On The Front Lines On Election Day, A Report From South Minneapolis

Photo By John Hoff

Jeff Skrenes had some interesting stories about Election Day, and I finally convinced him to write all that stuff down in an email, for the historical record...or, for that matter, any investigation which might happen into voting irregularities in Minnesota in light of the Coleman/Franken recount...

Here is Jeff's firsthand account, from an email dated November 24.

I went to the Walker Methodist Church in South Minneapolis on Election Day. I had done a fair amount of doorknocking already in my own North Minneapolis neighborhoods, but since I speak fluent Spanish, I felt that was potentially more needed in South Minneapolis on Election Day.

My role was to go around to various polling places and see if there were long lines and/or problems, then call back to the DFL station at teh church and report what was going on. From there, I would try to make sure folks in line had what they needed in order to register and vote, as well as keeping their spirits up so they wouldn't leave without voting.

Also, we were to watch what the Republican and Democratic challengers were doing and call back to notify people if there were illegitimate challenges happening.

I arrived at a polling place on 22nd and 1st in South Minneapolis and the line was literally snaking around the block. I found some other DFL volunteers who did not really know how to respond to this. Here's why the place had such problems: The area had a large number of college students and immigrants, leading to many people who were not registered at the polling place. Since it was a prime area for first-time voters as well, a fair amount of people were standing in line with inadequate documentation.

To compound matters, the polling place did not have enough voter registration cards. We all read in the papers about reports that some Minneapolis polling places ran out of cards. I'm sure this was one such place those allegations referenced. They never 100 percent "ran out," but because they were so low, they did not allow volunteers to take cards outside and register people in line.

So for quite a while, there wasn't much we could do other than walk up and down the line talking to people and trying to make sure they had what they needed. While doing this, I went up to a person whom I found out later was a Republican challenger. I asked what rules I needed to follow in terms of who I talked to, where, and what I said.

He asked what organization I represented and I said I was there on behalf of the DFL. He then told me I could not come closer than 100 feet away from the property line of the polling place.

Not true. I can be 100 feet away from the ENTRANCE.

He told me I could not talk to people in line.

Again, not true. As long as I am not harassing people, I can talk to anyone in line, and as long as I am past the 100 feet rule, I can talk about pros and cons of candidates or ballot issues.

This is just one example of how it seemed to me that Republicans wanted to suppress voting instead of upholding the rules. I did comply with what he said about the 100 feet rule, only because the lines were so long, anyway, that I could talk to folks well before they got that close.

Finally, enough voter registration cards arrived that they could allow volunteers to get people registered while waiting in line. So I went inside the polling place and picked up a stack of cards. With a few volunteers going through the line and getting folks registered, the pace really picked up. Also, once I had those cards in my hand and it was clear to the Republican challengers that I was there primarily to help the voting process, they warmed up to me a little.

One technicality: A lot of people brought their leases as proof of residence. A lease without supporting documentation such as a current ID or utility bills matching the address is not sufficient to register. So when I came across such people in line, I said to them, "The lease isn't enough to register, but your neighbors in line can VOUCH for you. So if the lease is enough to convince them that you live in the precinct, have them vouch for you and you're all set."

Minnesota has great laws that allow voters to make their voice heard.

There was also a guy who was either drunk, high, or had some mental issues, who was going up and down the line yelling derogatory thigns about McCain and Palin. While I agreed with some of the comments, it was clear he was violating some rules and making many voters uncomfortable. So I went to the Republican challengers and asked if they would escort the man off the premises, which they did.

The fact that a DFLer asked Republicans to uphold rules even perhaps to our own detriment won me MAJOR points with the GOP challenger crew.

(Johnny Northside aside: Oh, Jeff, how nice. Maybe they won't shoot tear gas at you)

I stayed and registered people until almost 8 PM before joining up with (Johnny Northside) to celebrate the Democratic victory. That's my election day story.