The Man is Here to Challenge Your Vote

During the presidential election of 2004, challenge laws permitted citizens to challenge the right of a voter to vote at the polling place. Challenges were intended to enable others to confirm a voter is a US citizen; actually lives at their registered address; and was in fact, the person whose name appears in the book.

Yet, the challenge was hardly ever used, even though has been on the books since 1951. The Republican plan for Ohio in 2004 was to place attorneys as challengers at voting places with 65% or above Democratic voters. The intent was to intimidate voters, citizen immigrants, and to keep likely Democratic voters away from the polls.

Curiously, Ohio challenge rules changed several times during the week before the election, (no challengers, ok to have challengers, no challengers, ok to challenge, and so on). On Monday, the day before the election, it was ruled that no challengers were allowed. Next, at approximately 2:00 AM on Tuesday morning, just four hours before the 6:30 AM opening of the polls for the presidential election, the rule was changed to permit challengers.

By this time, the Democrats were mobilized to have counter challengers at the same targeted precincts, and it turned out that little or no challenges took place. This is another blatant example of how Blackwell’s abuse of his rule making authority was used to confuse and intimidate voters.

I actually wanted them to challenge me. I had my hospital birth certificate with my tiny baby feet footprints in ink, my passport, my boot camp portrait, a photo of me in Viet Nam, and my Driver's License, a phone bill at my address, the whole shooting match. I was planning on announcing the challenge very loudly so that everyone in the voting room could hear me.

Too bad they did not challenge me; I would have liked doing that. It was wishful thinking. There are far too many Republicans in my precinct for them to have challengers there.

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