Problems Reported by Voters

Several states have reported problems ranging from technical difficulties to voter intimidation.
Photo Courtesy of nextmagazine.com

Voting season is here, but many voters might find problems when going to vote. Many states have been reporting problems with voting that include some reports of fraud and voter intimidation, along with technical difficulties with the voting machines. 

    Voting problems seem to occur every election season, and it makes voting season go roughly, and this election season is no different.

    One problem is voter fraud. Voter fraud is a form of illegal interference of the election process, and there are several types of voter fraud. Two common types of voter fraud are voter impersonation and the use of deceased voters to cast ballots. Voter impersonation is when someone claims to be someone they are not in order to vote multiple times. The use of deceased voters is when a living person uses the name of a deceased person who is still on the official list of registered voters to cast a ballot. 

    The U.S. Justice Department plans to monitor voting in four counties in North Carolina, including one that has been accused of removing thousands of voters from the rolls. 

    Other types of voter fraud are registration fraud and vote-buying. Registration fraud is filling out a voter registration card with a fictional name or using someone else’s name without their consent to cast a ballot. Vote-buying is just what it sounds like: the agreement to buy and sell votes. 

    Along with reports of voter fraud are reports of voter intimidation. Dr. James White, head of Concord’s Political Science Department, says there are laws against electioneering. “In West Virginia, you cannot be within 100 yards of a polling place holding signs saying who you are supporting. Those laws are in place to stop people from intimidating,” says White. 

    A recent case of this is the Democratic party suing Trump’s campaign over alleged voter intimidation in four states. In Arizona, Ohio, Nevada, and Pennsylvania, lawsuits are pending over claims of voter fraud and intimidation. The suit says that the Republicans plan to aggressively monitor polls, which can intimidate minorities. The suit is asking for barred activities against voter intimidation. Federal judges in two states have issued rulings barring the Trump and Clinton campaigns from intimidating voters. 

    Along with the reports of voter fraud and intimidation are reports of technical difficulties. Recently, in Texas, complaints were heard from some voters who said that voting machines were switching their votes to candidates they had not voted for, and that it was human error rather than a software issue.

    John McCormick, a teacher at Princeton Senior High School and alumni of Concord University, says that these sorts of problems can be boiled down to human error or faulty equipment and that the law that required DRE (direct recording electronic) machines to include paper verification of votes to voters to check their votes are recorded correctly. “Voters can see that their choices are being printed as they go along, which provides the assurance that an accurate record will be available in the event that a recount would be requested,” says McCormick. 

Back in 2000 in the United States Presidential Election between George W. Bush and Al Gore there was a recount of votes in Florida. This took place in the weeks after Election Day and the final decision was decided by the Supreme Court.

    In 2002 the federal government passed the Help America Vote Act. The federal government offered money to each state to modernize elections by adopting new voting systems that are more accurate. “DRE machines, based on the available research, are pretty reliable voting systems. They count votes as accurately as other voting mechanized voting systems,” says McCormick. 

    The winner of the election will be inaugurated on January 20, 2017 as President of the United States.