Why is Lucas County early vote center in one of the highest crime neighborhoods in Toledo?

There was much to-do between Republicans and Democrats on the Lucas County Board of Elections when it came to selecting a location for the early voting center.

They finally decided on an area in the old Riverside Hospital building at the corner of Summit and Bush streets in downtown Toledo, despite the fact that the geographical center of the county was closer to the Village of Holland while the center of population is somewhere around the University of Toledo.

Democrats wanted the center to be in the central city area of Toledo. Republicans wanted it to be in the county Rec Center, despite the fact that the Rec Center was already under a lease agreement.

Democrats emphasized that it needed to be on a bus line, and I think that was probably a good idea. Republicans wanted it to be a relatively inexpensive place and I think that was probably a good idea as well.

But in all the discussions about where to locate the early vote center, did anyone bother to think about safety?!?

I guess not, because the Lucas County early vote center is located in one of the highest crime areas of the city.

Neighborhoodscout.com provides a crime map for various jurisdictions and it shows that the area bounded by Summit Street, I-280, the Buckeye Basin Greenbelt Parkway and Elm Street is one of the highest crime areas, as are two of the four sections that border it.

Not content with just the website information, I contacted the Toledo Police Department. They provided me with January to June 2012 crime statistics in their Beat #220 Areas 358, 359. The beat includes the same area as above, but goes all the way to the back of Point Place, over to Cherry St. and then to 1-75. The areas match the ones from Neighborhoodscout.com

Here's what the crime data looks like on a map:


View TPD Crime - Beat 220, area 358 Jan 2012 to Jun 2012 in a larger map

And where is the early vote center? Right on the corner of Bush and North Superior - the edge of all this crime.

And these aren't traffic violations.

The offenses include robbery, burglary, theft, larceny, car theft, sex offenses, family and child offenses, narcotics, intoxication, conveying contraband, and assault - both felony and misdemeanor. And they occurred at all times - including many in the middle of the afternoon.

This is not minor. The BOE placed the early vote center next to a half-mile area that is riddled with crime. I was shocked when I mapped it all.

But is it one of the highest crime areas in the city? NeighborhoodScout.com says it is, but just to be sure, I asked for a comparison from TPD of the other beats they have. They sent me another 60 pages of data and it will take me a long time to map all of it, but the area just to the north of the early vote center (about the size as the area already mapped) had about 200 reports of crime between January and June this year - more than already mapped.

But that's not all. Not only is the area riddled with crime, it's quite a distance for some voters in the county.

It will take some voters in the Providence Township area 45 minutes just to get there - that's an hour-and-a-half round trip to vote. Here I thought we were all about making it easy to vote.

Oh - and the preferred route Google Maps recommends is via the turnpike because it's the shortest in terms of time - and that would require a toll!

Where are the Democrat cries about poll taxes for that?!?

Democrats in Cleveland think a billboard that warns against voter fraud is intimidating. Isn't it more intimidating and closer to voter suppression to expect voters to travel through one of the highest crime neighborhoods in the city just to cast a ballot? Especially at night in the dark?

In their effort to not disenfranchise some, the Lucas County Board of Elections will disenfranchise others and place all who go to the early vote center in a really bad crime area of the city.

So much for a fair and balanced approach to running our elections.

Husted sets early voting hours for 3 days before election

In light of the Supreme Court's rejection of his early voting appeal, Secretary of State Jon Husted has issued a directive to all Ohio Boards of Election setting uniform early voting hours for the weekend before the Nov. 6th election.

The hours are:

* Saturday, November 3, 2012 – 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

* Sunday, November 4, 2012 – 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m

* Monday, November 5, 2012 – 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Had he not issued the directive, boards of elections would have been able to set their own hours, resulting in no uniformity across the state.

The director also reminds boards that "any voter in line when that day’s hours for in-person absentee voting ends, may remain in line to apply for and receive an absentee ballot in person."

BREAKING: US Supreme Court rejects Husted appeal on early voting weekend hours

Gongwer Ohio is reporting that the U.S. Supreme Court has rejected Secretary of State Jon Husted's request for stay of a decision regarding in-person voting during the three days before the Nov. 6th election.

The decision means that individual county boards of elections will be able to decide whether or not to open early vote centers those days.

This also means that there could be no uniformity of voting hours in Ohio if individual boards decide make different decisions regarding those hours of operation.

The decision of some counties to open their early vote centers while others were closed those three days is part of what sparked the lawsuit in the first place. Democrats claimed that Republican-leaning county BOEs voted to be open while Democratic-leaning counties were not. Obama for America, the National Democratic Party and the Ohio Democratic Party filed the suit against Husted.

Looks like we're back where we started....

SOS appeals Obama v. Husted to U.S. Supreme Court

Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted will appeal to the U. S. Supreme Court a court ruling overturning the ban on in-person early voting during the three days before Election Day.

The case was brought by Obama for America, the Democratic National Committee, and Ohio Democratic Party after Secretary Husted issued a directive closing polling places that weekend in order to ensure uniform voting hours across the state.

Last Friday, a federal appeals court ruled that local election boards have the authority to open their early vote centers during those disputed days if they so desire. But part of the original lawsuit was the lack of uniformity in voting hours with Democrats complaining that their votes were being suppressed because some traditionally Democrat-leaning counties had voted not to be open those days while several Republican-leaning counties voted to have early voting hours those days.

Here is the Press Release:

SECRETARY HUSTED TO APPEAL FEDERAL COURT DECISION TO THE U.S. SUPREME COURT

Pledges that whatever the outcome, Ohio voting hours will be uniform statewide

COLUMBUS - Secretary of State Jon Husted today announced that he will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to make the final determination on whether the General Assembly of the State of Ohio or the federal courts should set Ohio election laws. Husted will be appealing the Friday decision by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in Obama v. Husted. Regarding this decision, all of the following may be attributed to Secretary Husted:

"This is an unprecedented intrusion by the federal courts into how states run elections and because of its impact on all 50 states as to who and how elections will be run in America we are asking the Supreme Court to step in and allow Ohioans to run Ohio elections.

"This ruling not only doesn't make legal sense, it doesn't make practical sense. The court is saying that all voters must be treated the same way under Ohio law, but also grants Ohio's 88 elections boards the authority to establish 88 different sets of rules. That means that one county may close down voting for the final weekend while a neighboring county may remain open. How any court could consider this a remedy to an equal protection problem is stunning.

"As a swing state, we in Ohio expect to be held to a high standard and level of scrutiny when it comes to elections. However, it's troubling that the federal courts have failed to recognize that there isn't another state in the union which can claim Ohio's broad menu of voting options and opportunity to vote. In Ohio, ALL voters already have at least 230 hours available to vote in person prior to Election Day, ALL registered voters received an application to vote by mail and ALL voters still have the ability to vote during the 13-hour window on Election Day itself.

"While I will be asking the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold Ohio law through the appeals process, the last thing I want to see is a non-uniform system where voters will be treated differently in all 88 counties.

"Since some boards of elections have already started to take action on hours of operation for the three days before Election Day, I am going to take time to consult with all 88 counties before crafting a directive to set uniform hours should the state not be successful upon appeal."

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Court rules in favor of in-person early voting

U.S. District Judge Peter C. Economus has issued a preliminary injunction and ordered in-person voting for the three days prior to the November 6 election.

Obama for America, the National Democratic Party and the Ohio Democratic Party had sued Secretary of State Jon Husted and Attorney General Mike DeWine over state law which says that only members of the military and their families would be allowed to vote in person on the Saturday, Sunday and Monday before Election Day. Military groups had asked to intervene in favor of the law.

The judge said the law was "unconstitutional “to the extent it changes the deadline for in-person voting from the close of business on the day before Election Day to 6 p.m. on the Friday before Election Day.”

He also said it violated the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution because those covered by the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voter Act (military voters and their families) could cast a ballot during those final three days while other Ohioans could not.

The Judge wrote:

This Court anticipates that Defendant Secretary of State will direct all Ohio elections boards to maintain a specific, consistent schedule on those three days, in keeping with his earlier directive that only by doing so can he ensure that Ohio’s election process is "uniform, accessible for all, fair, and secure."

DeWine announced he will appeal the ruling.

With all due respect to the Judge, we disagree with his ruling today. We have always allowed distinction for military voters, and to say this violates equal protection is wrong.

My job as the Attorney General is to defend the laws of the State of Ohio and defend the right of Ohio to set its own law based on the Ohio and U.S. Constitutions. We believe states should have the right to set the hours of election and the time of election.

Husted fires Montgomery County Board of Elections Democrats

Secretary of State Jon Husted started dismissal proceedings against the Democrats on the Montgomery County Board of Elections because they refused to adopt the uniform hours Husted set for early voting times in the state.

Following a hearing and a recommendation from the hearing officer, today he fired them.

They had maintained that the directive from Husted was 'ambiguous' and did not prevent them from adding more voting hours on weekends. The hearing officer disagreed, saying it was plain, in both the background section of the directive and the follow-up letter sent to the board, that the purpose was to have the same hours of voting in every county in the state.

Here is the letter Husted sent (addresses redacted):

August 28, 2012


Thomas J. Ritchie, Sr.

Dennis A. Lieberman

Gentlemen:

After reviewing the report of the hearing officer following the August 20, 2012 hearing, can draw no other conclusion: You knowingly and willfully violated Ohio election law by not following Directive 2012-35, which Ohio law(R.C. 3501.11) requires you to follow. Thus, you are immediately dismissed from the Montgomery County Board of Elections.

The hearing officer report states:

"I conclude that no reasonable person after considering (a) the words of the directive ("Background" and "Instructions" read together in context) and (b) the plain words of Mr. Damschroder's letter could conclude that Directive 2012-35 is ambiguous and permits weekend hours for in person absentee voting. Therefore, conclude that Mr. Lieberman in making his motion, voting for it and later refusing to rescind it did so in contravention of Directive 2012-35 and in violation of R.C. 3501.11. Mr. Ritchie, who seconded the motion and voted for it, also did so in contravention of R.C. 3501.11.

The hearing officer concludes:

"I conclude that consistent with the Ohio Revised Code and relevant ease law the Secretary has the authority to remove Mr. Lieberman and Mr. Ritchie. Furthermore, believe that the facts warrant removal and recommend that the Secretary take such action."

Board members are free to express their discontent with any Directive or Advisory issued, but they cannot disobey them. Your dismissal is not about differing views; it is about you violating the law by not following Directive (R.C. 3501.11). You were given subsequent chances to comply and refused to take corrective action.

I find no pleasure in taking this action and thank you for your service.

Liberal hypocrisy and early voting: one-size-fits-all...except when it doesn't

For years we've heard from Democrats, liberals and progressives that the federal government is the solution.

Regardless of the need or issue, they've supported a one-size-fits-all approach to everything from Obamacare to seat belts to gun laws, convinced that their perceived 'disparity' in local rules was unequal and a problem that only a large bureaucracy in Washington could properly address.

'Experts' in the federal government (and non-experts in the White House) think everyone should cut down on their salt intake. But what if you have a salt deficiency?

The federal food pyramid says everyone should have six or more servings of carbohydrates every day. If I ate that many, I'd be a blimp!

New ADA pool mandates say that all public pools must have two handicap accesses, including an electronic lift that a handicapped person can use without having to ask for help. This applies even to hospital pools used for therapy - where people are incapable of entering a pool without help - and campgrounds, even when their pools and facilities don't have access to electricity.

And then there's education - which is so much a one-size-fits-all that I don't know where to begin.

In all these examples, and others too numerous to list, liberals insist the federal government has to step in to make things even for all, disregarding that the actual results are usually very uneven and certainly less than 'equal.'

In the ongoing dispute over early voting hours in Ohio, Democrats complained that having different hours in different counties would disenfranchise some voters - specifically those they consider their own: minority, low income, urban.

They were angry that some of the county Boards of Elections (all comprised of two Republicans and two Democrats) voted to have different hours than others - and they argued that the Republican-leaning counties were the ones with longer times than the Democrat-leaning ones.

Clearly, despite the equal and bi-partisan nature of the BOEs, this was a GOP effort to suppress the Democrat vote.

Secretary of State Jon Husted warned the BOEs ahead of time that if they ended up with a tie vote on hours of operation for the early voting centers, he would break the tie in favor of regular BOE office hours, saying that he was not going to be responsible for mandating the costs of additional hours and overtime upon counties, especially on those without the fiscal flexibility to pay for it.

Whether coincidence or intention, certain urban areas ended up with tie votes and Husted kept his word.

But Democrats were right about unequal access and Kasich agreed: local control meant voting hours were not uniform across the state.

So Kasich, after consulting with the Ohio Attorney General to ensure he had the authority, issued a directive setting standard early voting hours for all of Ohio.

In Montgomery County, the two Democrat BOE members refused to vote for the mandated hours, arguing that since the directive was silent about any additional hours, they could follow the times set out and add others to it. Consistent with action taken by Democrat Jennifer Brunner when she was Secretary of State, Husted began the process to remove them for failing to follow his directive.

As Husted said, "While they are free to disagree with my decision, they are not free to disobey the law."

You'd think the Dems would be happy that their demands for uniformity were met. However, it wasn't their uniformity, so they continued to complain.

Yes, after demanding uniformity, they're now claiming uniformity is wrong.

Despite a history and record of supporting one-size-fits-all approaches, they're actually staying that setting standard hours for all of Ohio is going to create disparities.

Huh?

During a Wednesday press conference, House Minority Leader Armond Budish said each county has its own specific needs and voter demographics, so uniform hours are unworkable and could lead to delays. Talking of Husted's directive he said:

"He said he's leveling the playing field for voters by requiring all county boards to have the same early vote hours. Sadly, that is just not true. Setting uniform hours treats all county boards the same, but it treats voters unequally and unfairly. Secretary Husted's edicts will result in disparities, bringing back long lines in large urban counties."

Budish said having the same early vote hours for Cuyahoga County with 1.2 million residents and Morgan County with only 15,000 residents didn't make sense.

He may be right, but he and his fellow Dems certainly didn't consider that point when making their earlier demands for uniformity.

Budish said:

"Yet those same two counties each have one polling place open for early in-person voting. Treating election boards equally treats voters unequally and unfairly. And who suffers? It's minorities. It's the working poor. They'll face much longer lines. All voters will face longer lines, especially in those large urban counties. It's those folks whose votes are being suppressed."

I've previously questioned why Democrats think so little of their own supporters (they don't know how to get an ID, they can't feed their children or find housing or jobs without the government, they can't manage to vote either absentee or in-person with over 230 hours to do so and they don't have time to get to the polls on election day despite having 13 hours in which to do so)...I guess Budish shares the same perspective of his fellow Democrats who serve on the BOEs.

First, there is nothing in the directive to say that counties can have only one early voting center, so Budish makes a fallacious argument and starts with an incorrect premise which gives him an incorrect conclusion.

But, for the sake of his argument, even if they have only one early vote location, they would, by necessity, need more voting machines in Cuyahoga than in Morgan. Unless Budish doesn't trust his Democrat BOE members to properly plan the right amount of machines for the voters they expect, there shouldn't be any long lines.

In a statement, ColorOfChange Executive Director Rashad Robinson said of Husted that "he has rolled back access for Ohio voters, specifically in racially diverse urban areas like Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus, and Dayton."

But in Lucas, Summit, Cuyahog and Franklin counties, the BOEs had tie votes on the voting hours and when Husted broke the ties, he did so in favor of regular office hours. So the directive actually increases early voting hours Toledo, Cleveland, Columbus and Akron.

How can Robinson make such a claim - and how was he not challenged on the fact by the regular media?

So after getting their way on uniform hours, they're now saying that treating everyone equally is unequal.

Sadly, the hypocrisy is lost on them.

Husted orders standard hours for early voting

Directive issued by Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted ordering standard state-wide hours for in-person early voting:

DIRECTIVE 2012-35
August 15, 2012

To: All County Boards of Elections
Directors, Deputy Directors, and Board Members

Re: In Person Absentee Voting Days and Hours

BACKGROUND

Local election administration in Ohio is governed by four-member, bipartisan bodies: the 88 county boards of elections. This contrasts with most other states, where local elections administration is governed by one person (often an elected partisan, but sometimes an appointee) or an odd-numbered board controlled by one party or the other.

Ohio’s bipartisan county boards of elections act by majority vote to establish local rules and procedures not inconsistent with state law. When a board of elections deadlocks on a matter, such as hours of operation, the tie is submitted to the Secretary of State who must resolve the matter as a function of state law. Under state law, voters may apply in person to vote an absentee ballot during these locally established hours of operation beginning the 35th day before the election and ending at 6:00 p.m. the Friday before the election.

Having local boards of elections establish voting hours ensures a level of local control that is reflective of local resources. However, it also creates a patchwork of policies from one county to the next.

For this reason, in 2011, I urged the Ohio General Assembly to create uniform days and hours for in person absentee voting across the state. The result was House Bill 194, which was suspended by referendum and later repealed by the General Assembly.

Absent a statutory mandate for uniformity, I urged boards of elections to find local compromise on days and hours during my summer regional elections conferences. However, four tie votes have since come to my office on this matter. In each, I have resolved the controversy by setting voting hours to the Board’s existing office hours to avoid having a state actor establish voting hours differently in different counties, as was done in 2008.

However, after talking with elections officials across the state, I have decided to level the playing field on voting days and hours during the absentee voting period in order to ensure that the Presidential Election in Ohio will be uniform, accessible for all, fair, and secure.

INSTRUCTIONS

I hereby direct all county boards of elections to adopt the following as their regular business hours:

• 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Tuesday through Friday, from October 2, 2012 through October 5, 2012;
• 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., Tuesday, October 9, 2012;
• 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Wednesday through Friday, from October 10, 2012 through October 12, 2012;
• 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, from October 15, 2012 through October 19, 2012;
• 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, from October 22, 2012 through October 26, 2012;
• 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday, October 29, 2012 through November 1, 2012; and
• 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Friday, November 2, 2012.

Any voter of the county may request and vote an absent voter’s ballot (or a provisional ballot beginning October 10, 2012) in person during these regular business hours. Any voter in line at the end of the regular business hours must be permitted to make their application and vote.

All boards of elections must be closed on Monday, October 8, 2012 in observance of a state holiday.

If you have any questions concerning this Directive, contact the Secretary of State’s elections attorney assigned to your county at (614) 466-2585.

New online change of address tool for Ohio voters

Press Release from Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted:

Secretary of State Husted Launches New Online Change of Address Tool for Ohio Voters

New service will make it easier for voters to meet their responsibilities, while enhancing the overall accuracy and security of Ohio’s voter rolls.

Columbus –Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted today launched a new online service that allows Ohio’s registered voters to update their voting address online. This new tool, housed at www.MyOhioVote.com, will help voters in meeting their primary responsibility: To be registered at their current addresses 30 days prior to an election. Additionally, reducing manual data entry at Ohio’s boards of elections will save tax dollars and improve the accuracy and security of Ohio’s voter rolls.

“We are making it easier for Ohio voters to do their part in making Election Day run smoothly,” Secretary Husted said. “This added convenience for voters is also a powerful tool against voter fraud as current and accurate voter rolls leave less room for abuse.”

The most common reason a voter must cast a provisional rather than a regular ballot on Election Day is because they have not updated their address prior to the voter registration deadline. Provisional voters’ ballots must be verified for eligibility in the days following an election before they can be included in the official tally. Secretary Husted noted that had this system been in place during the 2008 Presidential Election, an estimated 130,000 voters who cast a provisional ballot could have taken advantage of this convenience and voted a regular ballot.

“With more voters expected to participate in the Presidential Election, it follows that there will be more provisional ballots. My hope is that more Ohioans will take advantage of the new Online Change of Address System so they can vote a regular ballot,” Husted said. “This is another positive step in making Ohio elections run better.”

All Ohioans of voting age will be able to use the site; however, in order to update an address online, the individual must already be a registered voter and must provide four identification keys that exactly match what’s in Ohio’s Statewide Voter Registration Database, including: their last name, Ohio driver’s license number, the last four digits of their Social Security number and their date of birth. If a voter does not meet these requirements, they will be able to print and complete a voter registration/change of address form to mail it in to their county board of elections office.

To ensure as many voters as possible are able to update their information online, the Secretary of State’s office is working with the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) to share data. Every month the BMV provides identification information to complete voter records. Currently, more than 6 million of Ohio’s registered voters will be able to change their address online.

Upon completing the online process, the voter’s county board of elections will send out a notice to confirm the change in address and provide the voter with their new polling place and precinct information for Election Day.

Voters who get their address updated between now and the first week of October will also be in line to receive an application to vote by mail for the November Presidential Election -- an initiative Secretary of State Husted is sponsoring to ensure voters statewide have equal opportunity to participate, whether they choose to vote early, by mail or on Election Day.

“This November all eyes will be on Ohio, and we voters have important decisions to make. As chief elections officer, I want to ensure Ohio’s voting process is accessible, accurate and secure so that we can all have confidence in the results,” Husted said.

For more information, or to access the new Online Change of Address System, go to MyOhioVote.com.

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Husted: extended hours for early voting not necessary

Ohio Secretary of State John Husted broke a tie vote from the Lucas County Board of Elections in favor of regular office hours for the early voting center. He broke a similar tie vote for Franklin County on Aug. 2nd.

His position is that ample time for voting is available within the normal business hours of the various boards of election and all voters will be getting an absentee ballot application in the mail so they can vote by mail at their own convenience if they choose.

He also says there cannot be "unequal access from one county board to another" and local budgets must be considered.

Other than the name of the county, the letters are identical:

In order to ensure uniformity across counties and reduce lines at polling places for the November 6,20 12 General Election, my office is mailing an absentee ballot application to every registered voter in Ohio in "active" status and every registered voter in Ohio who voted in the 2008 presidential election regardless of the voter status in the Statewide Voter Registration Database, See Directive 201 2-24. Because Ohio voters have the option to vote from home via absentee ballot during the more-than-750-hour period that covers the no fault absentee voting period, there is no need for extended hours for in-person absentee voting.

I cannot create unequal access from one county board to another, and I must also keep in mind the resources available to each county. The reality is that local boards are operating under tight budget constraints on a day-to-day basis under their normal business hours. There is sufficient time already available during the Lucas County Board's regular business hours for the casting of absent voters' ballots in person.

Consistent with my stated policy at the Akron regional conference on June 19th, I am setting in-person absentee voting hours to be that of the Board's regular Monday through Friday office hours. The Board is also reminded that under Ohio Revised Code 35 09.03, in-person absentee voting must be available until 6:00 p.m., Friday, November 2, 2012.

Lucas County will offer ample time to vote prior to Election Day. In addition to no fault absentee voting by mail, in-person absentee voting in Lucas County will be available approximately 40-hours-per-week for those who wish to complete in-person absentee ballots.

Ohio Watchdog round-up: sales tax, hypocrisy, several tax

A round-up of article from Ohio Watchdog:

Sales tax, property tax and - oh yeah - children: Discussions about how to fund education in the state include raising the sales tax to replace the property taxes being charged locally. How much, who gets it and who decides is always the discussion - but where do the children fit into the equation?

Dear Mr. President - your campaign is out of control: The same day Ohio was celebrating being recognized as an All-Star state for our efforts to protect the military vote, the Obama For America campaign, the Democratic National Committee and the Ohio Democratic Party sued the state to overturn the very law that help us win the recognition.

Oh - and overlooked by everyone is the sheer hypocrisy of the ODP, along with chairman Chris Redfern, of suing to overturn a bill that every Democrat - including Redfern - voted for.

Yes, you read that correctly. The ODP is suing to overturn a bill that received unanimous support when it was passed.

Kasich renews calls for high oil, gas severance tax: I written in opposition to the severance tax, and several groups (here and here) have announced their opposition as well. This article describes the proposal and what proponents and opponents have to say. Tom Blumer also lists Another reason to oppose gas hikes on Ohio's oil, gas industry.

Lastly, Ohio Watchdog has done a series of articles exposing the bias and 'untruthfulness' of PolitiFact's truth or lie conclusions. The latest article looks at how PolitiFact slams a GOP spokeswoman's 'literally true' statement as somehow untrue. Unbelievable! But read all the posts in the series and you'll see how PolitiFact is just a tool to support liberals while criticizing conservatives. That's my opinion, but you'll see how valid it is after reading the series and you can judge for yourself.

Homeless man votes in Ohio and then goes home to Chicago?

Shelby Holliday has a video and story about her experience at the polls in Columbus yesterday. One of the voters admits to her that he's not from Ohio and as soon as he votes he's getting back on a bus and going home to Chicago.

We've got a major problem in Ohio and our Secretary of State is making sure that the potential for fraud exists. In order to ensure such things can happen without challenge, she told Boards of Elections that they did not have to allow observers in to watch the early voting. Many counties made the decision to do so anyway, like here in Lucas County, but not all of them have.

The scarier part is that this is the same location where a Republican poll observer was turned away.

Shelby documents just one example from her time at one polling location in one city. Is this happening all over the state? And what are we going to do about it?