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Problems at the Polls: L.A. Voters Report ID Checks, Missing Machines, Names Not On List and More
Voting on the sidewalk when the polling place's doors weren't unlocked in time (Photo submitted by @xina via Twitter)
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Voters around the nation are reporting problems at the polls today, and Angelenos are no exception.
A number of people have reported arriving to polling places and finding their names not on the rolls, or the rolls indicated they were meant to vote by mail, leaving voters to cast pink provisional ballots at the polling place.
A reader emailed us his experience with being made to vote provisionally today, too:
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I voted at Bancroft Middle School in Hollywood and after an hour long wait in line, I get to the table only to be told that I could only receive a provisional ballot because I requested to vote by mail. The thing is I never requested to vote by mail- nor did I receive a provisional ballot. The poll worker was unyielding, but he did call his supervisor to pass down the final judgement- Provisional Ballot only- even though i presented them with my blank vote-by-mail application (because i never sent it in). This ballot is not counted until days after the election- Stupid clerical errors should not prevent me from voting.
L.A. Now reports that at Trinity Street School in South L.A., the poll workers had plenty of ballots, but no voting machines in which to use them, adding: "Some voters waited in vain for more than an hour to see if the machines would arrive before leaving in frustration."
A voter whose polling place was the Hoover Recreation Center near USC reported being asked for identification--which is not permitted in California, though many voters voluntarily produce their IDs to help poll workers find their name and address in the rolls. That voter was able to provide a photo ID, but was "told by poll workers that he would be turned away unless he produced an ID."
An LAist reader reported that her polling place did not have their doors unlocked by 7 a.m., so poll workers set up booths on the sidewalk in front of the Ukranian Cultural Center.
If you experience problems at the polls, the California Secretary of State has options for you to file a complaint. We did get one email from a voter who didn't appreciate a poll workers t-shirt declaring his love for a controversial chicken-centric fast food chain, and while that voter was all geared up to file a complaint, we're pretty sure that's not one of the "common Elections Code violations" the Secretary of State seeks to investigate.
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