Timothy J. Ryan, Research Assistant, AEI-Brookings Election Reform Project

December 5, 2007

My experience at the polls in November's election was a reminder of how easily the best-laid plans of mice and legislators can go awry, wreaking havoc on a fragile election system. Working, as I do, for a non-profit research organization that studies election reform, I take Election Day as a rare opportunity to experience firsthand the policies that I analyze in a purely conceptual way for the rest of the year. The change in perspective is striking; it's like the difference between watching a baseball game from the nosebleed seats versus standing inside the batter's box. Potential hurdles that are otherwise conceptual can quickly become real and tangible.

One incident from last month underlined how quickly street-level logistics can throw a wrench in the lofty designs of election administrators. I walked to my polling place in the morning before heading into work, planning to beat the late-afternoon rush. Familiar with Virginia election law, I came prepared with my passport, knowing that it would serve as an acceptable form of identification in case my driver's license - which I never bothered to renew after moving from New Jersey, since I do not own a car - did not. When I tried to check in to vote, however, the kindly woman serving as a poll worker stoically informed me that my name was not on the precinct registration list at all.

The error was thoroughly baffling. I had successfully voted in the very same room one year earlier, so it seemed that my name must somehow have been removed from the rolls, the reason for which I could not fathom. Inwardly, I also grinned at the misfortune of the nervous poll worker in front of me. The error was almost certainly not hers, but I doubt she could have found an individual more determined or more prepared to make a fuss than I was. As she began talking to the precinct's chief election judge in hushed tones, I steeled myself for the discussion and reminded myself of my right to cast, if nothing else, a provisional ballot.

Happily, the conflict never came. The chief election judge was able to determine that I was registered, but that I was assigned to a new polling place that was being used that day for the very first time. She quickly gave me directions - directions that would shortly prove to be slightly incorrect - to the new location and sent me on my way.

I eventually found the new polling place and voted without further incident. Still, the mix-up, while relatively minor, reminded me of how easily a voter can be dissuaded from voting. Had I been less resolute or more pressed for time, I probably would have been more inclined to go directly into work where a hot cup of coffee awaited my arrival than to traipse around a dreary morning in suburban Virginia on what might quickly become a wild goose chase.

After voting, it was still not clear to me why I had never received any mailed notification that my polling place had been changed, as is required by law. I was certain that I had not simply overlooked it because my roommate, also a registered voter, also did not receive a notice. A call the following week to the Arlington County Registrar of Voters and the Virginia State Board of Elections determined that notices had been mailed out, but for some reason were not received by many people in my apartment complex. This situation was confirmed by a noticed scrawled on my building's bulletin board by another resident who complained about not receiving her notification and asked if anyone else had gotten a mailing. The officials with whom I spoke reported that the notifications had not been returned to the sender, leaving their whereabouts a mystery. The Arlington registrar promised to send out a new notification, which has not yet arrived either. I suspect that many voters in my building are still confused about where to vote.

The mix-up highlights an oft-forgotten disconnect between policy and implementation in the realm of elections. Policymakers considering pressing issues such as voter ID requirements would do well to remember that, even after the battle has been settled at the state level, the rules can be quickly nullified by logistical problems at the street level. This is a thread running through a number of recent research publications. For instance, in a recent conference hosted by the AEI-Brookings Election Reform Project, Steven Huefner, Daniel Tokaji, and Edward Foley discussed implementation problems that they uncovered in their just-released study of election administration in five midwestern states. Poll workers are street-level administrators who--whether they realize it or not--exercise de facto nullification power over state and local law, for instance through the uneven treatment of provisional ballots. Such uneven policy implementation is likely to lead to complaints under the grounds of unequal protection in the future. Similarly, Stephen Ansolabehere finds poll workers to be inconsistent--and possibly discriminatory--in applying voter ID laws (PDF).

Update: The second notice from the Arlington Registrar of Voters arrived at Tim's apartment on Dec. 4th.

Tim Ryan can be reached at tryan@aei.org

Viewpoint is an occasional feature analyzing various election reform issues.