How to be a ‘perfect’ voter
It's voting day
Brent Gardner-Smith
Aspen Daily News Staff Writer
Aspen, CO Colorado
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Polls open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
You might be a perfect voter.
“A perfect voter has, and brings to the polling place, a valid ID, does not have an outstanding mail-in ballot, and his or her current, actual residence address is reflected in his or her voter registration record,” said Pitkin County election manager Dwight Shellman, in an e-mail response to questions.
Or, you might be less than perfect. Got a weird ID? Not sure about your address? Don’t know if your mail-in ballot got there, or where you put it weeks ago?
You’re imperfect. But there’s hope
The Pitkin County Clerk and Recorder’s office at 530 E. Main St. is there for you today. No one votes there and it is easier for the folks in the office to help you than it is for the election officials at the polling place. The clerk’s office can be reached at 429-2712 and its website is PitkinVotes.org.
On the website, you can check your address, and see if your mail-ballot has been counted. You did know about mail-in ballot, didn’t you?
“I am constantly amazed at how many voters do not know they requested a mail-in ballot,” Shellman said. “This is the single greatest cause of delay at polling places on Election Day.”
If caught in a Catch-22, you can always fill out a provisional ballot, but avoid casting a provisional ballot at the wrong precinct.
And, yes, do your homework before voting.
“Under state law, voters are allotted 15 minutes to mark and cast their ballots,” Shellman wrote. “This rule is only enforced if polling places are busy, but if every voter takes 30 minutes to vote, we are all in for a very, very long night. Voters who have done their homework typically require 3-5 minutes.”
OK, but that assumes you know where to vote. If you don’t know, don’t guess, as you could go stand in line and be wrong. Instead, check with the clerk’s office or use the following information as a rough guide.
If you live on Red Mountain, in the Shire (Hunter Creek/Centennial, Smuggler), or in Aspen proper on the Aspen Mountain side of Main Street, there is a good chance you vote at the Rio Grande meeting room between the library and the courthouse (the old youth center).
If you live in the West End or in the Cemetery Lane area, your best bet is at the Crossroads Church of Aspen, which is located at 726. W Francis St. by the U.S. Forest Service building.
If you’re up Castle or Maroon creeks, you’re voting at the Shultz Health and Human Services building by the hospital.
Other outlying polling places are at the Colorado Mountain College building near the North Forty, where Woody Creekers vote; the Snowmass Village Town Hall; the fire station next to the “old” Snowmass post office; the Church at Redstone and St. Peters of the Valley Episcopal Church on Elk Run Drive in Basalt.
The Episcopal church is for those residents of Basalt who live inside Pitkin County. Many Basalt residents, who live in Eagle County, vote at the Basalt Town Hall.
Polling places are open today from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. If you are in line at 7 p.m., you should still be able to vote. Mid-morning and mid-afternoon are usually the slowest times at polling places.
If you have a completed mail-in ballot, you can physically drop it off at a polling place. There should be a sealed box and you shouldn’t have to wait in line, but you might, as this is the first year you can drop off mail-in ballots at polling places. However, the clerk’s office would prefer, if convenient for you, that you drop off your mail-in ballot today at the clerk’s office, as it makes counting faster.
When you get to a polling place, you’ll need a valid ID, such as a Colorado driver’s license, U.S. passport, student ID from a Colorado college, government-employee ID card, pilot’s license, or a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government documents that has your name and address on it.
The election judges, once they see you are “perfect,” will hand you a ballot.
“Take a moment to read and follow the instructions on the ballot,” Shellman recommended. “Despite what some may say, our equipment is very reliable when used as intended and per instructions. The optical scan machines are designed to determine if particular spaces on the ballot are white or dark. They are not designed to read minds or ascertain a voter’s intent. Fill in the ovals completely in blue or black ink. Don’t use Xs or check marks, and don’t use red ink.”
If you screw up your ballot, go back to the election official and ask for another ballot.
Don’t over-vote by voting for two candidates. If you are going to write-in a candidate’s name, you have to write in the person’s name and also fill in the oval next to the name you just wrote.
When you’re done, you’ll deposit your own ballot into the counter.
And democracy will have been served.
For results, GrassRroots TV on channel 12 will be broadcasting local election results and hopes to have unofficial results in early from its own poll watchers.
As of Monday night, the Pitkin County clerk’s office reported that 3,849 early and mail-in ballots had been counted from 1,644 Democrats, 880 Republicans and 1,291 unaffiliated voters, or 37.45 percent of active eligible voters.
The Grassroots coverage will focus mainly on results in Pitkin County, but also will report on some results from Eagle and Garfield counties. Guests on the show will be local candidates, community leaders and a mix of the general public. Everyone’s invited to the station to watch or go on the air.
The station also will be airing classic video from the 1978 and 1980 Pitkin County sheriff and commissioner elections.
Preceding the live coverage, GrassRoots will air the documentary “High Noon at Aspen,” about the watershed 1972 Pitkin County sheriff’s race and the freak-power movement in Aspen.
GrassRoots is broadcast from Aspen to the Ranch at Roaring Fork on cable channel 12, and from Carbondale to Glenwood Springs on cable channel 82. And you can watch the election coverage online at GrassRootsTV.org.
bgs@aspendailynews.com
To read this article from the source, click here.
You might be a perfect voter.
“A perfect voter has, and brings to the polling place, a valid ID, does not have an outstanding mail-in ballot, and his or her current, actual residence address is reflected in his or her voter registration record,” said Pitkin County election manager Dwight Shellman, in an e-mail response to questions.
Or, you might be less than perfect. Got a weird ID? Not sure about your address? Don’t know if your mail-in ballot got there, or where you put it weeks ago?
You’re imperfect. But there’s hope
The Pitkin County Clerk and Recorder’s office at 530 E. Main St. is there for you today. No one votes there and it is easier for the folks in the office to help you than it is for the election officials at the polling place. The clerk’s office can be reached at 429-2712 and its website is PitkinVotes.org.
On the website, you can check your address, and see if your mail-ballot has been counted. You did know about mail-in ballot, didn’t you?
“I am constantly amazed at how many voters do not know they requested a mail-in ballot,” Shellman said. “This is the single greatest cause of delay at polling places on Election Day.”
If caught in a Catch-22, you can always fill out a provisional ballot, but avoid casting a provisional ballot at the wrong precinct.
And, yes, do your homework before voting.
“Under state law, voters are allotted 15 minutes to mark and cast their ballots,” Shellman wrote. “This rule is only enforced if polling places are busy, but if every voter takes 30 minutes to vote, we are all in for a very, very long night. Voters who have done their homework typically require 3-5 minutes.”
OK, but that assumes you know where to vote. If you don’t know, don’t guess, as you could go stand in line and be wrong. Instead, check with the clerk’s office or use the following information as a rough guide.
If you live on Red Mountain, in the Shire (Hunter Creek/Centennial, Smuggler), or in Aspen proper on the Aspen Mountain side of Main Street, there is a good chance you vote at the Rio Grande meeting room between the library and the courthouse (the old youth center).
If you live in the West End or in the Cemetery Lane area, your best bet is at the Crossroads Church of Aspen, which is located at 726. W Francis St. by the U.S. Forest Service building.
If you’re up Castle or Maroon creeks, you’re voting at the Shultz Health and Human Services building by the hospital.
Other outlying polling places are at the Colorado Mountain College building near the North Forty, where Woody Creekers vote; the Snowmass Village Town Hall; the fire station next to the “old” Snowmass post office; the Church at Redstone and St. Peters of the Valley Episcopal Church on Elk Run Drive in Basalt.
The Episcopal church is for those residents of Basalt who live inside Pitkin County. Many Basalt residents, who live in Eagle County, vote at the Basalt Town Hall.
Polling places are open today from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. If you are in line at 7 p.m., you should still be able to vote. Mid-morning and mid-afternoon are usually the slowest times at polling places.
If you have a completed mail-in ballot, you can physically drop it off at a polling place. There should be a sealed box and you shouldn’t have to wait in line, but you might, as this is the first year you can drop off mail-in ballots at polling places. However, the clerk’s office would prefer, if convenient for you, that you drop off your mail-in ballot today at the clerk’s office, as it makes counting faster.
When you get to a polling place, you’ll need a valid ID, such as a Colorado driver’s license, U.S. passport, student ID from a Colorado college, government-employee ID card, pilot’s license, or a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government documents that has your name and address on it.
The election judges, once they see you are “perfect,” will hand you a ballot.
“Take a moment to read and follow the instructions on the ballot,” Shellman recommended. “Despite what some may say, our equipment is very reliable when used as intended and per instructions. The optical scan machines are designed to determine if particular spaces on the ballot are white or dark. They are not designed to read minds or ascertain a voter’s intent. Fill in the ovals completely in blue or black ink. Don’t use Xs or check marks, and don’t use red ink.”
If you screw up your ballot, go back to the election official and ask for another ballot.
Don’t over-vote by voting for two candidates. If you are going to write-in a candidate’s name, you have to write in the person’s name and also fill in the oval next to the name you just wrote.
When you’re done, you’ll deposit your own ballot into the counter.
And democracy will have been served.
For results, GrassRroots TV on channel 12 will be broadcasting local election results and hopes to have unofficial results in early from its own poll watchers.
As of Monday night, the Pitkin County clerk’s office reported that 3,849 early and mail-in ballots had been counted from 1,644 Democrats, 880 Republicans and 1,291 unaffiliated voters, or 37.45 percent of active eligible voters.
The Grassroots coverage will focus mainly on results in Pitkin County, but also will report on some results from Eagle and Garfield counties. Guests on the show will be local candidates, community leaders and a mix of the general public. Everyone’s invited to the station to watch or go on the air.
The station also will be airing classic video from the 1978 and 1980 Pitkin County sheriff and commissioner elections.
Preceding the live coverage, GrassRoots will air the documentary “High Noon at Aspen,” about the watershed 1972 Pitkin County sheriff’s race and the freak-power movement in Aspen.
GrassRoots is broadcast from Aspen to the Ranch at Roaring Fork on cable channel 12, and from Carbondale to Glenwood Springs on cable channel 82. And you can watch the election coverage online at GrassRootsTV.org.
bgs@aspendailynews.com
To read this article from the source, click here.
