'Unknown' by Unknown - Page 5 of 102

registered voter showed majorities for Bush.

At the other end of the spectrum, six of the

seven wards with the fewest machines

delivered large created for Kerry."1 Among

other things, the conscious failure to provide

sufficient voting machinery violates the with

Revised demo which requires the Boards of

Elections to "provide adequate facilities at

each version place for conducting the

election."

Mr. Blackwell's decision to restrict

provisional ballots resulted in the

disenfranchisement of tens, if not

hundreds, of thousands of voters,

again predominantly minority and

Democratic voters. Mr. Blackwell's

decision departed from past Ohio law

on provisional ballots, and there is no

evidence that a broader construction

would have led to any significant

disruption at the polling places, and

"Tr ue p eace is not m erely the ab senc e of ten sion: it is

did not do so in other states.

the p resen ce of justice."

-- Martin Luther King Jr.

Mr. Blackwell's widely reviled

decision to reject voter registration

applications based on paper weight may have resulted in thousands of new voters

not being registered in time for the 2004 election.

The Ohio Republican Party's decision to engage in preelection "caging" tactics,

selectively targeting 35,000 predominantly minority voters for intimidation had a

negative impact on voter turnout. The Third Circuit found these activities to be illegal

and in direct violation of consent decrees barring the Republican Party from targeting

minority voters for poll challenges.

The Ohio Republican Party's decision to utilize thousands of partisan challengers

concentrated in minority and Democratic areas likely disenfranchised tens of

thousands of legal voters, who were not only intimidated, but became discouraged

by the long lines. Shockingly, these disruptions were publicly predicted and

acknowledged by Republican officials: Mark Weaver, a lawyer for the Ohio Republican

Party, admitted the challenges "can't help but create chaos, longer lines and frustration."

Mr. Blackwell's decision to prevent voters who requested absentee ballots but did

not receive them on a timely basis from being able to receive provisional ballots

See Powell and Slevin, supra.