Absentee Ballot Fraud FINALLY is getting some action. By Geniusofdespair

Jim Morin - Miami Herald

There have been a flurry of reports (ours included) all week on the absentee ballot fraud scandal unfolding in Hialeah. In each report they cite the new law that adds penalties to ballot collection offenses. Here is a history of how that NEW LAW got on the books:

It was Tuesday September 13, 2011 when I wrote Part 3 - Absentee Ballot Fraud: How it is Done and How You Can Help:

What can you do TODAY?

Call Rebeca Sosa's and Xavier Suarez's offices. Tell Them to sponsor a PENALTY to combat one type of Absentee Ballot Fraud. Miami Dade County Code Section 12-14 needs a criminal penalty for it's violation or the State Attorney's Office cannot act on it according to Joe Centorino, formerly of that office. He said that absentee ballot fraud or any other type of ballot fraud is generally punishable as a third degree felony crime, which calls for up to 5 years in State Prison. Tell Rebeca and Xavier you want them to sponsor legislation that adds the penalty to County Code Section 12-14.

Commission Rebeca Sosa listened. She sponsored the change and credited Eye on Miami (Nov. 19, 2011) with the motivation for her actions. From the County Minutes 12/6/2011 when the final vote was taken:

Commissioner Sosa noted she sponsored this ordinance after reading about Ms. Thompson’s experience on the Internet blog entitled “Eye on Miami,” and seeing comments that said penalties were needed in this process. She noted this ordinance would establish a $1,000 fine and/or impose a penalty of up to 60 days of incarceration in the County jail for violating the rules for picking up and/or returning absentee ballots in Miami-Dade County...Commissioner Sosa also noted that a resolution was approved by the Commission last week, urging the State to make this violation a third degree felony.

Now we are in the midst of an investigation into Absentee Ballot Fraud. All week there have been articles. My only hope is, that they don't screw up this investigation. Investigators have a gift: 31 absentee ballots, according to the Miami Herald. The ballots are segregated at elections. They should all be opened and the voters should be able to look at the ballots to see if their choices were tampered with (felony instead of a misdemeanor). Further, by looking at all the ballots, they will be able to tell which candidates have paid these women. I think the women were paid by multiple candidates to deliver votes, not just one.

Besides adding a penalty to the code last December, the county commission added this important language:

"A designee may retrieve, pick up and/or return (whether by hand, by mail or by any other method) 2 no more than two (2) absentee ballots other than his or her own per election, only one (1) of which may be for an elector not of the designee's immediate family."

The code further states:

"The designee must complete an affidavit that states that the designee is authorized by the elector to retrieve and/or return the elector's ballot and shall indicate his or her relationship to the elector, if any. "

Where are all the affidavits??  

My fear is that the newspaper reporters and Rundle are misleading ballot brokers by saying others can pick up two ballots. Well you can't just go out and 'pick up two ballots' as they are saying. You need an affidavit to pick up a ballot. 

Commissioner Joe Martinez, running for Mayor, has a great idea on Absentee Ballots (even though he has Sasha Tirador, the reigning queen of absentee ballot collection, running his campaign):

He believed absentee voter lists should not be released publicly, so campaigns can’t identify voters with ballots and try to influence them.“You won’t have anybody knocking on your door, because they won’t know you got an absentee ballot,” Martinez said.

It won't help at the Assisted Living Facilities but it will make a dent in these home pick-ups. Why should campaigns be requesting absentee ballots on behalf of voters in the first place? Lets get the campaigns out of the mix. In any event, we obviously need more to be done on absentee ballot fraud. My advice, call Rebeca Sosa again. At least she listens. Also ask her what happened to the resolution she sponsored for Tallahassee legislators, asking them to make it a felony to illegally pick up ballots. Finally, thank her for sponsoring the tougher language in the code: the NEW LAW.