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AAUW NC
Tar Heel News
Fall 03 issue
Front page
Public Policy
SAR
AAUW NC
Branches
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Same-Day Registration Resolution Provokes Continued Discussion in AAUW NC
CON
Millie Hoffler-Foushee, Greensboro Branch
The reasons for same-day registration are good and valid. But sometimes what looks
good on the surface can come back and haunt you. If a unscrupulous candidate or
his/her followers decide to put out at the last minute a tale that is untrue or
half true, or to send out literature that is confusing, there is no time for the
other side to rectify the damage.
In my last campaign, a Political Action Committee (PAC) wanted to confuse the
voters in the black neighborhood. Black voters tend to look at what candidates
PACs endorse. In my particular case, the community puts great trust in a particular
PAC and usually waits for the mailing that comes out a few days before election
to see what candidates are endorsed. Another PAC used almost the same type of
letterhead and the same format and sent out their mailing. The black community
was totally confused. I was able to find out about the discrepancy because as
a Black, I received the mailing. I had to do a lot of scrambling over the weekend
to get extra copies of the right PAC's mailing to have ready at the polls to give
to the voters. It was time wasted that I should have been using in last minute
campaigning.
With same-day registration, this type of thing could happen on that day. Groups
could be gathered up by these people and taken to the polls and told how to vote.
They usually have not been paying any attention to what has been going on throughout
the campaign year.
Finally, I am still concerned with verification. With same day-registration,
I still don't think that there is enough time to thoroughly check out the evidence
of identity.
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