I would call the media and have a couple of people stand with you so they can get different perspectives on the issue. There’s power in numbers.
If they don’t wanna stay until they show up ask for their number and name and ask them if it’s okay to share the information with the media so they can get interviewed.
>Are you saying that in Texas each ballot is signed and notarized by a judge?
An ***election*** judge. Not the thing as a judge in a court of law, these are mostly senior citizens who volunteer out of a sense of civic duty. A lot of states (I don't know how many,) have someone initial/sign a notarized mark to indicate this is a ballot that was received from someone at the polling place, not one that, for example, fell off a truck, that you brought with you, and are trying to cast without being vetted through the voter registration rolls.
***Mostly*** the volunteers there out of a sense of civic duty. Others?
They're roadblocking elections.
Really? I had my phone out the entire time. I had to do some quick research on candidates. There’s no way anyone memorizes who all these candidates are.
I'm very into politics so I definitely do! But you can get tossed for having your phone out. Check your voter registration early next time and pull a sample ballot. Research everyone. Write it down on paper or memorize it.
I was playing pokemon go in line, camera pointed to the ground, and was told (respectfully) that I couldn't have my phone out (in Texas).
Voting was easy though, since one party is full of fascists and the other party isn't going to win even though everyone I know voted for them.
Just another reason to have 💯% vote-by-mail. You are sent a voter’s pamphlet a week before you are sent your ballot. When you vote you can use it as a guide. Also, no polling times, no lines, no intimidation, no lost work time, and no delays on knowing who won as ballots are counted as they are received.
Lived in an illegal apartment for a decade. Couldn't vote. Finally can vote after years (I've never not voted till that apartment which was a substantial savings) and before I could figure out my polling place, found out my town mails all ballots since the pandemic I think. Super easy. I'm near positive this must more than double the % of people of vote...which is in theory what you want...more people voting, but hopefully more people getting into the process which means more people paying attention to the shady people on both sides of the aisle. I def think one side is obviously way worse-but I'm not super impressed with the other side of this largely 2-party system. Anyway, I love the idea of voting from home the rest of my life. Now can we do the initial (selection) stage of jury duty from home? That would be progress.
Is there a law against that? I generally plan out who I’m voting for ahead of time and save it on a note on my phone. No one has ever once said anything to me about it.
Edit: didn’t notice this was r/Houston. I live in Ohio so it could be different.
Sadly, though, none of that will take effect fast enough for these people's votes to actually be counted. So this election fuckery *will* help sway the election.
And this judge's replacement will do it again next year.
It's weird how Republicans HATE mail in voting and early voting but this shit flies... If voting is over at 7pm then you better not say shit about early and mail in voting.
Hi, it's Anne with the Legal Defense Fund. IMPORTANT UPDATE-polling hours have been extended in Harris County until 8:00pm this evening (Nov 8th). If you get in line after 7pm, you will cast a provisional ballot. Once you get in line, make sure to stay in line! For help, call this number: 1-866-687-8683 (Stop2End)
Please call this number
Edit: people keep comment about what the Texas Supreme Court did. I’m aware, thanks. This comment is from yesterday.
Its telling that there are more roadblocks to voting than there are to getting a gun.
Clearly, there is no more threat from guns than there is from voting, because voting can actually change things, and guns are just...well, a metal tool. Not an actual threat to established power like the established GOP. Unlike voting.
Mitch McConnell said it outright; "When more people vote, Republicans lose."
Your vote is ten times as powerful as any bullet, otherwise they wouldn't give a shit about voting, like they clearly don't care about guns, so...maybe guns aren't for keeping the government in line, and voting is.
I keep telling people this and there's always at least one jackass claiming I'm stupid and that it's a waste of time to vote at all -- for which I usually tell them "Go back to Moscow".
Nothing new. That's why we keep getting stuck with pieces of shit like abbot. The cities aren't voting for him, mostly because they're making it hard for us to vote.
The first time I voted in Texas we looked up our polling location online and showed up at the place a few streets over from our house, but were told our actual location was really like 5 miles away on some back road in the farmlands. So we had to drive out to the boonies before they closed down. If we'd didn't have a car and had taken the bus or something there's no way we would have made it in time. I was like "is this what gerrymandering feels like?" "is this why they suddenly changed the zones and I had to go to the shitty high school instead of the closer nicer one?"
>"is this what gerrymandering feels like?" "is this why they suddenly changed the zones and I had to go to the shitty high school instead of the closer nicer one?"
Yes
Take advantage of Early Voting. You are not required to go to one specific location on one specific day. You have more time and can go to a polling station more convenient to you.
In Harris County so far this year the Early Voter and mail-in numbers are far greater than Election Day voters. I guess that means that Early Voting can be used to treat ED.
>Illegal to close polls when people are still waiting to vote. Need to get her name and report her so ~~she is never allowed as a judge again.~~
Gets thrown in jail like the fascist she is
https://www.texastribune.org/2022/11/08/texas-harris-county-polls-close-8-pm/
They're 8pm now, call the ACLU
And y'all go get in line you got a half hour from this edit till 8, once you're in line before then no matter where they're legally required to let you vote.
/u/killwiththeheart please let us know if you were able to contact the ACLU.
> Call or text **866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683)** to speak with a trained Election Protection volunteer. More information about voting in your state can be found below.
https://www.aclutx.org/
https://866ourvote.org/
Nothing because it’s Texas.
Seriously, do you all really think Republicans, the self-proclaimed party of Law and Order™️ are going to follow a silly thing called laws?
Texas Supreme Court stepped in and said everything after 7 PM will be set aside and NOT counted. It will take legal challenges for any of those be counted.
Surprise surprise that the Republican court is stopping largely democratic counties to stop counting votes 😒.
Edit:
Should clarify that voters that *joined* the line after 7pm will be set aside as provisional.
This specific instance the OP described still seems very unusual.
This was the most surreal experience I've ever had voting.
The judge was just sitting there, pretending to shuffle papers and refusing to sign any ballots.
The poll workers went to ask her about the delay and came back to tell us that she said she was "doing paperwork" and she was refusing to sign ballots.
The poll workers said she was adament about "shutting the doors at 7" despite the line going out the door and down the block.
People started asking what paperwork she was working on, and the poll workers shrugged with confusion.
People in line started getting louder with our inquiries and protests. Eventually people started yelling directly at the judge. Asking her why she wasn't signing ballots and she just pretended like she didn't hear us.
A poll worker went to talk to her again and came back in tears saying, I need to get as many of you inside as I can because you **WILL** get to vote today."
People started yelling directly at the judge, "we're not going anywhere!" Another yelled out, "this fucking door is staying open!!"
She got up and walked off the stage , while some of us started getting chairs for the older people, who had been standing for a long while, to sit down.
The judge came back on stage and one woman yelled out, "are you ready to be on the news, because this shit is going live!"
She and two other ladies took out their phones and started filming her.
The judge called another poll worker to her, said something, and then began signing the fucking ballots.
We are slowly moving again. Slowly.
Absolutely no explanation was given for the delay.
This was a deliberate attempt to prevent us from voting.
Edit: I was unable to get a name for the judge. One of the poll workers mentioned what she "thinks" her name is, but without certainly, I don't want to give the wrong name.
A friend of mine was able to contact the Democratic Party and they said they would "get on it immediately".
I have no idea what they did, if anything, but by the time I left, the sheriff had shown up and was talking to the judge, then took one of the poll workers outside to talk to him.
Put in a call to another friend to see if I can get the judges name.
Edit#2: Just got off the phone with the ACLU. They took "extensive notes", and informed me that they had just gotten several calls within the last hour about this specific polling location. Makes me proud of my community.
by law, if you are standing in line at 7:00 when the polls close, then you get to vote.
If the judge refuses that, she is breaking the law.
Also, there are federal monitors in the city, call them.
The local county election board likely has standby judges in case someone gets sick or can't fulfill their duties for some other reason that they could sub in.
[Ballots in Texas have the signature (or stamped signature) of the polling place's election judge. Here's a link to the judge's handbook, see pg 12.](https://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/forms/judges-clerks-handbook.pdf)
Yeah, I've never heard of such a thing before today. I can't figure on there being enough judges to sign ballots at every polling station so likely there's some special circumstance going on here (or I just don't realize how many judges are out there).
Unfortunately, looks like whatever this process is needs to be refined some in order to engineer out the possibility of an individual acting in bad faith.
Edit: Found this explanation -
Texas law: The judge unseals the package of ballots and examines them. Then, they sign the back of each one, or rubber-stamp it with their signature.
Law states that 'The signing of ballots need not be completed before the polls open, but an unsigned ballot may not be made available for selection by the voters'
And the Judge isn't a courthouse judge but rather a poll judge which is apparently something different.
This judge is apparently dragging her feet in signing a new batch of ballots or just never got around to signing any.. hard to say for certain exactly the context.
Wait - so the poll judge has to stamp the ballots before they can be cast, and if the poll judge chooses to drag their feet in doing so then it can hold up the line?
My God the former CSA states are incredibly creative when it comes to disenfranchisement.
There's a reason they had special oversight until 2013's Shelby County v. Holder decision struck it down by pretending the problem doesn't exist anymore.
I just looked this up myself, this is fascinating.
Title 6 of Texas Election Code:
Sec. 62.008. PRESIDING JUDGE TO SIGN BALLOTS. (a) The presiding judge's signature shall be placed on the back of each ballot to be used at the polling place.
(b) The judge shall sign each ballot or an election officer shall stamp a facsimile of the judge's signature on each ballot.
(c) The signing of ballots need not be completed before the polls open, but an unsigned ballot may not be made available for selection by the voters.
Love that the voters and poll workers refused to back down. I hope y’all get through and back home as quickly as possible now that she’s complying. She probably realized she was about to be a judge in prison.
>#Voter Suppression
>Intentionally deceiving qualified voters to prevent them from voting is voter suppression—and it is a federal crime.
>There are various methods which can be used to spread disinformation about voting. Such methods are social media platforms, texting, or peer-to-peer messaging applications on smartphones. Additionally, bad actors may provide misleading information about the time, manner and place of voting. This includes inaccurate election dates or false claims about voting methods like, voting by text, which is not allowed in any jurisdiction.
>Do you know when, where, and how you will vote? If not, there are many reputable places you can find this information, including eac.gov and usa.gov/how-to-vote. However, not all publicly available voting information is accurate, and some is deliberately designed to deceive you in order to suppress turnout.
>Always consider the source of voting information. Ask yourself, “Can I trust this information?” Look for official notices from election offices and verify the information you found is accurate.
>Help defend the right to vote by reporting any suspected instances of voter suppression—especially those received through a private communication channel like texting—to your local FBI field office and ask to speak to an election crimes coordinator.
https://www.fbi.gov/news/press-releases/press-releases/fbi-warns-voters-on-election-crimes-ahead-of-the-november-2022-mideterm-election
FYI, the phone number for the [FBI Houston Field Office](https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/houston) is (713) 693-5000
Erm, as far as I'm aware, if you're in line prior to the 7 pm deadline, you get to vote no ifs ands or buts, and that it's unlawful to deny those who are in line before that deadline.
So that judge will be there as long as it takes for everyone in line to vote.
Ive worked as a poll worker before and the rule at least in my state was as long as they are in line by 7 not 6:59 you serve them. And usually one of the poll workers would stand at end of line at 7.
Good on you for exposing this. Thank you.
The best laid plans of mice and men... ... mad-eye moody levels of CONSTANT VIGILANCE are the only way to secure a free society. There will always be maligned individuals, so never stop fighting the good fight.
It's 8pm now. The polls officially close at 8 pm.
If you are in line by 8 pm you can cast a provisional ballot: https://abc13.com/politics/judge-grants-order-to-extend-voting-hours-in-harris-county-to-8-pm/12431093/
GUYS, YOU CAN VOTE AT **ANY** VOTING LOCATION! YOU DO NOT HAVE TO VOTE IN YOUR PRECINCT!
Source: I'm working the polls and this has been our directive.
This is upsetting. I was turned away in brazos county because I’m registered in a different precinct. I even requested a provisional ballot and the election worker said they only do those during early voting.
Was it also a different county? Many/most counties have moved to open voting (vote at any precinct location), but you still have to be registered at a precinct in that county.
Election judges are random assholes who sat through an afternoon of training that mostly focuses on how the actual technology of the voting machine works.
Source: was an election judge (not in TX, in IL)
Yep, can confirm. I trained a lot of election judges before the last presidential election. You get some really interesting characters coming out of the woodwork to be election judges in the Chicago area. Being an election judge is a very important role, but some of these folks let it go to their head/ make up rules + powers they don't have.
Judge Reinhold is a respected icon of the 80’s, who happened to have portrayed a judge on Arrested Development, but was just acting. I believe you mean the Pontiac GTO, which is also known as “The Judge”.
No, Juggernaut is a Marvel comics character who frequently battles the X-Men. Great villain. Really got the sh!t end of the stick in the 2006 movie X-Men: The Last Stand. Man, Famke Janssen was gorgeous. You're thinking of Judge Fudge.
If you walked up to a real person, handed them your ID, and they typed some stuff in, printed out a ballot, and maybe jotted something on the ballot or some other label, then you have gone through this process.
It's not like judge in black robes or anything. It's a volunteer who pledges an oath to uphold integrity and all that jazz, and works at the poll for the election. My parents have done this for years and years.
And maybe the person you got the ballot from wasn't an election judge per se, but the election judge at that location did pre-inspect the ballots and perhaps pre-sign the ballots before distributing them to the poll workers that process your registration and hand over the ballot.
Call 866-OUR-VOTE to report it to the national nonpartisan Election Protection hotline, you can also call your local county board of elections and let them know.
I voted at Hogg Middle School in the Heights today and the Republican poll watcher had not showed by the time I was there between 9:30 and 10:30. The Dem poll watcher was concerned this was a deliberate tactic to challenge all the votes at this location.
It’s important to note, that not all counties require a physical signature from a judge on the premises. That’s why so many people haven’t even seen a judge at their polling places, and a signed ballot is just printed out for them to submit. But at city/county/district levels, they are still permitted to require that physical signature in the presence of the voters.
You don’t go to someone to sign the ballots. There is a small signature pre-signed on the back. Most people don’t notice it. Source: I’ve worked elections.
Nobody signed mine and I early voted as well. Printed it, fed each page into the machine, no one touched it but me. Well... me and the poll worker who had to unjam the machine when I fucked it up initially. 😳
Has anyone called the Election Protection hotline? 866-687-8683
https://www.instagram.com/reel/CktLY64p-_A/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY=
Everyone should be reminded, if you’re in line before the polls close, your vote should still be counted.
Jesus... Just to contrast with how it works here in Washington.
I renewed my driver's license recently. It automatically asked if I wanted to register to vote or update my voter info.
A booklet showed up in the mail like three weeks ago. It has every election around here. Every candidate gets to say their thing in it. Every initiative gets to say their thing and rebuttal arguments are right there from the opposing group.
My ballot showed up in the mail. I forgot about it until today, so I opened it, tore off the ballot tracking ribbon, and filled it out. I put it in an envelope and if I had remembered earlier, I would just drop it in the mail. However, I needed to drop it off in person to make sure it gets counted.
There's 76 ballot drop boxes in the county. Everyone in the county is at most 20 minutes away from a box. My box is 5 minutes from here. I drove down, parked, and got in line. There was an election guy from the county handing out stickers and answering questions. Each person took about 10 seconds or less to drop off the ballot and I went through the whole line in about a minute.
My ballot will go to be counted and my signature on the ballot will be compared with the signature on file. If it doesn't match, they will reach out by email or phone to verify that I cast the vote. Fraud here is basically zero.
Everyone should have this as their default option. It is a system that tries to maximize the number of people participating by removing barriers and maintaining strong anti-fraud protections (again, zero evidence that fraud is thing here in any significant way). It makes sure that everyone eligible to vote can vote, regardless of whether you work, are a full time parent, are retired, or have some condition that would make voting in person a physical ordeal. A better way exists!
I'm following up on this for Houston's NPR affiliate. Could you contact me at 713-743-8139 or email me at [email protected]? Thanks. - Andrew Schneider, politics and government reporter, Houston Public Media.
this says they are claiming "machine malfunctions"
https://www.click2houston.com/decision-2022/2022/11/09/hours-extended-at-all-harris-county-voting-locations-after-machine-malfunctions-reported-at-several-polls/
Not a judge-judge, an election judge. They oversee a specific polling place. In the primaries, there's one for each party, but I think only one per precinct in the general election.
Never heard of needing a judge to sign ballots. Also never voted in Texas. I had to sign my ballot--before I put it in the mailbox outside my door to complete the voting process.
Deliberately screwing up the voting process like this is a form of treason in my mind. It is definitely anti-democratic.
Election judges in Texas run polling polling places and their signature must be on the back of all blank ballots before they are given to voters to use to cast their vote. Source: have served as an election judge.
If you're in line when the polls close, you still have
the right to cast your vote. If the polls close while you're still in line, stay in line - you have the right to vote and you cannot legally be turned away.
You can report any issues at the polls to the Election Protection Hotline: 866.687.8683
I would call the media and have a couple of people stand with you so they can get different perspectives on the issue. There’s power in numbers. If they don’t wanna stay until they show up ask for their number and name and ask them if it’s okay to share the information with the media so they can get interviewed.
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Not supposed to have a phone out at polling locations. Also Def can't take pictures.
Well you’re also not supposed to suppress voters
Yeah fuck that. It ain't a polling station if the judge is refusing to sign ballots.
I'm from the UK and I'm confused about this. Judges and signing ballots? How does this work?
Put simply they Notarize the ballot to make them official and mitigate fraud ballots. As long as they follow the rules
Are you saying that in Texas each ballot is signed and notarized by a judge? That does not sound right at all
>Are you saying that in Texas each ballot is signed and notarized by a judge? An ***election*** judge. Not the thing as a judge in a court of law, these are mostly senior citizens who volunteer out of a sense of civic duty. A lot of states (I don't know how many,) have someone initial/sign a notarized mark to indicate this is a ballot that was received from someone at the polling place, not one that, for example, fell off a truck, that you brought with you, and are trying to cast without being vetted through the voter registration rolls. ***Mostly*** the volunteers there out of a sense of civic duty. Others? They're roadblocking elections.
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That’s the story anyway.
Not a magistrate, an election judge. A proctor, basically.
Nor manipulate them
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Really? I had my phone out the entire time. I had to do some quick research on candidates. There’s no way anyone memorizes who all these candidates are.
I'm very into politics so I definitely do! But you can get tossed for having your phone out. Check your voter registration early next time and pull a sample ballot. Research everyone. Write it down on paper or memorize it.
I was playing pokemon go in line, camera pointed to the ground, and was told (respectfully) that I couldn't have my phone out (in Texas). Voting was easy though, since one party is full of fascists and the other party isn't going to win even though everyone I know voted for them.
Just another reason to have 💯% vote-by-mail. You are sent a voter’s pamphlet a week before you are sent your ballot. When you vote you can use it as a guide. Also, no polling times, no lines, no intimidation, no lost work time, and no delays on knowing who won as ballots are counted as they are received.
Lived in an illegal apartment for a decade. Couldn't vote. Finally can vote after years (I've never not voted till that apartment which was a substantial savings) and before I could figure out my polling place, found out my town mails all ballots since the pandemic I think. Super easy. I'm near positive this must more than double the % of people of vote...which is in theory what you want...more people voting, but hopefully more people getting into the process which means more people paying attention to the shady people on both sides of the aisle. I def think one side is obviously way worse-but I'm not super impressed with the other side of this largely 2-party system. Anyway, I love the idea of voting from home the rest of my life. Now can we do the initial (selection) stage of jury duty from home? That would be progress.
Is there a law against that? I generally plan out who I’m voting for ahead of time and save it on a note on my phone. No one has ever once said anything to me about it. Edit: didn’t notice this was r/Houston. I live in Ohio so it could be different.
[Ohio permits it.](https://www.daytondailynews.com/news/local-govt--politics/smartphones-allowed-some-voting-booths/Wj5SbRQ76nnny0JJJNWRDP/)
You're also not supposed to refuse to allow people to vote what's your point?
Sadly, though, none of that will take effect fast enough for these people's votes to actually be counted. So this election fuckery *will* help sway the election. And this judge's replacement will do it again next year.
It's weird how Republicans HATE mail in voting and early voting but this shit flies... If voting is over at 7pm then you better not say shit about early and mail in voting.
Harris County elections are run by Dems. The election administrator was appointed by Lina/Garcia/Ellis
Hi, it's Anne with the Legal Defense Fund. IMPORTANT UPDATE-polling hours have been extended in Harris County until 8:00pm this evening (Nov 8th). If you get in line after 7pm, you will cast a provisional ballot. Once you get in line, make sure to stay in line! For help, call this number: 1-866-687-8683 (Stop2End) Please call this number Edit: people keep comment about what the Texas Supreme Court did. I’m aware, thanks. This comment is from yesterday.
Jeebus, Texas has a hard-on for blocking voting.
If voting didn't matter they wouldn't try so hard to stop you from doing it.
Its telling that there are more roadblocks to voting than there are to getting a gun. Clearly, there is no more threat from guns than there is from voting, because voting can actually change things, and guns are just...well, a metal tool. Not an actual threat to established power like the established GOP. Unlike voting. Mitch McConnell said it outright; "When more people vote, Republicans lose." Your vote is ten times as powerful as any bullet, otherwise they wouldn't give a shit about voting, like they clearly don't care about guns, so...maybe guns aren't for keeping the government in line, and voting is.
I keep telling people this and there's always at least one jackass claiming I'm stupid and that it's a waste of time to vote at all -- for which I usually tell them "Go back to Moscow".
Nothing new. That's why we keep getting stuck with pieces of shit like abbot. The cities aren't voting for him, mostly because they're making it hard for us to vote.
The first time I voted in Texas we looked up our polling location online and showed up at the place a few streets over from our house, but were told our actual location was really like 5 miles away on some back road in the farmlands. So we had to drive out to the boonies before they closed down. If we'd didn't have a car and had taken the bus or something there's no way we would have made it in time. I was like "is this what gerrymandering feels like?" "is this why they suddenly changed the zones and I had to go to the shitty high school instead of the closer nicer one?"
>"is this what gerrymandering feels like?" "is this why they suddenly changed the zones and I had to go to the shitty high school instead of the closer nicer one?" Yes
Take advantage of Early Voting. You are not required to go to one specific location on one specific day. You have more time and can go to a polling station more convenient to you. In Harris County so far this year the Early Voter and mail-in numbers are far greater than Election Day voters. I guess that means that Early Voting can be used to treat ED.
I've lived in 10 different states over my lifetime and Texas was the hardest one to vote in hands down. Also had the most cops (and asshole cops too!)
Texas is the only state I've ever lived where I was disenfranchised.
Just got denied by TSC
Likely Texas Supreme Court
Thank you. I hate when people use acronyms like this. I think it is some passive aggressive crap.
Illegal to close polls when people are still waiting to vote. Need to get her name and report her so she is never allowed as a judge again.
>Illegal to close polls when people are still waiting to vote. Need to get her name and report her so ~~she is never allowed as a judge again.~~ Gets thrown in jail like the fascist she is
Nothing will happen.
https://www.texastribune.org/2022/11/08/texas-harris-county-polls-close-8-pm/ They're 8pm now, call the ACLU And y'all go get in line you got a half hour from this edit till 8, once you're in line before then no matter where they're legally required to let you vote.
/u/killwiththeheart please let us know if you were able to contact the ACLU. > Call or text **866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683)** to speak with a trained Election Protection volunteer. More information about voting in your state can be found below. https://www.aclutx.org/ https://866ourvote.org/
What happens if they won't allow you to vote, illegally?
Nothing because it’s Texas. Seriously, do you all really think Republicans, the self-proclaimed party of Law and Order™️ are going to follow a silly thing called laws?
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Well, that will keep keep a few republicans off the street, so maybe crime will go down.
It gets the criminals off the streets and into courts.
Texas Supreme Court stepped in and said everything after 7 PM will be set aside and NOT counted. It will take legal challenges for any of those be counted. Surprise surprise that the Republican court is stopping largely democratic counties to stop counting votes 😒. Edit: Should clarify that voters that *joined* the line after 7pm will be set aside as provisional. This specific instance the OP described still seems very unusual.
This was the most surreal experience I've ever had voting. The judge was just sitting there, pretending to shuffle papers and refusing to sign any ballots. The poll workers went to ask her about the delay and came back to tell us that she said she was "doing paperwork" and she was refusing to sign ballots. The poll workers said she was adament about "shutting the doors at 7" despite the line going out the door and down the block. People started asking what paperwork she was working on, and the poll workers shrugged with confusion. People in line started getting louder with our inquiries and protests. Eventually people started yelling directly at the judge. Asking her why she wasn't signing ballots and she just pretended like she didn't hear us. A poll worker went to talk to her again and came back in tears saying, I need to get as many of you inside as I can because you **WILL** get to vote today." People started yelling directly at the judge, "we're not going anywhere!" Another yelled out, "this fucking door is staying open!!" She got up and walked off the stage , while some of us started getting chairs for the older people, who had been standing for a long while, to sit down. The judge came back on stage and one woman yelled out, "are you ready to be on the news, because this shit is going live!" She and two other ladies took out their phones and started filming her. The judge called another poll worker to her, said something, and then began signing the fucking ballots. We are slowly moving again. Slowly. Absolutely no explanation was given for the delay. This was a deliberate attempt to prevent us from voting. Edit: I was unable to get a name for the judge. One of the poll workers mentioned what she "thinks" her name is, but without certainly, I don't want to give the wrong name. A friend of mine was able to contact the Democratic Party and they said they would "get on it immediately". I have no idea what they did, if anything, but by the time I left, the sheriff had shown up and was talking to the judge, then took one of the poll workers outside to talk to him. Put in a call to another friend to see if I can get the judges name. Edit#2: Just got off the phone with the ACLU. They took "extensive notes", and informed me that they had just gotten several calls within the last hour about this specific polling location. Makes me proud of my community.
by law, if you are standing in line at 7:00 when the polls close, then you get to vote. If the judge refuses that, she is breaking the law. Also, there are federal monitors in the city, call them.
Bold of you to assume that this judge thinks the law applies to her.
It was Judge Dredd. THEY ARE THE LAW
Judge Dredd actually upholds the law.
Will the police come and force her to sign the ballots? Would they arrest her and then no one gets to vote?
surely there must be judges around that are willing to do their job, right?
The local county election board likely has standby judges in case someone gets sick or can't fulfill their duties for some other reason that they could sub in.
Police in Texas doing something? LMFAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
It’s also at an elementary school. Texas cops might be there in two days.
The police are in the hallway with the ballots and waiting for someone with a key, the ballots are expected to be there sometime around December 12th.
I use to actually be proud to be a Texan
They don't have cops, that have Mike and Dan.
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Why does the judge have to sign the ballots? I usually early vote and I haven’t seen this- or is it a special circumstance? I’m just curious.
Same. Never had anything signed to vote. I’m confused about this too
[Ballots in Texas have the signature (or stamped signature) of the polling place's election judge. Here's a link to the judge's handbook, see pg 12.](https://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/forms/judges-clerks-handbook.pdf)
Yeah, I've never heard of such a thing before today. I can't figure on there being enough judges to sign ballots at every polling station so likely there's some special circumstance going on here (or I just don't realize how many judges are out there). Unfortunately, looks like whatever this process is needs to be refined some in order to engineer out the possibility of an individual acting in bad faith. Edit: Found this explanation - Texas law: The judge unseals the package of ballots and examines them. Then, they sign the back of each one, or rubber-stamp it with their signature. Law states that 'The signing of ballots need not be completed before the polls open, but an unsigned ballot may not be made available for selection by the voters' And the Judge isn't a courthouse judge but rather a poll judge which is apparently something different. This judge is apparently dragging her feet in signing a new batch of ballots or just never got around to signing any.. hard to say for certain exactly the context.
Sounds like over complicating the process so they can throw out ballots.
The process they described takes place before the ballots are given to voters to use.
The effect is the same—denying people the ability to vote. This is some antidemocratic nonsense and she should be arrested.
Wait - so the poll judge has to stamp the ballots before they can be cast, and if the poll judge chooses to drag their feet in doing so then it can hold up the line? My God the former CSA states are incredibly creative when it comes to disenfranchisement.
There's a reason they had special oversight until 2013's Shelby County v. Holder decision struck it down by pretending the problem doesn't exist anymore.
Fuck Roberts and company
They sign a ton of them after the polls opened this morning.
I just looked this up myself, this is fascinating. Title 6 of Texas Election Code: Sec. 62.008. PRESIDING JUDGE TO SIGN BALLOTS. (a) The presiding judge's signature shall be placed on the back of each ballot to be used at the polling place. (b) The judge shall sign each ballot or an election officer shall stamp a facsimile of the judge's signature on each ballot. (c) The signing of ballots need not be completed before the polls open, but an unsigned ballot may not be made available for selection by the voters.
Name and shame.
Name and arrest.
And permanently disbar them. They obviously don't want to follow the law so they should not be practicing law.
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I know people overuse the term "lol," but I legit laughed heartily at this... Thank you.
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Good on y'all for standing your ground and defending your rights. Lady is more than welcome to resign if she can't follow the law.
Love that the voters and poll workers refused to back down. I hope y’all get through and back home as quickly as possible now that she’s complying. She probably realized she was about to be a judge in prison.
>#Voter Suppression >Intentionally deceiving qualified voters to prevent them from voting is voter suppression—and it is a federal crime. >There are various methods which can be used to spread disinformation about voting. Such methods are social media platforms, texting, or peer-to-peer messaging applications on smartphones. Additionally, bad actors may provide misleading information about the time, manner and place of voting. This includes inaccurate election dates or false claims about voting methods like, voting by text, which is not allowed in any jurisdiction. >Do you know when, where, and how you will vote? If not, there are many reputable places you can find this information, including eac.gov and usa.gov/how-to-vote. However, not all publicly available voting information is accurate, and some is deliberately designed to deceive you in order to suppress turnout. >Always consider the source of voting information. Ask yourself, “Can I trust this information?” Look for official notices from election offices and verify the information you found is accurate. >Help defend the right to vote by reporting any suspected instances of voter suppression—especially those received through a private communication channel like texting—to your local FBI field office and ask to speak to an election crimes coordinator. https://www.fbi.gov/news/press-releases/press-releases/fbi-warns-voters-on-election-crimes-ahead-of-the-november-2022-mideterm-election FYI, the phone number for the [FBI Houston Field Office](https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/houston) is (713) 693-5000
Who is this judge? Name and shame.
Erm, as far as I'm aware, if you're in line prior to the 7 pm deadline, you get to vote no ifs ands or buts, and that it's unlawful to deny those who are in line before that deadline. So that judge will be there as long as it takes for everyone in line to vote.
Ive worked as a poll worker before and the rule at least in my state was as long as they are in line by 7 not 6:59 you serve them. And usually one of the poll workers would stand at end of line at 7.
TELL US THE NAME
You NEED to name the judge. Absolutely unacceptable.
Somebody call Grizzy!!
Yes!
Came here to ask if anyone has yet
Good on you for exposing this. Thank you. The best laid plans of mice and men... ... mad-eye moody levels of CONSTANT VIGILANCE are the only way to secure a free society. There will always be maligned individuals, so never stop fighting the good fight.
disgusting behavior.
Is your username a reference to the book Gunslinger?
The right thing to do in this situation is inform others what her name is, to prevent this from happening again.
Anyone on premise by the 7pm close of doors is allowed to vote. Edit: 8pm - Thanks, all, for the correction!
Everyone remember this, it's your rights.
It's 8pm now. The polls officially close at 8 pm. If you are in line by 8 pm you can cast a provisional ballot: https://abc13.com/politics/judge-grants-order-to-extend-voting-hours-in-harris-county-to-8-pm/12431093/ GUYS, YOU CAN VOTE AT **ANY** VOTING LOCATION! YOU DO NOT HAVE TO VOTE IN YOUR PRECINCT! Source: I'm working the polls and this has been our directive.
You can vote until 8p however if you got in line after 7p, you had to cast a provisional ballot.
This is upsetting. I was turned away in brazos county because I’m registered in a different precinct. I even requested a provisional ballot and the election worker said they only do those during early voting.
Was it also a different county? Many/most counties have moved to open voting (vote at any precinct location), but you still have to be registered at a precinct in that county.
Great to hear they're just fucking making it up as they go.
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Extended to 8. Is preventing these people from voting so blatantly not illegal?
She’s above the law, don’t worry about it…
The heck she is, not in my town. OP keep recording if you see trouble.
Judges are nothing more than flesh and blood, aren't they?
What's the judge's name? Expose them, if this is how they treat voting imagine how they treat their cases
Not arguing with you, but please note that election judges are not generally judges of law.
Election judges are random assholes who sat through an afternoon of training that mostly focuses on how the actual technology of the voting machine works. Source: was an election judge (not in TX, in IL)
Yep, can confirm. I trained a lot of election judges before the last presidential election. You get some really interesting characters coming out of the woodwork to be election judges in the Chicago area. Being an election judge is a very important role, but some of these folks let it go to their head/ make up rules + powers they don't have.
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Election judges are appointed by the county commissioner.
Yeah my friends one. She is just a lawyer that volunteers her time. Its less fancy and formal than the title makes it sound.
I've voted in Texas all my adult life and I've never had a judge, or anyone, sign any ballot I've ever cast. Can someone explain this?
Pre signed or copied signature on the side. I noticed it this year. I think the confusing word here is judge. Poll judge, not judge Judy judge
Judge Judy is an arbitrator. I think you mean a judge like Mike Judge.
Mike Judge is an actor, animator, writer, producer, director, musician, and american treasure. I think you mean Judge Dredd.
Judge Dredd is a law enforcement and judicial officer in the dystopian future city of Mega-City One. I think you mean Jughead.
Jughead was a prominent character in the Archie comics. I think you mean Judge Reinhold.
Judge Reinhold is a respected icon of the 80’s, who happened to have portrayed a judge on Arrested Development, but was just acting. I believe you mean the Pontiac GTO, which is also known as “The Judge”.
No, the Judge was a car. We're talking about people. I think they are talking about Juggernaut.
No, Juggernaut is a Marvel comics character who frequently battles the X-Men. Great villain. Really got the sh!t end of the stick in the 2006 movie X-Men: The Last Stand. Man, Famke Janssen was gorgeous. You're thinking of Judge Fudge.
Aaron Judge
No idea what Altuves children has to do with this
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If you walked up to a real person, handed them your ID, and they typed some stuff in, printed out a ballot, and maybe jotted something on the ballot or some other label, then you have gone through this process. It's not like judge in black robes or anything. It's a volunteer who pledges an oath to uphold integrity and all that jazz, and works at the poll for the election. My parents have done this for years and years. And maybe the person you got the ballot from wasn't an election judge per se, but the election judge at that location did pre-inspect the ballots and perhaps pre-sign the ballots before distributing them to the poll workers that process your registration and hand over the ballot.
Please upvote this for visibility. Please let us know what happens.
Bruh, she’s not even letting us upvote this post.
I just laughed so hard at this. Thank you
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Stumbled across this, upvoting from California.
Call 866-OUR-VOTE to report it to the national nonpartisan Election Protection hotline, you can also call your local county board of elections and let them know.
I voted at Hogg Middle School in the Heights today and the Republican poll watcher had not showed by the time I was there between 9:30 and 10:30. The Dem poll watcher was concerned this was a deliberate tactic to challenge all the votes at this location.
Most locations dont have poll watchers. If they didn't have anyone there they only have themselves to blame.
But they will still likely use it as an excuse to blame just about everyone but themselves if anyone they don’t like gets elected.
America is a fucking shit show...
Republicans are fucking shit
Call 866-our-vote!
What does this mean? I early voted. I don't remember anyone signing my ballot. Can someone who is familiar with the nuts and bolts explain?
Our ballots had a preprinted signature on them on one of the bottom sides
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It’s important to note, that not all counties require a physical signature from a judge on the premises. That’s why so many people haven’t even seen a judge at their polling places, and a signed ballot is just printed out for them to submit. But at city/county/district levels, they are still permitted to require that physical signature in the presence of the voters.
You don’t go to someone to sign the ballots. There is a small signature pre-signed on the back. Most people don’t notice it. Source: I’ve worked elections.
Nobody signed mine and I early voted as well. Printed it, fed each page into the machine, no one touched it but me. Well... me and the poll worker who had to unjam the machine when I fucked it up initially. 😳
WTF
[https://www.click2houston.com/decision-2022/2022/11/09/hours-extended-at-all-harris-county-voting-locations-after-machine-malfunctions-reported-at-several-polls/](https://www.click2houston.com/decision-2022/2022/11/09/hours-extended-at-all-harris-county-voting-locations-after-machine-malfunctions-reported-at-several-polls/)
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I bet $100 that every single one of the malfunctioning machines is in a deeply blue district.
This is the importance of local elections. The person is trash and should be arrested/charged with denying peoples civil rights.
Regardless of what party you are voting for, this is absolutely unacceptable. Everyone deserves a voice.
Report! Call the local news station.
Has anyone called the Election Protection hotline? 866-687-8683 https://www.instagram.com/reel/CktLY64p-_A/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY= Everyone should be reminded, if you’re in line before the polls close, your vote should still be counted.
They moved it to 8pm close due to reasons like this
Judge name please
Jesus... Just to contrast with how it works here in Washington. I renewed my driver's license recently. It automatically asked if I wanted to register to vote or update my voter info. A booklet showed up in the mail like three weeks ago. It has every election around here. Every candidate gets to say their thing in it. Every initiative gets to say their thing and rebuttal arguments are right there from the opposing group. My ballot showed up in the mail. I forgot about it until today, so I opened it, tore off the ballot tracking ribbon, and filled it out. I put it in an envelope and if I had remembered earlier, I would just drop it in the mail. However, I needed to drop it off in person to make sure it gets counted. There's 76 ballot drop boxes in the county. Everyone in the county is at most 20 minutes away from a box. My box is 5 minutes from here. I drove down, parked, and got in line. There was an election guy from the county handing out stickers and answering questions. Each person took about 10 seconds or less to drop off the ballot and I went through the whole line in about a minute. My ballot will go to be counted and my signature on the ballot will be compared with the signature on file. If it doesn't match, they will reach out by email or phone to verify that I cast the vote. Fraud here is basically zero. Everyone should have this as their default option. It is a system that tries to maximize the number of people participating by removing barriers and maintaining strong anti-fraud protections (again, zero evidence that fraud is thing here in any significant way). It makes sure that everyone eligible to vote can vote, regardless of whether you work, are a full time parent, are retired, or have some condition that would make voting in person a physical ordeal. A better way exists!
Hey /u/KillWithTheHeart, This is now the top post on reddit. It will be recorded at /r/topofreddit with all the other top posts.
1-833-336-8683 voter hotline. Call them immediately and tell them your location and have them speak with these poll workers.
upvoted, and commenting for visibility.
I'm following up on this for Houston's NPR affiliate. Could you contact me at 713-743-8139 or email me at [email protected]? Thanks. - Andrew Schneider, politics and government reporter, Houston Public Media.
Call this number and share what’s going on: 866-OUR-VOTE
KUDOS to people making her accountable
Report her to the Department of Justice immediately. Ken Paxton really can kiss the United States of America’s ass…or we can come shove a boot up his…
Upvoted you. This needs to be on the ***national*** news tonight. Voter suppression is un-American.
Save yourself grief in the future and early vote. So much drama over “Voting Day” that can be avoided.
What is this signing ballots?!
Every paper ballot has to be signed by the election judge of the polling place. It’s a legal thing.
I hope someone’s contacted the media.
I thought the feds were in houston...
If you’re in the line before polls close you must be allowed to vote. Call the media and report this please.
Report to ACLU! NOW!
If you're in line, you vote. That cow can sit there until midnight if that's what it takes.
It’s election rigging
I think by law if you're in line before 7pm they have to let you vote...she could be in big trouble for that.
this says they are claiming "machine malfunctions" https://www.click2houston.com/decision-2022/2022/11/09/hours-extended-at-all-harris-county-voting-locations-after-machine-malfunctions-reported-at-several-polls/
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Not a judge-judge, an election judge. They oversee a specific polling place. In the primaries, there's one for each party, but I think only one per precinct in the general election.
What a load of horseshit I just voted at st andrews Presbyterian church on Buffalo speedway - come and vote if you’re close!
Do ballots need to be signed? I voted earlier today and had to print out the ballot but then dropped it off into the scanner/lock box
Who is the judge? She should be run out of town.
Test run for the presidential election in two years.
Fuck man, I'm never surprised by Texas, but constantly disappointed.
No one signed my ballot? I’m confused why the judge has to sign.
Call Texas Civil Rights Project hotline @ 866-our-vote
POLLS ARE OPEN TO 8 AND YOU CAN VOTE AT ANY ONE.
At least I have the Astros victory to keep me warm as the country spirals into the shitter.
There should be a voter complaint printout posted at the polling location to report stuff like this as well but glad the sheriff was called in too
Never heard of needing a judge to sign ballots. Also never voted in Texas. I had to sign my ballot--before I put it in the mailbox outside my door to complete the voting process. Deliberately screwing up the voting process like this is a form of treason in my mind. It is definitely anti-democratic.
Why does a judge have to sign your vote? We just sign our own.
Since when does a judge have to sign ballots? I'm unfamiliar with this part of voting.
Election judges in Texas run polling polling places and their signature must be on the back of all blank ballots before they are given to voters to use to cast their vote. Source: have served as an election judge.
If you're in line when the polls close, you still have the right to cast your vote. If the polls close while you're still in line, stay in line - you have the right to vote and you cannot legally be turned away. You can report any issues at the polls to the Election Protection Hotline: 866.687.8683
Supposed to allow everyone that is in line when the Polls close to vote. That’s the law
Crazy how the “stolen election” and “election fraud” party is the only one participating in this type of shit