. If it is a clean punch (no hanging chad), no need to say anything. Otherwise, look for what may be a vote for your candidate even if there is a vote for another candidate.

Hanging chad rule in Ohio. If two to four corners are detached – then a vote is counted. If one corner is detached – not a vote. Ask that a ballot be help up to the light. Ask that a ballot be held at different angles if detached corners are in dispute.

Also look for: Backwards voted – shards of paper come through on front of ballot – no holes punched for the office.

Dimpled ballots – Clear dimple with similar voting for other offices/issues – no holes punched.

Marked – x or other mark on ballot position – consistent with the rest of ballot.

Verify ballots are in correct precinct – name of precinct printed on back of each ballot. Printer’s ink smudges and center dots begin to look like something they are not.

What to look for in Optical Scan counties. Light marks in the oval for your candidate Marks outside the oval for your candidate Votes anywhere on the ballot Inadequate erasure for any other candidate Changed vote to your candidate Verify ballots are in the correct precinct.

Remade ballots: On election night or at the official count some ballots, which due to a tear or folding could not be counted by the machines, would have been remade by two employees (1 D and ! R) of the board. These ballots are usually a different color from original ballots and should have a handwritten identification number that is also on the original ballot. If there are any such ballots that do not contain a vote for your candidate, ask to see the original and verify the vote was recorded correctly on the remade ballot.

3. Ballot Pages

Inspect the ballot pages on each voting machine (touch screens and votomatic frames) for each precinct. Verify that the candidate rotation is the correct one for the precinct using the precinct rotation/ballot assembly key. Remember to check each machine using a list designating the number of machines in each precinct. In the case of touch screen machines, the list should also contain the serial numbers of the machines. For optical scan ballots, check the candidate rotation as part of the inspection of the ballots discussed previously.

Ohio law requires that the names of candidates be rotated from precinct to precinct so that each candidate’s name appears in the top position as close to an equal number of times as possible. The precincts of a county are numbered sequentially in addition to their more common designations. Starting with the first precinct, the candidates are listed alphabetically. Then in the next precinct, the name on the top moves to the bottom and son on from precinct to precinct.

For punch cared machines, ask to punch or for the board to punch a sample ballot for the candidates. Then examine the ballot positions that have been punched out on the sample ballot to verify that they are the ones assigned to the candidates in the race. This will test whether they machine is operating properly, i.e. not jamming, and whether the page is aligned with the proper ballot positions on the punch card.

Witness Selection

The Ohio Democratic Party has trained volunteer coordinators for all counties. Those coordinators will select witnesses to assist them in the Recount. We are making the names of those who have contacted the ODP seeking to volunteer available to the coordinators. The Coordinators will train the witnesses or these procedures outlined here and answer other questions about the recount.

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Contact: Dan Trevas at (614) 229-4149 or dan@ohiodems.org

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Get the "call for help" message from http://www.ohiodems.org/ out to Democrat, Green and Libertarians in western Pennsylvania, Kentucky, W. Virginia, Indiana and Michigan (all surrounding states).

Email friends, have them email their friends.

I will be away from computer most of the morning, someone keep this bumped, please. It is appreciated greatly!

Thanks for the extra info, Paine.

If someone will send numbers, I'll make phone calls! Ma Bell didn't shut me down for all the calls I made for the Kerry campaign. (Four pages worth, about 450 calls).

They only need 500 to 700 volunteers?

Man, that doesn't sound like enough to me. I thought they were going to need in the neighborhood of 2000 volunteers.

So funny! I've had the same thought when I see Kerry bumperstickers in a parking lot! I feel like waiting for them to come out of the store

I just may do that today, finally going shopping. I have been so busy I was concerned my son would think that not only the votes were stolen, that his presents were also stolen from Santa.

Wish me luck!

And in regard to the post about the 500-700 hell yes they need more than that! 110,000 precincts in ohio, 88 counties. Each county will have at the least 2 tables set up for counting, the larger ones will have numerous tables (hopefully). Each party is allowed to have one observer per counter. Cobb 1, Badnarik 1, Kerry 1, W 1. So basically, we need a lot of volunteers and it isn't that people don't want to. Many have taken pay cuts or taken all the vacation time prior to the election so they are unable to take more time off work to observe. Plus, there hasn't been a whole lot of time to organize this.

Contact everyone you worked with on the campaign over the past year (or more) -- not only about this, but also about the 51 Capital March on Sunday and about writing letters to the editor. Let them know the campaign isn't over yet.

Why not print out flyers to put under the windshield wipers of cars with Kerry/Edwards bumper stickers & to drop off at houses with signs still in the yard? Get local (college?) radio stations & other media to make announcements about the march & so forth.

O.k., I e-mailed my family members in Ohio about this latest development.

Bump for more volunteers!

That's a great idea to call Ohioans! Does anyone have call lists from the campaign?

Let's call EVERY DEMOCRAT in Ohio and inform them of the irregularities, ask them to volunteer, and to write their congressmen and the media

We need to get Ohioans FIRED UP and highlight this recount!

Who can obtain a list of registered Dems in Ohio? Isn't that data available on the BOE site? We'd also need to compose a short script.

I'd make calls!

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