ProgressOhio

Our family decided to make an occasion of it yesterday -- celebrated Claire's birthday with lunch at Latitude 41 (yummy, local food in an elegant setting), then on to Vets' Memorial, which Claire still remembers as the ACT staging area in 2004, when she was in charge of sending people out all over the west side that cold, rainy day. I think it was good to have a sunny day filled with positive experiences to superimpose on that bitter memory. As for me, I associate Vets' Memorial with the Eddie Bauer Warehouse sales staged there years ago (the girls always refused to come with us to those affairs -- back then they said it was one more place full of mulch colored clothes only parents would like!).

 Today was different for all of us. Claire wondered aloud if she would cry (voting for John Kerry made her tear up because the election mattered so much).

In preparation I brought along three of our WADC sample ballots (for which I thank Paula Deming), on the back of which I wrote the results of my research on the ballot issues (the League of Women Voters' stand on them, backed with clear supporting evidence, is a good place to start), and on the way down we discussed candidates and issues, glad we had so many good, thoughtful people to support. Turning into the parking lot we saw clear signage about free parking and voting even before we reached the parking attendant, who asked "Are you here to vote?" and waved us through, past the gaggle of campaign staffers lining the opposite side of the driveway from Vets' Memorial, some in colorful candidates' tee shirts (kelly green ones for Shawn Dingus and Mary Jo Kilroy stand out in my memory). After we parked we were approached by someone handing out lit supporting Issue 6, and by someone handing out those very same sample ballots WADC bestickered in a work session we held Wednesday evening! Inside were roped off lines (like those at a bank), but they were empty -- no lines til we reached the entrance of the voting area, where we stood behind a woman in a bright red Campaign for Change Neighborhood Team Leader tee shirt, covered by a blue sweater she was buttoning up as we waited, to observe the law against campaigning at the polls -- she had just been to a team meeting, she explained. Board of Election staffers first asked if we were registered to vote, and when we said we were, they handed us forms on clipboards, where we printed our names, addresses and an identification number (either the driver's license number or the last four digits of the social security number). A young man near us was registering to vote, so he had to fill out two forms at that station. Then we were directed to a line where we waited to be directed to the next available official seated at a computer. There was a bank of them stretching along two sides of the all, with printers between the computers. A polite official directed voters efficiently as soon as there was an opening. At the computer, the B of E official entered the information on my form, which called up the correct ballot and two barcoded labels, one for my ballot and one for the envelope I would put it in. She told me that I would need to sign and date the envelope, and again enter the identifying driver's license or partial social security number on it before sealing it and putting it in the ballot box near the door. Again there was space for a line, though there was none, and another official who directed me on my way. There were tables and chairs along one wall (all in use), and the center of the hall was filled with so-called "privacy booths" -- black metal cubes with two sides removed, perched atop legs, each containing a ballpoint pen on a chain. My only complaint is that the lighting was not as good as it needed to be -- but the ballots were easy to read, and reminded me of those achievement tests we took in school. easily read with no potential causes of confusion that I could see. I put the completed ballot in its envelope, filling out the form as required and sealing it, and then walked down to the two very large metal ballot boxes (each much bigger than a post office mailbox), where a final official made sure I had filled out the form on the envelope properly, and then allowed me to put my ballot in the slot. There were quite a few people voting when we did (4,134 yesterday, according to this morning's Dispatch) -- all ages and races, a colorful crowd which included a group of Somali women with beautiful long head scarves. While it wasn't the neighborhood experience of voting at your own polling place, I liked seeing a cross-section of the population of our diverse county, all apparently cheerful about their voting experiences. Although there was never much of a line, the staff was too busy for me to engage them in conversation, though I did manage to ask the lady at the computer when they were busiest. She said at lunchtime -- so you might want to go earlier or later if you want things to be quick.

The family gathered in the lobby, all taking about the same length of time to vote, and ran into FCDP executive director Zach Manifold in the parking lot' checking out how things were going. He was in a good mood, as we were. We all thought the process was well run and efficient. What a difference it makes to have Jennifer Brunner as our secretary of state! We owe a great deal to her and her dedicated staff.