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Gold9472
11-07-2006, 05:45 PM
'Meltdown 2006': Voting problems across US

http://www.rawstory.com/news/2006/Voting_problem_roundup_1107.html

Published: Tuesday November 7, 2006

With hours left to go before polls close, reports of problems have been widespread, especially in states with close or "bellwether" elections are taking place, RAW STORY has learned.

A non-partisan voter hotline—866-OUR-VOTE—has received more reports and complaints about voting irregularities from Pennsylvania than any other state. Pennsylvania is an important state for Democrats, who were polling ahead in congressional races and looked well positioned to pick up a senate seat from Republican Rick Santorum going into today's election.

Perhaps more galling, though, are allegations of statewide voter intimidation in Virginia.

Reports have indicated that phone calls have been directed across the state from the fictitious “Virginia Elections Commision” threatening voters with arrest if they appear at polling places to vote. Voters are advised that, because of their out of state registrations, voting in Virginia is illegal. However, many of the voters who've been harassed have been registered instate for years.

Click Here (http://www.youtube.com/v/j9i-_3TiN9g)

Unlike Pennsylvania—where polls showed Democrat Bob Casey with a large lead over incumbent Santorum—Virginia is a state where the senate race is tighter. Recent polls showed incumbent Republican George Allen narrowly trailing Democratic challenger Jim Webb.

However, the state is considered by many to be a valuable barometer of the national campaign for control of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Missouri is another bellwether state where Clare McCaskill is challenging incumbent Republican Jim Talent. There, reports have pointed to vote-flipping both at polling places today and in early voting before today.

Technical problems have plagued states across the Midwest, including Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. Florida and Utah have suffered similar problems, mostly involving broken machinery, or poll-workers without the technical expertise to operate them.

Larger national media organizations including MSNBC and USA Today are featuring stories about the extent of election troubles across the country.