Election Day revisited

I wrote about three months ago about being asked for ID at New Utrecht High School. I e-mailed the New York City Board of Elections. They e-mailed me back the very next day, promising an investigation. Today they e-mailed me the results of the investigation, hoping this will resolve the matter. In the e-mail they claimed the ID issue had nothing to do with the Help Americans Vote Act. Dissatisfied, I replied to them, offering several possible solutions. The e-mail exchanges are below. More to come when they give a further reply.

My e-mail to Virginia Busti, Nov. 2, 2004:

Hello,

My name is Vincent LaMarca and I have been a registered voter since 1988. I was asked for ID to enter the polling facility at New Utrecht High School by an auxilllary police officer at approximately 6:40 AM today. Is this legal? Is this required for all voters? Was this on orders from the NYPD or the 62nd Precinct? For as I understand HAVA, only first time voters who registered by mail since January 1, 2003 are asked for ID. Please explain the situation to me.

Thank you for reading this e-mail.

Sincerely,
Vincent LaMarca

Her reply on Nov. 3, 2004:

Mr. LaMarca:

You are absolutely correct...only first time voters (who registered after 1/1/03 and who did not provide ID at the time they registered) were required to show ID. Apparently some poll workers and police did not comprehend the written, verbal and filmed instructions and in their misdirected zeal asked all voters for ID. I've requested that the Brooklyn Board of Elections look into the matter at New Utrecht HS and question the poll workers there. They will be reinstructed and if necessary disciplined.

I apologize again for the inconvenience caused you by this incident and hope that all your future voting experiences will be pleasant ones.

Virginia Busti

A reply from Salvatore Barrera of the Brooklyn Board of Elections, Feb. 17, 2005:

Dear Mr.. LaMarca,

I am in receipt of an e-mail message from you that was forwarded to my
office by Virginia Busti. In your message you state that you were asked for
ID by an auxiliary police officer when entering the site of New Utrecht HS
to vote for the November 2, 2004 General Election.

After several inquires into the matter we have discovered that New Utrecht
HS had an officer at the site that day. It is the School's policy that all
visitors to their facility, whether it is Election Day or not be required to
show ID when entering the site. I spoke to Mrs.. Mayoni, the Assistant
Principal of School Safety at New Utrecht, and she confirmed that an officer
was at New Utrecht on Election Day and that this is the School's policy.

This policy has nothing to do with HAVA or the Board of Elections, but the
safety of the School and it's students.

If you have any further questions please feel free to contact me at [phone number omitted] or by e-mail.

Thank you for your inquiry. I hope that this resolves the matter.

Sincerely,

Sal P Barrera
Administrative Associate
Brooklyn EDO Department
[address omitted]


My reply of Feb. 17, 2005:

Dear Mr. Barrera,

Thank you for your reply to my e-mail. I appreciate it that complaints
are addressed in a swift fashion. Your interpretation of HAVA is
technically correct. However, your reply fails to resolve the matter.
The notion that a school can interfere with the rights of voters in
order to protect students who should be at home on Election Day seems
shocking to me, especially if citizens are denied the right to vote as
a result.

I propose to you a number of possible solutions to the matter:

1. Ask New Utrecht High School to close the building to students and teachers as their presence interferes with the rights of voters.
2. Also ask the school to relax its policy on ID on Election Day and leave the ID issue to the Board of Elections.
3. Should New Utrecht High School fail to make changes to its policies, then perhaps an alternate site should be considered for those voters who registered prior to January 1, 2003 and who do not wish to be asked for ID. The voting could be conducted by paper ballot and could take place at a number of locations, including other public schools, public libraries or catering halls. One possible location in Bensonhurst could be the historic New Utrecht Reformed Church Parish House.
4. If Board of Elections finds none of the above solutions palatable then they should encourage eligible voters (out-of-towners, those on vacation, the elderly and disabled) to cast an absentee ballot. The absentee ballot should be given the widest possible publicity (television, radio, newspapers and the Internet).

I hope the propsed solution will resolve the matter of being asked for ID. As Virginia Busti remarked in a previous e-mail, "only first time voters (who registered after 1/1/03 and who did not provide ID at the time they registered) were required to show ID."

Sincerely,
Vincent LaMarca

P.S.: The assistant principal's name is Geraldine Maione, not Mayoni.

Update since I've last wrote

Hello,

I've been away for three months since I've last wrote.

I will, at the Annual General Meeting, be elected a trustee at the Friends of Historic New Utrecht.

I've begun adding photos at the web site I edit, New Utrecht Reformed Church.

Please visit both sites. And help contribute funds to save the church!