Voter Registration Problems At Berkeley

While whispers of more grandiose stories of voter registration problems are emerging in Ohio and Pennsylvania, Berkeley has had its share of controversy, too.

The External Affairs VP Office, which orchestrated the massive voter registration campaign on campus, announced that it had photocopied all 6600+ forms that it had received in its office. EAVP Liz Hall stated that the voter registration cards were duplicated to collect statistical information and contact information so that registered voters could be reminded to vote. While this is not an uncommon or illegal process, I definitely see it as a violation of privacy, especially in regard to party designation, etc. Students definitely should have been notified that the EAVP office would use their information, and that their cards were going to be photocopied.

Many students who registered through campus student groups (including myself) also had problems voting at polling places, and were forced to use provisional ballots. This seems to be a problem not so much with the EAVP office delivering all the ballots on time, but with the Alameda County Office of the Registrar being overwhelmed with the amount of new voters to register. Nonetheless, students are being asked to confirm their registration with the AC Registrar, and to re-register if inconsistencies still persist.
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