It happened to me today. While I am registered to vote by mail, I chose to go in person to my polling place to cast my vote. I wanted to gauge the turnout, see if there were any problems and try out the new-fangled voting machines. I had done this without issue in 2004 and 2006.

When I went into the polling place they asked my why I had not voted by mail and I gave them those reasons. They then asked if I had the mail-in ballot with me and I said no. Then they offered me a provisional ballot, as if it carried the same weight as a traditional ballot. THEY DO NOT.

Depending on where you live, provisional ballots may be counted last, and then only if it’s a close race, or not at all.

I told the poll worker that was unacceptable. She said I would need to bring in my mail-in ballot to be torn up before I was allowed to vote using the new electronic voting machines. I promptly did just that. Thirty minutes later I was casting my vote, wondering if the machine would flip my votes or reject me entirely. Fortunately, it did not.

If you are offered a provisional ballot, reject it if at all possible. If you have to go home to get additional paperwork, do that, come back and cast a real ballot. If the poll worker is offering a provisional ballot as a viable alternative, ask them what you need to do in order to cast a real ballot. If they are unhelpful and you know you are in the right, ask to speak to that person’s supervisor or call 1-866-OUR-VOTE to report the issue.

Remember, only cast a provisional ballot as a last resort. It is better than not voting at all, but is a poor substitute to a real ballot and your vote may not be counted.

Two years is a lifetime to wait for change. But finally the day is upon us. From eighteen. To two. To ONE.

Many of us have been waiting longer than 2 years. Much longer. Sometimes patiently, and sometimes with tremendous urgency, we waited for a sign, some moment in time that would begin to ease the weight of the past years transgressions, and begin to move us to a better place. I remember that moment for me back in 2004 where there was a whiff of hope, a suggestion that things could truly be different, and better.

“.. alongside our famous individualism, there’s another ingredient in the American saga, a belief that we are all connected as one people.

If there’s a child on the south side of Chicago who can’t read, that matters to me, even if it’s not my child.

If there’s a senior citizen somewhere who can’t pay for their prescription and having to choose between medicine and the rent, that makes my life poorer, even if it’s not my grandparent.

If there’s an Arab-American family being rounded up without benefit of an attorney or due process, that threatens my civil liberties.

It is that fundamental belief — it is that fundamental belief — I am my brother’s keeper, I am my sisters’ keeper — that makes this country work.

It’s what allows us to pursue our individual dreams, yet still come together as a single American family: “E pluribus unum,” out of many, one.

Now even as we speak, there are those who are preparing to divide us, the spin masters and negative ad peddlers who embrace the politics of anything goes.

Well, I say to them tonight, there’s not a liberal America and a conservative America; there’s the United States of America.

There’s not a black America and white America and Latino America and Asian America; there’s the United States of America.

The pundits like to slice and dice our country into red states and blue States: red states for Republicans, blue States for Democrats. But I’ve got news for them, too. We worship an awesome God in the blue states, and we don’t like federal agents poking around our libraries in the red states.

We coach little league in the blue states and, yes, we’ve got some gay friends in the red states.

There are patriots who opposed the war in Iraq, and there are patriots who supported the war in Iraq.

We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the stars and stripes, all of us defending the United States of America.

In the end, that’s what this election is about. Do we participate in a politics of cynicism, or do we participate in a politics of hope?”

So here we are on this final day. And the world is holding its breath, watching us, waiting to see what will happen next.

Do they wonder if we will elect our first African-American president?

No.

Do they wonder if our next president will finally bring the war in Iraq to a close?

No.

Do they wonder if our next president will lead the way on the issues that matter most in this new century, like terrorism, poverty and climate change?

No.

They wonder if we will choose hope.

Vote.

Frankly, we’ve been feeling a little left out. We’d read about these insidious “robocalls” on the internet but haven’t had the pleasure of receiving one yet. Until tonight.

We live in a very middle-class neighborhood just outside of San Francisco. The homes and some of it’s residents date back to the 1950’s and there’s a certain Edward Scissorhands/Tim Burton quality to the place. It’s an ethnically-diverse community, families with children playing in their yards and seniors out walking their dogs. We have our own schools and shopping centers. We moved here because it was affordable, close to San Francisco and seemed welcoming.

But not so much over the past few weeks. Yes on 8 signs began springing up like weeds recently. Some homes have plastered their windows with the ProtectMarriage logo. Just this evening we learned that a Yes on 8 rally took place in our neighborhood today, and the No on 8 sign we planted last night is now gone.

Perhaps it has something to do with the No on 8 fliers we have been putting in people’s mailboxes over the past few weekends. Or that there seems to be a church on every third block unsympathetic to our equal rights.

And tonight we come home to this:

The quote is from the Saddleback Forum that Barack Obama and John McCain attended back in August, moderated by Pastor Rick Warren of the Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California. Allow me to provide the full quote, as the robocall edits out the “but” that follows Barack’s answer.

WARREN: There’s a lot more I’d like to ask on that. We have 15 other questions here. Define marriage.

OBAMA: I believe that marriage is the union between a man and a woman. Now, for me as a Christian — for me — for me as a Christian, it is also a sacred union. God’s in the mix. But –

WARREN: Would you support a Constitutional Amendment with that definition?

OBAMA: No, I would not.

WARREN: Why not?

OBAMA: Because historically — because historically, we have not defined marriage in our constitution. It’s been a matter of state law. That has been our tradition. I mean, let’s break it down. The reason that people think there needs to be a constitutional amendment, some people believe, is because of the concern that — about same-sex marriage. I am not somebody who promotes same-sex marriage, but I do believe in civil unions. I do believe that we should not — that for gay partners to want to visit each other in the hospital for the state to say, you know what, that’s all right, I don’t think in any way inhibits my core beliefs about what marriage are. I think my faith is strong enough and my marriage is strong enough that I can afford those civil rights to others, even if I have a different perspective or different view.

Another misleading ad from the Yes on 8 crowd. Recently Obama and Biden have come out more strongly against Prop 8 calling it unnecessary and wrong. While I obviously don’t share my candidates’ views on same-sex marriage, with an Obama-Biden administration I can at least see us moving in the right direction.

And Yes on 8? Thanks for the extra bit of motivation. I’ll be planting more signs in our neighborhood tonight. I will take a day off from work tomorrow and spend my early morning voting No on Proposition 8 and then casting my ballot for Barack Obama as our next president. I will then stand with my partner and my best friends outside my polling location distributing fliers and asking them to vote No on Prop 8. I will do my part.

Now you do yours. Vote No on 8.

Fred Karger of Californian’s Against Hate issued a press release today announcing Mormon contributions now account for $22 million of all donations received in support of Proposition 8. Three million in the past week alone. And two million of that from the 8 major donors below:

Alan Ashton, Lindon, Utah – $1,000,000
Hartford Holdings, Provo, Utah – $300,000
David Moon, Alpine, Utah – $200,000
Michelle Adams Watterson, Cache, Utah – $100,000
Roger Bayer, Salt Lake City, Utah – $100,000
Katharine, Garff, Bountiful, Utah, – $100,000
Belinda Vandersloot, Idaho Falls, Idaho $100,000
The Vineyard Group (Cardon & Haitt Families), Mesa, Arizona $100,000

From Karger’s press release:

Now with the additional $3 million of late Mormon money contributed over the last 9 days added to the $19.15 million previously given by over 59,000 Mormon families, the new total is over $22 million. This makes Prop. 8 the largest Mormon political undertaking in the 178 year history of the Mormon Church.

The audacity of Mormons who have a long history of discrimination, and who are now investing so much time and money into stripping away our rights here in California, is truly astonishing. When the dust settles and Proposition 8 has either won or lost, their role in this election must be rigorously examined. We must determine whether or not any religious entity should be able exert so much influence and power in the political process, without consequences. Revoking their tax exemption status perhaps?

Again I ask, will we let them do this? Please vote No on 8.

Visit Californian’s Against Hate to view the entire release.