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Sean Combs & Russell Simmons Team Up

As the 2008 Election draws to a close, the stars are coming out to protetct voting rights. Last Friday, along with the Advancement Project, the Brennan Center produced several PSAs featuring Sean "P. Diddy" Combs and Russell Simmons. I've posted them below. Here's some of the release announcing the campaign

Sean "P. Diddy" Combs and Russell Simmons have teamed up with the Advancement Project and the Brennan Center for Justice on a voter education campaign in the key states of Florida, Virginia, Ohio and Colorado. The campaign kicked-off Saturday, with the release of Public Service Announcements, released to radio, which gave voters important information to bring ID and to contact 1-866-OUR-VOTE with any problems.

When voters show up at the polls and have their eligibility questioned, they may be asked to vote with "provisional ballots." Known as a fail-safe for voters who are being challenged or who are not on the rolls, provisional ballots should be treated skeptically.

Rules vary from state to state, but these ballots are often counted only if the voter appears in a voter registration database or if the voter can provide evidence of his eligibility in the days after the election. For this reason, many provisional ballots go uncounted. In the 2008 primaries, 40% of provisional ballots were ultimately rejected.

Listen to the recordings after the fold...

 

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Tags: Democracy, Voting Rights & Elections, Election Day Issues, Other Voter List Issues, Provisional Ballots, Voter ID, Voter Registration Drives

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Foreclosures Could Cost Votes

foreclosed home We don't need more reasons to worry about foreclosure rates. Digby, nonetheless, citing this AP/CBSnews.com story, provides one: the high rate of foreclosures in Ohio and the affect election officials believe it could have on their voting rolls. (Digby cited the voting issue in the context of a 7/26 longer posting on Hans von Spakovsky, "legal disenfranchisement" and "voter fraud.") There's concern that a wave of voters, still registered to their former—foreclosed—address, will show up to the polls on election day. This could lead to a number of pre-election challenges or a whole lot of voters casting provisional ballots in Ohio.

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Tags: Democracy, Voting Rights & Elections, Allegations of Voter Fraud, Election Day Issues, Other Voter List Issues, Purges, Voter Registration Drives

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