Prime time in MD

Today at work, I spent some time researching some of the less well known candidates for local positions (circuit court judges, orphans court, sheriff, etc). I felt that I should know about the candidates at least a little bit before voting for them.

When i went to my polling station (I dont know why theyre called that around here) it was around 5pm. There was no wait really. In fact, there were more campaign volunteers outside than there were people inside voting. But I'm sure it picked up later when more people got off work.

The votes were administered via the infamous Diebold machines, the first time MD has used them if I remember correctly. I didn't have any trouble with them really, but I was already sort of familiar with it. UMD actually conducted a study on electronic voting machines that i participated in. It was basically to evaluate their accuracy, efficacy, etc. Anything to help the state of our democracy, and I got $10, which is a big deal for a poor, starving, college student (thanks Ehrlich!). But I'm sure that even if i had never used it before, I would have been fine. If you lived in a cave for the last 10 years or remembered when FDR was President, then yes you may have had problems. And indeed, many of the older voters who were at their booths when I started my voting, where still there by the time I got my "I Voted" sticker and was out the building.

Despite my rather smooth experience, there were a few things that were troubling. For one, whats with no paper trail? I thought Diebold had this paper trail thing taken care of? I mean c'mon, how hard is it to get the computer to print out a little slip to have a record of who voted and for whom they voted for? If Taco Bell can reliably give me a reciept of my order every single time, (If they dont, I get my meal for free....which Ive always yearned for, but never had the joy of experiencing.) then whats the big deal with doing it for just one day at the polls?

Another thing that also was a little irritating....ok, very irritating was that the polling official didn't check my ID at all! They asked for my name and address, then gave me a little print out to sign, and it was off to the races. This wasn’t just me or this particular official. No official was verifying anyone's identity. Seeing as there wasn't a huge wait or anything, I casually asked how they could ensure that this lack of verification wouldn't result in some sort of voter fraud. The nice old lady replied that once I voted, the records would show that I had done so, and no one could come and impersonate me.

She clearly did not understand my point. So I presented what I thought was a pretty simple hypothetical situation to maybe convey my point more succinctly. My brother is out of the country, so I know hes not voting today (disregard absentee voting). Whats to stop me from coming back, pose as my brother, then vote again? And bless her heart, cause I do appreciate her volunteering her time as an election official and cause she looked like she was a sweet old lady who would bake me some brownies, but she just didn't understand my point.

I agree that no candidate would be stupid enough to use this hole in the system to steal an election or what have you. Still, cmon how hard is it to ask for my license to make sure I am who I say I am? Although mass voter fraud isn't likely to stem from this, I could have easily made a list of about 6-8 friends that I knew were not going to vote today, and voted Towlie for State Comptroller.

And from what I hear, these were the least of the problems around the state. Some didn't open in time, some didn't have proper election officials (surprisingly some Republican judges didn't show-each polling station requires judges from both), and Stephan A. Fogleman, a candidate for Baltimore state's attorney, got robbed at gunpoint while hanging some last minute signs. I guess that’s one way to keep those pesky campaigners from putting those hideous signs everywhere.

Ok, it's back to the grind. LSATs are in 18 days and I have much studying to do. By the time i take the exam, I will have studied for 2 months which sounds like a lot to some, but really isn't when you're working 40+hrs/wk and had to move. If i had a month more, I feel that i may be a bit more prepared. But that means applying late...what a dilema. Ah well, back to the practice tests.