Is Orange County screwing with Dems' ballots to block a supermajority?

[SunSeeker]

According to the LA Times, Dems' chance to retake the state house as a supermajority rests on two contested seats:: Solorio v. Nguyen in Orange County and Chavez v. Vidak in the Central Valley.

http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-pol-state-senate-20141020-story.html#page=1

I've been voting by mail-in ballot for over 10 years in Orange County --always as a registered Democrat. My ballot has always come at least a month before the election. Here it is October 19 and I still don't have my ballot. This has never happened before. My husband, who is a registered Independent, got his ballot several weeks ago. I did receive the Sample Ballot booklet when my husband got his. Both booklets tell us we are registered as a mail-in ballot voter and we must vote using our mail-in ballot; we can't go to a voting booth.

So I call the Orange County Registrar of Voters on Friday and the clerk says a lot of people have been calling about late ballots. I point out my husband, who lives at the same address as me, has had his ballot for several weeks. She says yes, she's been hearing about a lot of those kind of situations. She tells me the best thing to do is just for her to re-register me for an absentee ballot so that she can send me out another ballot. And she says I called just in time because Monday October 20 is the deadline to request an absentee ballot. Then she tells me I will also receive a Declaration I must sign promising I won't vote both ballots if I end up getting both in the mail. But, she tells me the Declaration must be mailed back separately. Now I'm waiting for my replacement ballot and this Declaration to sign. This whole process sounds screwy.

Is anyone else here an OC Dem who still hasn't gotten their ballot? This delay seems really fishy to me. Or am I being paranoid?

[antiquie]

1. We are Dem voters registered as Greens.

My sample ballot showed up a couple of weeks ago, my husband's just turned up. I'm wishing this is just some delay and not Democratic ballot targeted. However, I am paranoid so I would encourage you to contact the LAT writer and anyone else who will listen.

[Lucy]

2. I never received my ballot

I called the OC registrars office to request another ballot which I should receive tomorrow.

I asked about the delay of the original ballot. The person I spoke to said that the delay has been at the post office and not the Registrars office. According to the records my ballot was processed at the beginning of this month. It seems as though I should have received it by now if it was just a delay.

[SunSeeker]

3. Don't hold your breath waiting for the replacement ballot.

I never got mine. When I called on Friday to tell them my replacement Ballott never arrived either, the clerk said I was the first person to call with that complaint. She said I will have to go to the polling place by my house (and take time from work!) on election day and fill out a provisional ballot.

And she gave me the same "it's the post office" excuse. She said one person went to her post office and found her ballot sitting there. I said that makes no sense unless I had a post office box, which I don't. She then said the Orange County Register's Sunday paper delivery is behind by two weeks. That sounded even hinkier to me. I said who would want a two week old newspaper? She just laughed and seemed to not think it was a big deal.

I called the OC Register and they said they don't use the US post office for deliveries; they use "completely different carriers."

This just keeps getting weirder....

[antiquie]

4. I'm not buying the post office excuse.

Democrats support the post office and its union; Republicans do not.

The Orange County Register was contracting with the L.A. Times for O.C. delivery but there was a couple of million dollar payments not made -- nothing at all to do with the post office.

This really stinks, especially with the active Democratic GOTV in O.C.

[SunSeeker]

5. I just called my local post office. They said there are no delays.

They said everything that comes in goes out that same day and that they are not "holding" anything. The guy on the phone said they do not deliver the Sunday Register and that the clerk at the Registrar of Voters who said that "has no credibility."

[Lucy]

6. Hard to know what's really happening

The clerk also told me if I didn't get the replacement ballot tomorrow, I can come to the registrars office to pick up an absentee ballot.

We'll see.

[SunSeeker]

7. WTF? Then why'd I get told to vote in person with a provisional ballot?

[antiquie]

8. Please let the OC Party know about your experience.

Democratic Party of Orange County
Phone: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
http://www.ocdemocrats.org

[SunSeeker]

9. Thanks for the suggestion. I just called and they will follow up.

A nice guy answered the phone at the Dem Party of OC office. He said he will call the Registrar of Voters himself and will get back to me by close of business today.

[antiquie]

11. Let us know what happens.

Every vote is important, especially now.

[Lucy]

10. I received the ballot in today's mail

SunSeeker,
I just wanted to let you know I did receive my ballot today. I was kind of looking forward to going to the registrar office to see what would happen; but I'm really glad they followed through.

I did think that it may be the first ballot and not the second; but it has an issue date of 10/24. I had checked online earlier last week and the first issue date was 10/06 if I remember correctly.

I hope you get yours, as well!