The Election of March 4, 2008
I served as a Clerk Judge in Batavia Twp precinct G for the March 4, 2008 election.
I was greatly dismayed by the lack of ballots for the Democratic primary.
Our Presiding Judge, a Republican, Pamela Henegar, told us at the beginning of the day that she thought we had too few ballots for the Democratic Party.
We were down to less than ten ballots after 4pm when an official brought us 27 more Democratic Ballots. We had called the phone number at the Board of Elections had given us to report issues. In four calls I made on my cell phone to the Board I never got to speak to anyone. I had to leave messages. We had questions about what to tell voters what to do when we ran out.
Shortly after 6 pm we ran out of Democratic ballots and were unable to contact the board of elections. I know we turned away several voters although we told them all they could wait for ballots to arrive or go directly to the board of elections to vote.
Eventually, my Presiding Judge urged me to drive into Batavia to see if we could get more ballots. I left our polling place about 7:05. I was given ballots for all four of the precincts in the elementary school were we were located, Holly Hill, and arrived back there at 7:35. We had twelve people in line who voted in the democratic primary at that point and several in two of the other precincts.
It appears to me that the Clermont County Board of Elections was unprepared for the high voter turnout, unprepared to respond to the need for more ballots and unprepared to answer phone calls which, during training, they urged us to make.
Finally, I wish to complain about the behavior of the judges in Precinct F of Batavia Twp. When voters entered the gymnasium at Holly Hill Elementary asking where they should vote, those judges refused to look up their addresses and point them to the correct precinct. We had numerous voters wandering from table to table until arriving at Precinct G; we took the time to help them.
The people at Precinct F angered several people by their attitude and refusal to do the simple work of looking up polling places. They need to be better trained or reprimanded.
I was greatly dismayed by the lack of ballots for the Democratic primary.
Our Presiding Judge, a Republican, Pamela Henegar, told us at the beginning of the day that she thought we had too few ballots for the Democratic Party.
We were down to less than ten ballots after 4pm when an official brought us 27 more Democratic Ballots. We had called the phone number at the Board of Elections had given us to report issues. In four calls I made on my cell phone to the Board I never got to speak to anyone. I had to leave messages. We had questions about what to tell voters what to do when we ran out.
Shortly after 6 pm we ran out of Democratic ballots and were unable to contact the board of elections. I know we turned away several voters although we told them all they could wait for ballots to arrive or go directly to the board of elections to vote.
Eventually, my Presiding Judge urged me to drive into Batavia to see if we could get more ballots. I left our polling place about 7:05. I was given ballots for all four of the precincts in the elementary school were we were located, Holly Hill, and arrived back there at 7:35. We had twelve people in line who voted in the democratic primary at that point and several in two of the other precincts.
It appears to me that the Clermont County Board of Elections was unprepared for the high voter turnout, unprepared to respond to the need for more ballots and unprepared to answer phone calls which, during training, they urged us to make.
Finally, I wish to complain about the behavior of the judges in Precinct F of Batavia Twp. When voters entered the gymnasium at Holly Hill Elementary asking where they should vote, those judges refused to look up their addresses and point them to the correct precinct. We had numerous voters wandering from table to table until arriving at Precinct G; we took the time to help them.
The people at Precinct F angered several people by their attitude and refusal to do the simple work of looking up polling places. They need to be better trained or reprimanded.
posted by Thomas Van Brunt | 8:29 AM
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