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.
Today, October 20, is the last day people can register to vote in California. I’m not going to go and on about civic duty, but this may be the most important election of our lifetime, and it’s so important to participate in that. We also have a tremendous opportunity here in California… not only to elect a president who has the vision to move us forward into the 21st century (8 years late I might add), but to extend and maintain equal rights to ALL the citizens of California. I am course referring to Proposition 8, which will strip away civil rights to same-sex couples, denying them the right to marry the person they love.