Absentee requests flood election board

Mass mailings from both parties create increased activity, with 150 applications being processed daily

Web posted October 17, 1998

By Sylvia Cooper
Staff Writer

The Richmond County Board of Elections office was swamped with requests for absentee ballots this week.

The flurry was triggered by the Republican and Democratic parties' mass mailings to voters of pre-printed applications for absentee ballots, said Lynn Bailey, elections board executive director.

Voters who receive the cards check one of the pre-printed reasons they need to vote absentee in the Nov. 3 election, sign the card and mail it to the elections board, which in most instances mails them an absentee ballot.

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``We've had a lot of activity with absentee ballots this week, because both parties have sent applications for ballots out through the mail, and the public has been responding heavily to those mail-outs,'' said Mrs. Bailey.

The office has been processing about 150 a day. At this time in the election cycle, 50 a day would be an unusually high number, she said.

But it's not only in Augusta that elections boards are working overtime. The mail-outs were generated from party headquarters and target voters statewide, and the response has been so great elections boards in some counties have had to put on extra help, Mrs. Bailey said.

``We're working overtime in Richmond County, and I'm sure other counties around the state are as well,'' she said.

Richmond County Republican Party Chairman Dave Barbee said ``there's a big absentee ballot push'' in the party statewide.''

``We've targeted all registered Republican voters in the state,'' he said. ``The Democrats have done it for years. This is the first time the Republicans have done it. This is a public service. This is our way of getting the public out to vote.''

The applications are a special service to the elderly, he said.

``We can't just go out and get buses and take people to the polls,'' he said.

It's perfectly legal to duplicate the absentee ballot request forms the elections board has on hand and distribute them -- candidates do it all the time -- or create your own to hand out, Mrs. Bailey said.

But it is illegal to vote absentee if you don't meet one of the requirements of the law for doing so. And there are many legal reasons a person may vote absentee. They include:

Being out of the precinct on election day.

Physical disability.

Being 75 years old or older.

Being a constant care-giver to a family member.

Being a public safety officer who is unable to leave a job to go vote.

Observing a religious holiday.

Being away in the military.

Working the polls outside the home precinct.

``Sometimes we would like to vote in the convenience of our homes, and it's easy to check off on that form and say you're going to be out of town when you're not going to be out of town,'' Mrs. Bailey said. ``And it is illegal to do that. However, the applications we get in, unless we have some reason to question that application, we're going to process it right on in.''

The cards mailed by the Democratic Party have a place voters may check off stating that they are 75 years old.

``And it is my understanding that those are the people they targeted in their mail-out,'' Mrs. Bailey said.

The Republican Party cards have places to check off that the voter will be out of the precinct, is physically disabled, 75 years old, a member of the armed forces or ``other.''

``We've had a little bit of problems with the Republican Party application because of the `other,''' she said. ``You do have to be specific when you request a ballot. You have to tell us exactly why you want it.''

Once the elections board receives the application, they check to see if the voter has signed it, check the reason for requesting it and then compare the signature with the one on file in the office -- all of which is time consuming.

Voters who need absentee ballots may write or fax a request to the elections board office. For information, call 821-2340.

The application needs to have the voter's name and address, the specific reason they need the ballot and their signature.

And there are circumstances in which a family member can request a ballot for another family member, Mrs. Bailey said.

``For instance, if you have an immediate relative who is currently out of town or disabled, you may request a ballot on their behalf,'' she said. ``You do not sign the voter's name to that. You sign your name and state your relationship beside it.

``If you sign the voter's name, we're going to compare the signature to the voter's card, and we're going to kick it out because the signature doesn't match.''

Voters may vote absentee ballots in the elections board office on the first floor of the municipal building on Greene Street until the Monday before the election. The office will be mailing out ballots until the Friday before the election.

Absentee ballots will be counted as long as they're in the office by 7 p.m. on election day, Mrs. Bailey said.

Sylvia Cooper covers Richmond County government for The Augusta Chronicle. She can be reached at (706) 823-3228 or newsroom@augustachronicle.com.