I’m kind of a compulsive early voter, so I was filling out my ballot this morning. But something was wrong. I was just about to fold it up and send it off to the friendly postman when I noticed that Initiative 1033, the Tim Eyman ploy to financially ruin the state, was still blank.
It’s technically the first thing on the ballot, but voting instructions take up 80 percent of the first column, tucking it way into the lower left corner, hiding.
So when you vote, find that little bastard on your ballot. Because if 1033 passes and you didn’t vote against it because you missed it, you can’t really bitch in five years when your house burns down because there isn’t a fire department anymore.
I had the same reaction…thanks for raising awareness on this.
Garrett, you have to be smarter than the piece of paper.
Can a ballot be an unpaid intern? They seem to at least pass the “who’s smarter” test.
I almost missed it too, it’s on the bottom left of the page.
Mark No Heck No.
I noticed the same thing this morning. Who designs these ballots? At the very least they could’ve added a “(continued)” to the headers of the applicable columns.
Thanks, I was just looking over my ballot when it dawned on me that I didn’t see 1033. I completely over looked there at the bottom. Fortunately, I have time to correct this on my vote. I just worry that other voters will make this mistake. That would suck if this piece of crap passes because most voters didn’t see it on their ballots.
I noticed that with crankiness too. WTF? Further, why is I71 the only intiative that uses “approved/rejected” instead of yes/no? I didn’t have trouble, but we all know people who would. I only noticed I1033 because I went looking for it. Otherwise, I might have mistaken it for part of the instructions and been on my merry way while that shit slips through and Washington gets smoked like a cigarette.
I only caught it because I’m a compulsive early voter and compulsive instruction reader. I know how to fill in a bubble, but I read the instructions in full every time, and oh, look at that; it’s an initiative hidden all the way down in a corner. An important one, too.
Well, there’s the legal basis for a challenge if it passes. Like the “butterfly ballots” of yore. But then won’t every candidate/issue demand the top-left position on the ballot and scream “bias!” if it’s anywhere else?
Seriously, I don’t know if you guys get sample ballots and information booklets in WA like we do in CA, but make yourself a checklist with the items in ballot order and work from that.
#6 because 71 is a referendum, not an initiative.
Same thing happened to me… I was through voting and was like hey, where the hell was 1033?!?! That sneaky little bastard couldn’t get past me though.
I had no problem finding it.
I noticed that it was hidden on the ballot as well. But found it after I did a write in for Mayor.
@2: OK, corgi…you just insulted a Stranger staffer. Granted, it’s a lowly intern, but still. I want to celebrate this moment of your throwing off the yoke of sycophancy, but the kid has a good point! Why not pick on somebody who deserves it, like Charles and his tit postings, or Jen celebrating a log and a pile of dirt as the second coming of Art?
Who peed in your kibble, puppy? Do we need to take you out for a beer and get your head right?
One of the reasons I opened my ballot early was for the pleasure of voting against 1033. I completed my work and . . . didn’t recall seeing 1033 on the ballot. I really had to search for it before I found it in the lower left-hand corner. Doesn’t anybody at elections check for things like this?
So, you vote to raize taxes without any accountability of what it is for or where your money is going. That is absolutely stupid to think their won’t be a fire department! These are the same nutcases that don’t question the government, even when they are committing adultry, molesting little girls, and taking bribes.
What is kind of exciting for me is I have been involved in GOTV going back like 15 years and it concentrates so much on election day making sure people in King County and Seattle get out to the polls during some rainy day because every other county in the state was voting by mail. This year everything is changed and you can call someone on a progressive list and ask two weeks ahead if they have voted. If they have, that’s all you can do (other than having them help out), and focus on other potential voters. I am hoping with important issues on the ballot a good number of people will vote well BEFORE election day.
In fact, every person reading this, no matter what side they are on, should get their vote in days, if not weeks, before election day. Some like to hang on in case one of the candidates messes up but don’t take that chance with such an important election this year.
Chris @15, I fear for the day when illiterate window-lickers like you control everything in this state. Which I fear is going to happen starting Tuesday, when short-sighted boobs like you vote this insane proposition in, and we turn into Mississippi.
Fnarf, just start singing “California here I come…”
1033 sounds just like Prop 13. It broke the state. We used to have a world class education system. Now we rank 48th.
amazing how many people “almost” didn’t find it. doesn’t that mean you found it?
@19, it means we missed it the first time through, and only caught it later, duh. Your pretend ignorance is not becoming.
The ballot envelope was all wet in my mailbox (the heavy rains today?) and the envelopes were already sealed with no ballot inside. Guess I can’t vote now.
This is weird. It’s bad design, bordering on suspicious.
I only found it because somebody had sent me a note saying “Here’s where it is”. I’m not too proud to admit that I had looked for it before that and had not seen it. Repeat: thinking to myself, “hey where is that on that ballot”, I had not found it. I (may) be stupid, but — that’s something people will be able to gloss over far too easily. Yuck.
Is it too much to hope that illiterates like @15 will be even less likely to find the 1033 checkbox in order to vote yes, and thus it’ll fail miserably?