4 ms·

I was a poll worker in Denver, and the way it was explained to me was: you can't wear anything referencing stuff on the ballot. So for example you can wear a sh

by tych0 6y ago

I was a poll worker in Denver, and the way it was explained to me was: you can't wear anything referencing stuff on the ballot. So for example you can wear a shirt that says "{Black|Blue} Lives Matter" because there's nothing about whose lives matter on the ballot. Same with a MAGA hat. But you can't wear a shirt that says "Vote no on 2A", or "Trump 2020", because those people/issues are on the ballot. Denver != Pennsylvania, obviously, but perhaps it's a federal law? I don't really know where the rule comes from. Anyway, overall takeaways working were: 1. everyone was super friendly and it was a great experience and 2. Denver+Colorado really have their shit together when it comes to elections. It's easy to vote, there's a paper trail for everything, and the default is by mail. Everyone should do it like we do.

stouset 6y ago
MAGA hats wouldn’t be allowed (in California) since they’re official campaign merchandise and part of that campaign’s branding. Source: am an SF election inspector. That said, it’s all up to the specifics of state law.
- listenallyall 6y ago
  Just curious, but how much is up to personal discretion? What if the hat was red and said "Make USA Great Again"? or simply "Make America Great"? These wouldn't be "official" merchandise, and to be honest, I have no idea how a random pollworker or inspector decides what is "official".
  - stouset 6y ago
    If a pollworker or election inspector deemed something to be electioneering, they would first let the person know and ask them to remedy the situation. 99% of cases are handled this way without incident. Of course, any citizen can do the same if a pollworker is unwilling to do so. In the event that the person refuses to cooperate, you can call the election center to get confirmation that they're electioneering and—if so—you can simply call the police and have them deal with it if it's egregious enough. Realistically, the situation you're asking about just doesn't happen often enough to be of concern. Most of the time, people aren't "trying" to electioneer. They're just excited about their candidate, and when told about the law and asked to take down a sign or remove a hat, they'll do so even if begrudgingly. The people who actually want to electioneer aren't shy about it and step way over the line. For anything in the middle, simply make a judgment call and go with it.
- throwaway377383 6y ago
  You just publicly admitted to breaking California state election code. The California Secretary of State specifically outlined that MAGA slogans and clothing were acceptable at polling places.[0] [0] https://abc7.com/politics/ca-rules-allow-maga-hats-but-no-mention-of-biden-trump-near-polls/7286054/ https://abc7.com/politics/ca-rules-allow-maga-hats-but-no-me...
  - stouset 6y ago
    You caught me! I was actually employed by George Soros and Hillary Clinton to infiltrate the election process, send Trump voters home, and win the whole thing for Biden. 1. We're all volunteers. And human. 2. I've asked precisely zero people wearing MAGA hats to remove them. So much for your crack legal theory about violations of California election law. 3. The one time I've asked someone to remove campaign material in the several years I've done this was when someone was, unluckily and completely by accident, throwing a Biden victory party literally right next door to the polling place. Kindly go troll elsewhere.
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  - throwaway377383 6y ago
    If you turn showdead on, you can see stouset's childish, obviously triggered response. These are the people who volunteered to run our elections. Childish, immature, fragile snowflakes that can't handle being called out like adults. Sad state of affairs.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- moveawayfromx86 6y ago
  MAGA hats were allowed in the general election in California: https://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/ccrov/pdf/2020/september/20 https://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/ccrov/pdf/2020/september/20... They were considered "campaign slogans or political movement slogans".
CameronNemo 6y ago
You had me until MAGA hat... It is specifically sold by and strongly associated with a campaign. How is that allowed?
- tych0 6y ago
  No idea, but these are all examples they gave us during our training.
  - FireBeyond 6y ago
    Yeah, MAGA and Keep America Great are both literally trademarks of Donald J. Trump for President, Inc., the official campaign.
Fnoord 6y ago
Say there's a vote on decriminalizing marihuana (from what I understood this happened in some states). Are you then allowed to walk around with a weed leaf t-shirt? What if its a band logo called The Amazing Cannabis with a bunch of happy leaves smoking a joint? What if its a flag in colours red/green/yellow with a black weed logo on it?

by tych0 6y ago

stouset 6y ago

MAGA hats wouldn’t be allowed (in California) since they’re official campaign merchandise and part of that campaign’s branding. Source: am an SF election inspector. That said, it’s all up to the specifics of state law.

listenallyall 6y ago
Just curious, but how much is up to personal discretion? What if the hat was red and said "Make USA Great Again"? or simply "Make America Great"? These wouldn't be "official" merchandise, and to be honest, I have no idea how a random pollworker or inspector decides what is "official".
- stouset 6y ago
  If a pollworker or election inspector deemed something to be electioneering, they would first let the person know and ask them to remedy the situation. 99% of cases are handled this way without incident. Of course, any citizen can do the same if a pollworker is unwilling to do so. In the event that the person refuses to cooperate, you can call the election center to get confirmation that they're electioneering and—if so—you can simply call the police and have them deal with it if it's egregious enough. Realistically, the situation you're asking about just doesn't happen often enough to be of concern. Most of the time, people aren't "trying" to electioneer. They're just excited about their candidate, and when told about the law and asked to take down a sign or remove a hat, they'll do so even if begrudgingly. The people who actually want to electioneer aren't shy about it and step way over the line. For anything in the middle, simply make a judgment call and go with it.
throwaway377383 6y ago
You just publicly admitted to breaking California state election code. The California Secretary of State specifically outlined that MAGA slogans and clothing were acceptable at polling places.[0] [0] https://abc7.com/politics/ca-rules-allow-maga-hats-but-no-mention-of-biden-trump-near-polls/7286054/ https://abc7.com/politics/ca-rules-allow-maga-hats-but-no-me...
- stouset 6y ago
  You caught me! I was actually employed by George Soros and Hillary Clinton to infiltrate the election process, send Trump voters home, and win the whole thing for Biden. 1. We're all volunteers. And human. 2. I've asked precisely zero people wearing MAGA hats to remove them. So much for your crack legal theory about violations of California election law. 3. The one time I've asked someone to remove campaign material in the several years I've done this was when someone was, unluckily and completely by accident, throwing a Biden victory party literally right next door to the polling place. Kindly go troll elsewhere.
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
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    [deleted]
- throwaway377383 6y ago
  If you turn showdead on, you can see stouset's childish, obviously triggered response. These are the people who volunteered to run our elections. Childish, immature, fragile snowflakes that can't handle being called out like adults. Sad state of affairs.
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
moveawayfromx86 6y ago
MAGA hats were allowed in the general election in California: https://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/ccrov/pdf/2020/september/20 https://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/ccrov/pdf/2020/september/20... They were considered "campaign slogans or political movement slogans".

CameronNemo 6y ago

You had me until MAGA hat... It is specifically sold by and strongly associated with a campaign. How is that allowed?

tych0 6y ago
No idea, but these are all examples they gave us during our training.
- FireBeyond 6y ago
  Yeah, MAGA and Keep America Great are both literally trademarks of Donald J. Trump for President, Inc., the official campaign.

Fnoord 6y ago

Say there's a vote on decriminalizing marihuana (from what I understood this happened in some states). Are you then allowed to walk around with a weed leaf t-shirt? What if its a band logo called The Amazing Cannabis with a bunch of happy leaves smoking a joint? What if its a flag in colours red/green/yellow with a black weed logo on it?