Election dispatches | FBI probes dirty tricks in 2 states

Here's your guide to today's election developments, national and local. We'll be updating regularly. To see earlier entries, just scroll down.

— Seattletimes.com staff

FBI probing reports of dirty tricks

While new voting machines confounded some poll workers, reports of dirty tricks and voter intimidation surfaced across the nation today, prompting federal investigations in at least two states.

In Virginia, the FBI was looking at complaints of voter intimidation in the hard-fought U.S. Senate race between Republican George Allen and Democrat Jim Webb. Some voters reported they got calls encouraging them to stay home on Election Day. Others said they were directed to the wrong polling place.

In Indiana, the FBI was investigating allegations that a Democratic volunteer at a polling site in the college town of Bloomington was found with unprocessed absentee ballots after counting had begun.

Other states reported similar problems.

In Arizona, three men, one of them armed, stopped Hispanic voters and questioned them outside a Tucson polling place, according to voting monitors for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, which photographed the incidents and reported them to the FBI.

In Maryland, sample ballots suggesting Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich and Senate candidate Michael Steele were Democrats were handed out by people bused in from out of state. Democrats outnumber Republicans in Maryland by nearly 2-to-1.

An Ehrlich spokeswoman said the fliers were meant to show the candidates had the support of some state Democrats. They were paid for by the campaigns of Ehrlich, Steel and the GOP. Some of the fliers include pictures of Ehrlich with Democrat Kweisi Mfume, a former NAACP president.

More than 80 percent of the nation's voters were expected to cast some type of electronic ballot Tuesday, which was the deadline for major reforms mandated by the federal Help America Vote Act, passed by Congress to prevent a rerun of the 2000 election debacle.

Across the country, Democrats accused Republicans of sponsoring automated "robo-calls" that have infuriated voters. The recorded calls, which reached a fever pitch in the days leading up to the election, automatically dial and re-redial, promoting or trashing a candidate.

Republicans have denied responsibility. Some voters have reported being awakened in the middle of the night by such calls, and said that after they hung up, the phone rang again. Federal rules bar election phone solicitations after 9 p.m.

In some states, the effort to improve the integrity of the election system got off to a shaky start. Long lines formed, prompting appeals to judges to keep the polls open longer.

Kevin Caffrey, a 43-year-old school teacher from Denver and a registered Republican, was furious after he was forced to stand in line for more than an hour.

"Every individual who put me in line, I'm voting against them. I've been waiting in line like an animal. This is a nightmare," he said.

In Denver, up to 300 people stood outside some polling sites. One was Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill Ritter, who waited an hour and 40 minutes.

"It's actually heartening," he said. It means people "understand the process is important enough to be patient and wait in line." Nonetheless, Democratic Party officials asked a judge to extend poll hours because of the delays.

A long ballot and new machines caused the disruptions, according to Colorado secretary of state spokeswoman Lisa Doran. "Despite the training, some of the election judges are intimidated by the machines," she said.

Computer glitches and poll workers' unfamiliarity with the new equipment were also blamed for long lines in such states as Tennessee, South Carolina and Illinois.

Some politicians, and their offspring, got turned away from the polls.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton told reporters at a campaign stop near her home in Chappaqua that her daughter, Chelsea, had been turned away at a Manhattan polling site because her name did not appear in a book of registered voters. She was offered an affidavit vote, similar to provisional ballots used in other states.

In South Carolina, Gov. Mark Sanford was turned away because he didn't have a voter registration card. He went back with the right identification.

But as Election Day wore on, none of the stumbles seemed to signal a voting disaster, according to poll watchers.

"Lots of fender-benders, but no major tie-ups," said Doug Chapin, director of electionline.org, a nonpartisan group that tracks election problems. "It's been a steady drumbeat, but nothing that rises to the level of 'This could compromise the results."'

Nevertheless, some of the mishaps raised frustration levels, and not just in Colorado.

In Cleveland, where some voters in 2004 waited in 14-hour lines, problems with ballot-reading machines caused big delays. For the first time, all 88 counties used electronic voting — either touch-screens or paper ballots that are electronically scanned.

James Marquart said he walked out without voting after poll workers said his name wasn't on the rolls, even though he was holding a postcard from the elections board that told him which precinct to vote in.

"They did offer me a provisional ballot, but I have absolutely no faith in provisional ballots," he said. Such ballots are only counted if election officials can document the voter's registration.

— The Associated Press

First exit polls look like good news for Democrats

WASHINGTON – The Iraq war hurt Republican candidates in the midterm elections, but corruption and scandal were bigger problems for them, exit polls found.

Three-fourths of voters said corruption and scandal were important to their votes, and they were more likely to vote for the Democratic candidates for the House. Iraq was important for just two-thirds, and they also leaned toward Democrats.

In the vote for the U.S. House, Democrats were winning among several groups that have usually been very closely contested — independents, moderates, the middle class and suburban women, according to early exit poll results.

For some voters, it was important to have a balance of power in Washington.

Norman Moore, 70, a retired editor from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., decided to vote for Democratic Senate candidate Harold Ford Jr. about two or three weeks ago.

"I do think Democratic control of Congress would put the brakes on this administration," he said.

Those most concerned about scandals and corruption — about four in 10 of all voters — were far more likely to vote Democratic. Most white evangelicals said corruption was very important in their vote and almost a third of them voted Democratic, according to a national exit poll of 8,211 voters conducted for AP and television networks by Edison Media Research and Mitofsky International. Results for the full sample were subject to sampling error of plus or minus 2 percentage points, higher for subgroups.

Terrorism was considered an important issue in the House election by about three-quarters of those polled, but they split between Democrats and Republicans — robbing the GOP of an issue that has been a key to its success in past elections.

Gwen McIntosh, 56, of Cincinnati, is a registered Democrat who voted a straight Democratic ticket.

"I know Ken Blackwell (the Republican gubernatorial candidate in Ohio), and I thought about crossing over on that one, but I decided I would stick with the Democrats," McIntosh said. "I think in the back of my mind I probably was voting against Bush."

Besides in-person interviews Tuesday, the survey included 1,500 absentee or early voters interviewed by telephone during the past week in 10 states with heavy early voting.

— The Associated Press

First exit polls look like good news for Democrats

WASHINGTON – Scandals in Washington, the war in Iraq and overall anger toward Bush appeared to drive voters to the Democrats, according to surveys by The Associated Press and the television networks of voters as they left voting places.

In those exit polls, three in four voters said corruption was very important to their vote, and they tended to vote Democratic. In a sign of a dispirited GOP base, most white evangelicals said corruption was very important to their vote — and almost a third of them turned to the Democrats.

The war in Iraq and Bush's unpopularity appeared to hurt Republicans almost as much as the troubles on Capitol Hill.

Two out of three voters called the war very important to them and said they leaned toward the Democrats, while six in ten voters said they disapproved of the war. About the same number said they were dissatisfied with the president — and they were far more likely to vote Democratic.

All 435 House seats were on the ballot, and most incumbents were headed toward easy re-election. The magic number was 218 seats for a majority. The current lineup: 229 Republicans, 201 Democrats, one independent who lines up with the Democrats for organizational purposes, and four vacancies, three of them in seats formerly held by Republicans.

The fight for control came down to 50 or so seats, nearly half of them in a string stretching from Connecticut through New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. All were in Republican hands, a blend of seats coming open and incumbents in trouble.

— The Associated Press

UPDATE — 3:40 PM

First exit polls look like good news for Democrats

WASHINGTON – Democrats pursued their best chance in a dozen years to take control of the House from Republicans today in a midterm election marked by voter frustration with the Iraq war and President Bush.

Democrats sought to pick up the 15 seats they needed to reclaim power after 12 years in the minority and clear the way for Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California to become the first female speaker of the House.

On the defensive, Republicans aimed to extend their grip on the House for another two years despite voters' unhappiness with the direction of the country, the war and scandals in Washington.

Iraq and anger toward Bush appeared to drive voters to the Democrats, according to surveys by The Associated Press and the television networks of voters as they left voting places.

In those exit polls, two out of three voters called the war very important to them and said they leaned toward the Democrats, while six in ten voters said they disapproved of the war. About the same number said they were dissatisfied with the president — and they were far more likely to vote Democratic.

All 435 House seats were on the ballot, and most incumbents were headed toward easy re-election. The magic number was 218 seats for a majority. The current lineup: 229 Republicans, 201 Democrats, one independent who lines up with the Democrats for organizational purposes, and four vacancies, three of them in seats formerly held by Republicans.

The fight for control came down to 50 or so seats, nearly half of them in a string stretching from Connecticut through New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. All were in Republican hands, a blend of seats coming open and incumbents in trouble.

— The Associated Press

Electronic voting machines confound some poll workers

New voting machines confounded some poll workers around the country, and a combination of electronic glitches and human error forced some precincts to extend voting hours or switch to paper ballots.

More than 80 percent of the nation's voters were expected to cast some type of electronic ballot today, which was the deadline for major reforms mandated by the federal Help America Vote Act, passed by Congress to prevent a rerun of the 2000 election debacle.

With one in three Americans voting on a machine they had never used before, the effort to improve the integrity of the election system got off to a shaky start in hundreds of precincts from the Rockies to the Poconos. Long lines formed.

In Denver, up to 300 people stood outside some polling sites. One was Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill Ritter, who waited an hour and 40 minutes.

"It's actually heartening," he said. It means people "understand the process is important enough to be patient and wait in line." Nonetheless, Democratic Party officials asked a judge to extend poll hours because of the delays.

A long ballot and new machines caused the disruptions, according to Colorado secretary of state spokeswoman Lisa Doran. "Despite the training, some of the election judges are intimidated by the machines," she said.

Computer glitches and poll workers' unfamiliarity with the new equipment were also blamed for long lines in Tennessee, South Carolina and Illinois.

In North Carolina, about 100 voters were left waiting at a church because the poll worker who had the key showed up nearly an hour late.

In Pennsylvania, a computer programming error forced some to cast paper ballots. In Indiana, 175 precincts also resorted to paper. Counties in those states also extended poll hours to make up for delays.

As of midday, none of the stumbles seemed to signal a voting disaster, said poll watchers.

"Lots of fender-benders, but no major tie-ups," said Doug Chapin, director of electionline.org, a nonpartisan group that tracks election problems. "It's been a steady drumbeat, but nothing that rises to the level of 'This could compromise the results."'

— The Associated Press

Ky. poll worker charged after allegedly choking voter

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – A poll worker was arrested today and charged with assault and interfering with an election for allegedly choking a voter and pushing him out the door, officials said.

According the voter told poll worker Jeffery Steitz that he didn't want to vote in a judicial election because he didn't know enough about the candidates, but Steitz told him he had to vote in the race anyway.

Steitz, 42, eventually grabbed the man by the neck and threw him out of the polling place, Lt. Col. Carl Yates of the Jefferson County sheriff's office said.

"The poor guy went back in and he threw him out again," Yates said. "At least it wasn't over a Democrat or a Republican being on the ballot."

— The Associated Press

Dan Rather to do election commentary on the Daily Show

"This is not a joke," reports Gail Shister of the Philadelphia Inquirer.

"Dan Rather will analyze election results with Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert tonight at 11 on Comedy Central's live, hour-long Indecision 2006 special."

" 'It's a risk, I guess, but what the hell,'" says Rather, who covered every national election since 1962 for CBS before being drop-kicked in June. Now he's global correspondent for Mark Cuban's HDNet."

FBI investigating reports of misleading calls to Virginia voters

RICHMOND, Va. – The FBI is investigating complaints that phone-callers tried to intimidate Virginia voters amid the hard-fought race between GOP Sen. George Allen and Democratic challenger Jim Webb, officials said today.

State Board of Elections Secretary Jean Jensen said her office had forwarded to the FBI several reports of phone calls to voters apparently aimed at misleading them into not voting or directing them to the wrong polling place. FBI agent Stephen Kodack Jr. said they were being investigated.

Voters in the cities of Covington, Hampton and Colonial Heights and the counties of Accomack, Northampton and Fairfax reported getting deceptive telephone calls in the days before the election informing them that their voting places had changed, when they had not, Jensen said.

In Arlington County, resident Timothy Daly said he got a phone message Sunday, said to be from the "Virginia Elections Commission," telling him he was registered to vote in New York so he couldn't vote in Virginia.

"If you do show up, you will be charged criminally," said the message, the text of which appeared on Daly's affidavit to the Board of Elections.

The Webb campaign said the calls were intended to confuse voters; an Allen spokesman said the calls were not originating from the GOP.

New Mexico Democrats filed similar complaints in court, accusing GOP callers there of providing voters with incorrect information on polling locations in Albuquerque. State District Judge Richard Knowles on Monday, however, refused prohibit Republicans from calling voters.

Knowles said such mistakes shouldn't be made but he didn't believe the state's Republican volunteers had made a concerted effort to disenfranchise voters.

"I would like both sides to be careful," Knowles warned the parties. "If it continues to happen, if I have to shut down phone banks I will."

In Ohio, the Athens County prosecutor also warned voters to be wary of potentially fraudulent calls claiming that their voting precincts had been changed.

— The Associated Press

As voters pass judgment, many confront technical bugs

"Polls opened in many places as early as 6 a.m., and with about one-third of the precincts across the country using new electronic voting technology, a range of technical problems soon began frustrating voters in states like Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania," The New York Times reported.

Despite weather, area voter turnout seems high

While flooding shut down two polls, about 500 King County polling places opened at 7 a.m. for today's hotly contested midterm election.

Despite the wet weather, poll workers said they were seeing higher turnouts than usual, with many voters saying they voted today to influence the balance of power in Congress.

On Seattle's Capitol Hill, inspector Deborah Carter said she had not seen turnout this high in the five years she has worked for the King County elections system. Usually poll workers wait around in that first half hour, she said, and voters slowly wander in.

This morning, three people were waiting when doors to the polling station at Meany Middle School opened at 7. a.m. and Carter has seen a steady stream of people since then, with nearly 50 people turning in paper ballots by 8:30 a.m. Even in a highly active voting precinct, Carter said, that seemed high.

Secretary of State Sam Reed expects 67 percent of Washington's 3.3 million registered voters will cast a ballot today.

Polling places across the county reported sporadic problems, many of them routine, many of them related to setting up accessible voting units — new electronic voting machines that this year will allow disabled voters to cast a ballot independently for the first time. At the King County temporary elections annex at Boeing Field, about 20 election workers began answering phone calls at 6 a.m. from workers with problems setting up polling locations.

The elections office increased training after widespread problems with setting up accessible voting units — known as AVUs — were reported in the September primary.

At St. Patrick's Church on Seattle's Capitol Hill, poll workers had trouble finding a hand-held device to program a card used by voters to access the AVU. That problem was solved, and "no voter was impacted by this," said King County elections spokeswoman Bobbie Egan.

"I'm seeing a few AVU issues but a lot less than the primary," said Mike Snyder, a member of the King County Citizens Election Oversight Committee, who observed the help desk this morning. "At this stage in the primary, the phones were ringing off the hook."

The help desk appeared to be responding to most calls this morning. Among them: Poll workers at the Vietnamese Presbyterian Church said they were locked out and didn't have a key. Port Orchard Elementary called in to say it didn't have a key to open the machines that scans paper ballots.

In cases that it couldn't resolve by phone, the office asked troubleshooters out in the county to go to the polling location.

"It's going really well," said Janice Case, elections operations supervisor. "We increased staff from the primary to help with phone calls and it's made a big difference."

At polling locations in Fremont and Bellevue, voting appeared to go smoothly.

Several voters at Fremont Baptist Church said they were focused on the national races, hoping to give control of Congress back to the Democrats.

Anita Crofts, 36, made a bicycle stop at the voting station on her way to the University of Washington. "I absolutely believe we need to be a nation of global citizens," she said, but the current Republican administration has destroyed the United States' reputation overseas.

Tristan Heberlein, 26, said he abstained from choosing a candidate in the U.S. Senate race because he didn't feel any of the candidates articulated a meaningful exit strategy from the Iraq war. "I don't think anyone has an idea of what to do," he said. Before heading to work, a steady stream of voters from Newport Hills in Bellevue stopped at a local church to cast their ballot. Don Sidel, 51 and an Eastside resident for more than 25 years, voiced a simple reason to vote this rain-soaked morning.

"So that Democrats can win in my little Republican town," Sidel said. A lifelong Democrat, Sidel said he was concerned over the way the current administration has handled civil liberties.

In this historically Republican neighborhood, the war in Iraq seemed to be pushing some people to vote for Democrats. "The administration is clueless," said Tony Grills. "And you can't 'Control-Z' and go backwards."

Laura Wagner of Bellevue hit the polls at St. Luke's Lutheran church around 8:30 a.m., undaunted by the rain: "I always come out and vote at the big elections. And this is a big election."

Inside the polling place, workers said the numbers of voters appeared to be up from previous years. Three or four people were waiting outside when the polls opened at 7 a.m., said worker Dale Kiesz, who was in charge of issuing provisional ballots.

In Snohomish County, today marked the first general election with all-absentee balloting. At an Edmonds QFC store, where the county had set up the city's only ballot drop-off site, several voters said they missed going to their local polling place.

"I took a lot of pride in making time in the day to vote. I don't like the mail-in system," said Mark Abrahamson. "I like the actual process of going to the poll and filling out the ballot." The Edmonds man said he was motivated by the Cantwell-McGavick race for U.S. Senate and the opportunity for Democrats to retake control of the U.S. House and Senate.

"If there aren't changes nationally, I'll be extremely disappointed. We need fresh ideas," Abrahamson said. Another Edmonds resident, Keith Collingridge, said he preferred absentee balloting because he could sit with the lengthy ballot and his voter's guide and not hold up other voters. Collingridge, a Republican, said he was voting yes on the property rights initiative, I-933, and the repeal of the estate tax, I-920.

And while he said he doesn't expect his views to prevail, he said he will neutralize at least one liberal Seattle voter: "I just cancelled somebody's vote in Fremont."

— Sharon Chan, Seattle Times staff reporter