Molly Ivins and Katherine Ingram at 2005 DemocracyFest

It is with a heavy collective heart that DFA-MC mourns the loss of our dear friend Katherine “Katy” Ingram.  Katy’s proud life ended October 31, 2009 after a long and well fought battle with cancer.

Her life was filled with progressive causes to which she devoted her special energy for getting things “done right”.  DFA-MC benefited from her able leadership beyond her tenure as Chair of this organization.  She was a beacon of never-say-no to the right idea.  She was a force, not just an advocate, for progressive ideals.  IDEALS– beyond values– she utterly and completely walked the talk. Her knack for bringing people together leaves behind a strong and diverse network of family, friends and associates.

She had a long career as a registered nurse and worked in many aspects of the healthcare industry.  In her memory, DFA-MC dedicates our renewed commitment to achieving healthcare for all.

This spring, the board of DFA-MC created our volunteer of the year award, the highest honor given annually to one outstanding person.  Katy found joy in knowing that this award would forever bear her name as the inspiration for strong progressive activists.  The Katy Award represents her proud legacy.  We strive to live up to her example.

We will miss her strength, her activism, her joy, her laugh and most importantly her love.

___________________________

Katherine Ingram is survived by three children, and three grandchildren.
Condolences may be sent to info@dfamc.com or to

Katymine
c/o DFA-MC
P.O. Box 25412
Tempe, AZ 85283

Firedoglake has a memorial thread to Katymine at:
http://seminal.firedoglake.com/diary/12457

Elections offices will be open late.  You can register online at https://servicearizona.com/webapp/evoter/, or download a printable form with instructions at: http://recorder.maricopa.gov/pdf/english.pdf .  

ID to Register
Voters new to Arizona or Maricopa County must provide proof of citizenship (see form) to register.  We recommend that all voters apply for an Arizona Drivers License, or non-operator ID.  While other forms of proof are acceptable, the DL or ID number and issue date are sufficient proof, and the easiest to use.
Verify and/or Update Registration
The registration deadline applies if you’re not presently registered in Maricopa County, or if you want to change your party affiliation (not applicable for the General Election).
We recommend that all voters who think they’re already registered in Maricopa County verify their registration – particularly if they’ve moved – and if they’re not registered or in doubt, re-register. 

Go to the Maricopa County Elections Dept. website: http://recorder.maricopa.gov/web/elections.aspx.  On the right side of that page are buttons that link to pages where you can verify your registration (“Am I Registered to Vote?”), update your registration, order an Early (Vote By Mail) Ballot, locate your polling place, learn about ID requirements, and after the election, check on the status of your provisional ballot if you had to vote provisionally (see below).

We recommend that all voters verify that their registration is for their current residence address AND also shows their mailing address – if different than residence address.  This way, both addresses will appear in the Signature Roster at your polling place, and if your ID has either address, you’ll vote a regular ballot (see ID to Vote below).

We recommend that all voters include their telephone number on the form, so they can be reached if there’s a question.

If you’re registered anywhere in the county, you can update your registration with an address or name change any time up to Election Day.  Although there’s no deadline, it’s best to update as soon as possible, so your name will be included in the Signature Roster at your polling place.

If you procrastinate updating your registration, you can go the polling place assigned to your new address and vote a provisional ballot.  The provisional ballot form will update your registration and your vote will count.

If you find you’re registered at an old address, you may be able to vote at your old polling place, but the official line is that you should vote where you live – for the local candidates that represent you – and the ballot initiatives that affect you – in the community in which you now live.

Provisional Ballot
If you vote at your polling place, you must vote at the polling place assigned to your residence address!  While you have a right to vote a Provisional Ballot anywhere in the US, it will only be counted if it’s voted in your home precinct!  If you vote a Provisional Ballot, keep the top (pink) copy of the form with your unique affidavit number (Aff#) and after the election, check on the status of your provisional ballot.

ID to Vote – Check your ID!
To vote at the polling place, you must present “acceptable ID” (a different list than for registration! – see(http://recorder.maricopa.gov/pdf/outreach_eng.pdf ).

We recommend that all voters apply for an Arizona Drivers License, or non-operator ID.  While other forms of ID are acceptable, the Arizona DL or non-operator ID is sufficient proof, and the easiest to use.

We recommend that all voters verify that the address on their ID matches one of the addresses – residence or mailing – on their registration.  If your Arizona DL or non-operator ID shows an old address, you can update your address for free at https://servicearizona.com/webapp/driver/address/start.do – and apply for a new card for $4 – at https://servicearizona.com/webapp/driver/duplicate/start.do.  They offer express delivery service.

Voting Procedure – see “Things ALL VOTERS Should Know

The “Chain of custody” begins at the Polling Place.  The Board Worker Manual is mostly a series of checklists for procedures to ensure that eligible Voters are able to vote, and that their votes are securely delivered and accurately counted.  For example, Ballots and Seals should be carefully inventoried, and their use recorded on the Precinct Ballot Report.

See: http://recorder.maricopa.gov/elections/electboard.aspx for online Board Worker Manual and Video.

Standard Voting Procedure (see p.27 of Board Worker Manual)

1).  Voter starts at the Signature Roster, announces name, and presents ID (see Acceptable ID list below).

• The Roster Clerk checks ID, and locates Voter in the Roster.  If Voter isn’t listed in the white pages (active Voters), the clerk should check the yellow pages (recent add-ons) in the back of the book.
• If the ID is valid (proof of identity), and the ID address matches the registration address (residence or mailing), the Roster Clerk reads the Voter’s register number aloud.

2).  The Poll List Clerk uses the register number to find the Voter‘s name in the Precinct Register, and copies the Voter‘s name into the Poll List.

3).  The Ballot Distribution Clerk hands the Voter a ballot and offers ballot-marking instruction.  (The Distribution Clerk has an extra Precinct Register which is used to look up party affiliation for Primaries, but isn’t needed in the General.) 

4).  The Voter marks the ballot, deposits it in the optical scanner, and gets a sticker.

Provisional Ballot Procedure (p.30 of Board Worker Manual)

A Voter who isn’t listed in the Roster, doesn’t have valid ID (proof of identity), or whose ID address don’t match the Roster, is directed to the Provisional Ballot Clerk, who helps the Voter fill out a Provisional Ballot Form.

1).  If the Voter isn’t listed in the Roster, Board Workers should help them ascertain their assigned polling place by helping them find their residence address on the color-coded precinct map, which should be posted on the wall.  Voters must vote in the polling place assigned to the precinct in which they’re registered.  Anyone has the right to vote a provisional ballot anywhere, but it only counts if it’s voted in their own precinct.
• If they’re in the wrong polling place, they should be directed to their assigned polling place, where they may be listed in the Roster, and may vote a regular ballot.
• If they’re in the right polling place, but not in the roster, they should vote a provisional ballot.

2).  Provisional Ballot: If the Voter has valid ID (proof of identity), the Clerk circles “YES” on the front of the Form.  Voter does not need to return with more ID.

3).  Conditional Provisional Ballot: If the Voter doesn’t have valid ID (proof of identity), the Clerk circles “NO” on the front of the Provisional Ballot Form, and gives the Voter a list of acceptable ID and a list of locations to bring the ID within five days (of General Election).  Voter can also bring ID back to the Polling Place before 7 pm.

4).  Whether 2). Or 3). Apply, the Clerk helps the Voter fill out the Form, including name & address changes.

5).  The Clerk folds a ballot in half, gives it to the voter, and attaches the Form to a manila envelope.  The top (pink) page of the Form is a receipt with a unique Affidavit Number (Aff#) which the Voter should keep, and contact County Elections to find out if the ballot was counted, and if not, why not.  The contact info is on the receipt.

6).  The Voter votes the ballot, seals it in the envelope, deposits it in the Provisional Ballot Box, and gets a sticker.

7).  A week or two after Election Day, the Voter calls the phone number or visits the web page listed on the top (pink) page of the Form with the unique Affidavit Number (Aff#) to find out if the ballot was counted, and if not, why not.

Acceptable ID
• If ID address matches one Roster address, Voter votes standard ballot procedure.
• If ID address doesn’t match one Roster address, Voter votes provisional ballot procedure, doesn’t need to return with more ID.
• If Voter doesn’t have acceptable ID, Voter votes conditional provisional ballot procedure, needs to return with acceptable ID.

The elector shall announce his/her name and place of residence to the election official and present one form of identification from List #1 OR two different forms of identification from List #2.
[A.R.S. § 16-579(A)]

LIST #1 – Sufficient Photo ID including name and address
•Valid Arizona driver license or non-operating identification
•Tribal enrollment card or other form of tribal identification
•Valid United States federal, state, or local government issued identification

LIST #2 – Sufficient ID without photograph bearing name and address
•Utility bill of the elector that is dated within ninety days of the date of the election. A utility bill may be or electric, gas, water, solid waste, sewer, telephone, cellular phone, or cable television
•Bank or credit union statement that is dated within 90 days of the date of the election
•Valid Arizona Vehicle Registration
•Indian census card
•Property tax statement of the elector’s residence
•Tribal enrollment card or other form of tribal identification
•Vehicle insurance card
•Valid United States federal, state, or local government issued identification
•Voter Registration Card / Recorder’s Certification
•Any “Official Election Material” mailing bearing your name and address

7pm Tuesday March 18^th
IHOP Restaurant
2501 N. 44th St. Phoenix, AZ 85008

Teams will be forming to tackle important issues and projects. Get involved with others working on the things you care about. Are you interested in Media response? Election Integrity? Or do you have a secret longing to be a policy wonk? Find the project that appeals to you and get involved in a meaningful way.

Toby Stahl has had a diverse career including work in the fields of chemistry, in which she has a Master’s Degree, accounting, and computer programming. Throughout her long career, Toby remained active in the community including leadership roles in several organizations dedicated to protecting the environment, improving education and preserving history. She retired in 2004 from her final paid occupation as a computer programmer and has moved on to an unpaid career in political activism, helping to preserve democracy and the planet for her three children and two grandchildren.

Toby has been on the Executive Board of Democracy for America – Maricopa County (DFA-MC) and is dedicated to the Democratic Party. She was recently appointed to be a Precinct Committeeman in Legislative District 11 and can often be found at Democratic Party headquarters in Phoenix, making phone calls and doing whatever she can to help make Arizona a blue state.

“It is my sincerest hope,” Toby said, “ that working with DFA and other Democratic groups will help save this great country for my grandchildren and their children.”

Chair:	Toby Stahl
Vice-Chair:	Katherine Ingram
2nd Vice-Chair:	open
Treasurer:	Tim Ackley
Secretary:	Catherine Jaworski
At-Large Officer:	1. Susan Ackley
[six seats total]	2. Chris Fleishman
5. open	3. Randall Holmes
6. open	4. Joe Murphy

If you would like to serve in one of these positions please email, info at dfa-mc dot org. to have your candidacy announced and attend the meeting to accept your nomination. Remember to take our country back you have to “DO MORE THAN VOTE”.

A PC is the representative from a neighborhood to the Democratic Party and communicates election and candidate information to a neighborhood. Your neighborhood is your precinct. Every month the Democrats in each Legislative District meet together and you can become a nominated PC at the meeting. Your District Chair will be happy to help you get the information you need to do so.

1. Find your Legislative District by checking you voter registration card or visiting http://recorder.maricopa.gov/pollingplace05/GetDistrict.aspx for Maricopa county, or for anywhere in Arizona at www.azredistricting.org and type in your address at the lower left.

2. Attend your next District meeting. Check at http://azdem.org for information about the next meeting of your Legislative District.

Elected PC

Every two (even) years, nominated PCs can become elected PCs.

To become an elected PC, you collect ten petition signatures of fellow Dems in your precinct before June 4, 2008. Your District Chair will have the forms and other information for completing the process.

Elected PCs are eligible to vote for district and county party officers and to be an officer themselves. One third of PCs are chosen by their fellow PCs to become a state committee person and can vote at the state level of the party.

Increase your power by becoming an elected PC.