Mich. Worries About Provisional Ballots

DAVID EGGERT

Associated Press  21 October 2004

LANSING, Mich. - Michigan election officials expressed concern Thursday that both voters and local precinct clerks may be confused on Election Day because of a federal judge's decision making it easier for voters to cast provisional ballots.

U.S. District Judge David Lawson ruled Tuesday that the Help America Vote Act says people must only show up in the right city, township or village - regardless of whether they're in the proper precinct - to have their votes for president and Congress counted.

Provisional ballots are used when voters say they are properly registered but their names are not on the registration rolls.

The state is appealing the decision, which came in a lawsuit brought by Michigan Democrats, voter-rights groups and the NAACP. The state argues that changing course less than two weeks before the election won't ensure an orderly vote or timely certification of the results.

Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land and state Bureau of Elections Director Chris Thomas said some voters may believe their entire ballot will be counted under Lawson's ruling. But only their votes for federal offices will be tallied.

The League of Women Voters of Michigan on Thursday applauded the judge's decision but said it worries voters don't understand they won't be allowed to vote the entire ballot if they show up in the wrong polling place.

Thomas said he plans to send out new instructions on handling provisional ballots to local clerks on Friday, but noted that doesn't leave much time for them to put new procedures in place. If the state loses the appeal, workers preparing for the election in more than 5,000 precincts will receive new training next week, he said.

Michigan Democratic Party Chairman Mark Brewer said the state should focus on implementing the judge's order instead of appealing. He disputed complaints that voters could be confused on Nov. 2.

In Florida on Thursday, a federal judge ruled that if voters there cast provisional ballots in the wrong precinct, the state doesn't have an obligation to count them.

Elections officials in Ohio, meanwhile, said counties will receive two sets of instructions on how to handle provisional ballots Nov. 2. The move is a compromise reached by the state and a federal judge who ruled last week that voters can cast provisional ballots anywhere in the county where they live. The ruling is under appeal, which will determine which set of instructions is used.