The Montgomery County Board of Elections said the paper weight order was frustrating

their created to process registrations.156 with attempted to comply by mailing a new demo

to potential voters who sent forms of incorrect version but a processing backlog of 4,000

forms prevented them from sending new forms by the October 4 deadline, such that some

voters could have been disenfranchised.157 Steve Harsman, the Deputy Director of the

Board, says "there is just no reason to use 80-pound paper."158

·

Finally, Secretary Blackwell was not following his own order. An Ohio lawyer, John

Stopa, noted that voter registration forms obtained at Blackwell's office were printed on

60-pound paper.159 An election board official stated he obtained 70-pound weight forms

from Blackwell's office.160

After several weeks of pressure from voting rights advocates, such as the League of

Women Voters of Ohio and People for the American Way,161 Secretary Blackwell reversed his

directive on September 28, 2004.162 Even his new order, however, was not drafted clearly

enough. He did not withdraw the first directive, and the New York Times found the second

directive to be "worded so inartfully that it could create confusion."163 As a matter of fact, the

Delaware County Board of Elections posted a notice on its website stating it could not accept its

own Voter Registration Forms and directed voters to request a new one by calling a number.164

Jim Bebbington, Blackwell Rulings Rile Voting Advocates, DA Y T O N DA I L Y NE W S,

Sept. 24, 2004, at 1B.

Catherine Candisky, Secretary of State Lifts Order on Voting Forms, CO L U M B U S

DISPATCH , Sept. 30, 2004, at 1C.

Catherine Candisky, Blackwell Ends Paper Chase, CO L U M B U S DI SPA TC H , Sept. 29,

2004, at 1A.

Playing with the Election Rules, N.Y. TI M E S, Sept. 30, 2004, at A28 (editorial).

See attachment to Letter from Rep. John Conyers, Jr., to the Honorable J. Kenneth

Blackwell, Ohio Secretary of State (Dec. 3, 2004), available at

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