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Describe your experience. Please be specific.

My voting experience was uneventful. I looked


up my polling location because I know it can
change. I went to my designated location (&
Hoffman Ave) at approximately 4p.m. and cast
my ballot.

I walked into eagle point elementary to vote and


was greeted by a line out the door of the library.
When I finally got to give my name the person
in front of me and behind me were told they
were in the wrong spot and had to go to mater
Christi after the website indicated that was their
polling place. the whole process was chaos
with staff not quite sure how to remedy the
issues. The machine to accept votes was
broken and my vote was placed into a box
instead. VOTER FRAUD

My husband and I were redirected to a


different polling place----we got to the NEW
polling destination only to be told there were no
more ballots and they only had a few paper
ballots. We stood in line forever and were the
last people to be able to use a paper ballot, that
was simply placed on an open table.....NO
BALLOT BOX. We felt as tthough we were
voting for a King or Queen at a prom!! The
people in the long lines behind us had
NOTHING to vote with. They were told to
either wait or come back later!!
RIDICULOUS!!!!! We are taxpayers and want
a REVOTE immediately.......this needs to be
challenged!!!!

I voted at the Elementary School on New


Scotland Ave. The line was really long and at
least 2 people in front of me walked out
because they came to the wrong place to vote they used to be assigned to this school and
were not notified about the change. I am not
sure if they had time to go to a different place.
Overall, it was really poorly organized.

I voted at Albany School of Humanities around


6:30 PM. The election workers said they were
out of ballots and not sure if more were coming.
There were about 25 people waiting for ballots
to show up.
Since I wasn't in any of their books they allowed
me to fallout a paper ballot and put it in an
envelope that I had to sign the affidavit on the
front of it. They seemed horribly disorganized
and I have no confidence that my vote was
actually counted as the worker put it in a
cardboard box on the floor.
I witnessed multiple people (I'd estimate about
15 people) leave being frustrated that they
couldn't vote.

I had a ballot and went to the machine to cast


my vote, worker got up out of her seat, took my
ballot put in middle slot and me machine wasn't
working.

Speaking as a concerned lifetime Albany


Resident and AHS Class of '94, RPI Class of
'97 - the voting yesterday for the AHS School
vote was terrible and a disgrace. Speaking as a
former Albany Board of Elections election
inspector who used to be in charge of a major
voting location (ASH with 2 machines and
several districts; for several years) myself and
another former inspector witnessed improper
and even illegal (by normal election standards)
procedures at 3 polling places.
Things we witnessed/experienced:
Everything from leaving the emergency ballot
slot open and people using it even though the
machine was working fine (we told a poll worker
and he said "oops"), using notebook paper for
people to handwrite ballots and put them in a
folder (not the machine nor emergency ballot
box), photocopied ballots, recording and
shouting out of peoples' names and addresses,
etc.
The 3 sites we visited (a couple of us voting)
were Parks & Rec, Montessori, and Pine Hills
Elementary. There is NO WAY this vote should
be considered legal nor complete.
I don't know who/how to proceed with filing a
lawsuit but it should (and probably will) happen this is disenfranchisement on a large scale!

Voted at School 19 on New Scotland Avenue at


around 2:30 pm... there were two persons
handling the signatures... no observer or poll
watcher. Machine worked fine. Returned later
(around 4pm) accompanying my wife... there
was a line out the door. The machine
(scanner) failed. I observed several people
become exasperated and leave. While we
waited a gentleman wheeled in a replacement
machine. this took a while, and many persons
waited, but several left. I chose to take a seat
in the classroom, as I had already voted. Still
no poll watcher... just the two signature
persons. My daughter voted quite a bit later
and told me in a phone conversation that she
had to manually submit her ballot as the
scanner was not working!

My usual school voting location is the. Eagle


Point school, however this time voting sites
were changed and we were designated to vote
at Mater Christi. This was confusing to voters
as people arrived at Mater Christi after having
gone to their usual locations and then had to
figure out where to go to vote. We arrived
approximately at 5:00 and voters who were
standing in line tried to direct voters to either
the A through K line or the L through Z line.
There appeared to be no official person to
avoid confusion as the lines were going out the
door and even into the kitchen. The lines did
not move and eventually the word trickled to the
voters in line that they had run out of ballots.
Some of the voters left. After 15 minutes or so,
the word then trickled back that someone was
getting paper ballots to use. Finally we reached
the desk to sign in and were given a paper
ballot to complete. Some people didn't know
where to put them after completing them - the
voting machines could not accommodate these
"makeshift" paper ballots. We then figured out
that we should hand them to the person at the
desk who was signing voters in. In order to do
so, a voter had to interrupt the signing in
process and hand the ballot to the person at the
desk. (There were only two people signing in
all of the voters.) when we handed in the ballot
to the desk person, she then shoved it in a file
folder that was not sealed. There did not
appear to be any security at the voting site to
ensure that all ballots were to be kept secret

I have several people interested in being part of


the lawsuit. Please contact me. I did not vote
and am not eligible to vote so don't count this in
the total.

My husband and I went to vote Tuesday


evening at the Hoffman Avenue polling place.
there was already a line of people and the
workers were trying to explain that there was no
more ballots available and they were trying to
get more. they had no idea how long that
would take and suggested maybe ASH school
on Whitehall Rd had some. A man that was
waiting to vote offered to go see if they had
some and would call the worker's cell phone to
let him know if they did. He said he would bring
them back to Hoffman Ave. the parking lot was
full of people leaving and new people arriving.
it was confusion to say the least. we returned
about 8pm hoping that there were ballots
available and there now was so we were able to
vote.
I have to say it was a pretty unprepared event.
I think there were only a couple pencils, people
were putting their ballots in the manila
envelopes, no one was giving directions. I think
the whole thing rattled the poor workers. can't
blame them, it did me too.

I voted on my lunch break. I had no lines and a


proper ballot.
Denied ballot

Voted around 7PM. No electron ballots. Was


given a 8 1/2"x 11" paper "x marks the spot"
ballot. Folded it over in half and the so called
voting inspector put it in a manila envelope that
was quite full. Seemed to be, say 50 or so
hand ballots in there. My wife stuck hers in the
vote counter computer, boy did that make a
bunch of sounds before it spit it back out. A bit
funny, lots of tension in that room. Im surprised
they didnt make us dip our fingers in the purple
dye.
I would like to see a computer tally of votes and
hand vote tally on a per site basis.

Voted around 7PM. No electron ballots. Was


given a 8 1/2"x 11" paper "x marks the spot"
ballot. Folded it over in half and the so called
voting inspector put it in a manila envelope that
was quite full. Seemed to be, say 50 or so
hand ballots in there. My wife stuck hers in the
vote counter computer, boy did that make a
bunch of sounds before it spit it back out. A bit
funny, lots of tension in that room. Im surprised
they didnt make us dip our fingers in the purple
dye.
I would like to see a computer tally of votes and
hand vote tally on a per site basis.

The mailing I received stated that I should vote


at my regular polling station. I showed up at my
regular voting stain that I voted in the Nov
election. The station was closed. I wasn't aware
that voting locations of school board run votes
were at different locations. I took I quess that
the location was different and figure out to vote.
I had to wait in a long line. The poling station
only had 3 pens was unstaffed. The whole vote
process is shady. This proposal trying to be
pushed thru. I feel that the school board is
trying to put one over on the people of Albany.

We voted at the Mater Christi school, which is


our normal polling station for the 14th ward. I
spoke to several persons who stated they have
lived in the city for over 25 years and had never
voted at that polling station. Earlier, the site
had run out of ballots. The registration was
organized by last name, not ward as is usual.
The line after registering, wrapped around the
perimeter of the room waiting for the ONE
scanning machine present. Many folks walked
up, saw the line and left. I can't help but
believe that this was intentional
disenfranchisement - overcrowding, not enough
equipment and ballots, delays in opening times,
and combining wards into polling sites further
added to the confusion. It would be interesting
to know the polling locations of the various
initial 'no' vote wards back in November, and
how those polling places had changed leading
up to February 9th's vote - especially in
comparison with the Center Square, Arbor Hill,
South end, and the other 'yes' voting wards
from the November cycle. I for one found the
process as undemocratic as any I've
experienced in my voting lifetime, and I'm
approaching 50. Terrible.

i'm not a voter in albany, and after jearing what


happened yesterday am glad i'm not. whatever
the outcome, the people that had anything to do
with it should be brought on the carpet. it
makes me feel like our town leaders are
angels.

While I was able to cast my ballot, I am relaying


the experiences of two people next to me in line
between 5 and 6PM at Mater Christi. Next to
me was a senior citizen who explained this was
their third visit to the polling site, after having
been turned away twice earlier in the day as a
result of too few ballots. Also next to me was a
voter who said she was directed to Mater
Christi via the Board's location finder, only to
learn upon registering that her name was not in
the book. I witnessed her request an
emergency or affidavit ballot, and she was
denied by an official who appeared to be in
charge of the location. She told them she had a
right to that kind of ballot, and the response
was along the lines of: "I understand your
concerns, but we are very busy and there is
nothing we can do." She then left. While I am
afraid that I do not have their names, I hope
they share their own stories as the voter
disenfranchisement was shameful.

Used a paper ballot- 7:30 a.m., with closed


door at Pine Hills Elementary

BIG BIG BIG issue- on Thurs. 2/4 included in


my daughters' (3) report cards mailed from
Hackett Middle School and Albany High was
included a 'VOTE YES' brochure. Yeah, on my
taxpayer paper, in my taxpayer envelope, with
my taxpayer stamp. No indication it was
provided by a shadow group. Can forward copy
of envelope and brochure. Contacted Bd. of
Elections, enforcement division. Also sent copy
to Counsel's of NYSED. This 'VOTE YES'
brochure sent to thousands of parents in districtillegally. Help Help!

Was never notified where to vote, so I went to


my usual voting place at the TOAST school, the
door was locked so I came home called the
School Board and was told I have to go to the
grade school off Deleware Ave. when there
was told I should go to Hackett Midfle School,
Frustrated I went home and didn't vote.

My husband and I attempted to vote at our


normal voting location (which is what was
advertised to do) which is Albany School of
Humanities on Whitehall Road. There were
approximately 50 people or more already in
line. They had no signs to inform people that
there were actually two lines but due to all the
people you couldn't see that. So we eventually
were told by other voters that A-K was over on
the other side and the long line that everyone
was standing it was actually the L-Z. There
was one person recording the ballot number
and names on the lined paper. This held the
line up considerably. As we were approaching
the front of the line I had noticed that the man
handing out the actual ballot forms had very
few forms. I kept looking to see if there was
another pile next to him but couldn't see any.
After about 45 minutes we reached the front of
the line and we were told that we were in the
wrong voting place (even though that is the
location at which we voted in November) and 2.
they had just run out of ballots. A woman yelled
to the crowd that they were out of ballots. They
had already been waiting 45 minutes for ballots
and that they had no idea when they were
coming. She did apologize but that they had
NO control of it. There was nothing they could
do but wait for someone to come. We were not
given the option to vote using an absentee
ballot or a piece of paper or anything. There
were several people in line that had small kids.
While we were in line I witnessed at least 50

At 8:30 I walked over to the school and there


was no s as to where to enter the building. I
walked to the loading dock and was greeted by
a large dumster of garbage on wheels. The
door would not open and I could see a group of
people sitting at a table behind one of the high
tables to make out the ballot. They could not
see the door. I went to the main entrance and
buzzed myself in and some woman and I told
her I wanted to vote. She said I had to go to the
dock entrance. I told her that the door was
locked and no at opened the door. She
escorted me to the cafeteria and there were
around three people sitting at the table and you
could see they had could not see the dock
door. The woman who escorted me into the
cafeteria immediately saw the problem and
initiated changing the location of the table. One
of the woman who was at the table said that it
was a rough morning and I unfortunately was
upset and said that she was being paid. I
called a number of numbers on the school
district and got voice mail. I did get a MR.
Weisman and explained the situation and he
said what did I want him to do and told him that
they needed to have a sign to the poling door
and have the polling people open the door. I
was not satisfied and called another and got the
Supr. office and she said they already got a
call. She then said that she voted there and had
no problem and I said maybe it was because of
her status. I explained the situation again and I
think she got the message. Again there were

My husband and I voted at Pine Hills


Elementary School mid-afternoon. The
machine was not working - supposedly jammed
- and so we had to insert our ballots into a slot
below the actual voting machine.
I did not like this at all and feel that there should
be a re-vote, perhaps at primary time. It is
ridiculous - with all the publicity and hype to get
out and vote - that they did not have enough
ballots, machines were jammed, people were
not allowed in at the correct time, etc.

It was an extremely cramped venue. Parking


was tough to find. Once in the building, the line
was out the door, and people were walking out
saying that they weren't going to wait on this
line. No one was directing newcomers to the
tables where they could find their last names.
No one was guiding the line to wait for voting,
either. The sign posted said the capacity was
48 - there were probably around 200 standing
around the room. No one knew where the end
of the line was, and people were getting very
frustrated. Worst of all, there was ONE voting
machine. One. Voting. Machine. One woman
was mistakenly unable to vote and was told to
fill out a special certified form, but they were all
out, so she wasn't able to vote. Others had to
fill out ballots and they just sat in a pile on the
desk. The whole process was complete chaos.
I was also wondering why I had to vote at Mater
Christi when I live so close to other schools. I
don't vote there for other elections, why have to
drive over there for this? Very disappointing in
so many ways.

Hi! I'd like to know who runs this site. I think


people would feel more comfortable sharing
their experiences if they knew who was behind
this information collection. Thank you.
Cody Holyoke
WRGB-TV

I almost put my ballot in the wrong place. The


slot for emergency ballots was open. Luckily
my daughter-in-law pointed this out to me
before I slipped it in. She mentioned to one of
the election people that the slot was open and
he said "oops". My daughter-in-law worked the
regular elections for several years, so she
knows how they should be run. One of the
election people also mentioned that they had
run out of ballots earlier in the day. I am very
concerned about the legality and legitimacy of
this election.

I was in line at Mater Christi for 45 minutes.


The line was not moving and there was no
announcement until word started filtering down
the line that there were no ballots. They said
some were "on the way". Next thing we knew
was they said we were going to vote on paper
ballots. I stayed in line (many left) and got my
paper ballot. I was told to mark yes or no and
then return the ballot to the registration table.
Upon going back to the table with my piece of
paper, the poll worker (?) took the paper and
slid it under her book. I said that that location
was not secure among the piles of other
papers. There was absolutely no receptacle for
these pieces of paper. As I left I was
interviewed (and on TV, though I did not see it)
and upon hearing my story many, many people
got off the line and walked out. To say this
process had "irregularities" would be a gross
understatement. I am willing to talk for the
record. This was a travesty.

I waited some 10-20 minutes for ballots to


arrive at ASH. When I was able to vote, the
ballots were not scannable, and instead had the
ballot language on a piece of paper, with an
area where I could check yes or no. I was then
asked to place the ballot in an envelope, and
into a slot beneath the scanning machine. This
did not seem to be a secure means of vote
store, and was ripe for tampering.

Arrive at ASH polling place to find long lines


because we had to register and vote in the
lobby instead of the gym as normal. Waited 45
minutes to find out we were at the wrong polling
place and they were out of ballots. We were
told they were bring more ballots and were not
given any option to vote. While at AsH we
witnessed many people turn and walk out and
probably did not return because there were no
ballots and no alternatives offered. My wife and
I had a committment that evening so we left
and we were not able to vote. I feel my right to
vote was violated as many at ASH did. Isn't this
supposed to be a democracy. This election
should be thrown out and another voting date
set.

My wife and I voted at mater Christi school


around 5pm. While in line, they ran out of the
computer readable ballots. They said that
"more would be delivered but did not know
when". We could either wait for them, or come
back later, or, file a paper ballot. We filed paper
ballots which were placed in a Manila folder at
the desk of the volunteers working the election.
They were not secured in any way.

I was able to vote because I went in the


morning, but I support you totally. And a
retirement "bonus" was paid to a former
employee to "manage" this! At the very least
she should refund the money and be sued for
the cost of a new vote that must occur.

I didn't have any problems voting at Eagle


Point. It was a small corner in the library,
voting has always been held in the gym.
The staff was efficient and I was in and out in
less than 10 minutes.
I was there at 12:30.
P.Serafino

When I voted yesterday, I signed the large book


containing registered voters' names. As well,
however, before they gave me my ballot, the
election workers wrote my name in a spiral
notebook and wrote next to it a number that
they read off the ballot. This means that anyone
who has access to both the ballots and the
spiral notebook can match the ballots to voters'
names and determine who voted "yes" and who
voted "no" in this election. This violates voters'
rights to secret ballots. (2-10-2016)

my daughter was told she could not not her


ballot in the machine by the wall , the lady at the
table had some one remove it and put it in the
other machine , i did not feel this was a honest
experience i think they need to hold another
vote OVER ESSN BY AN INDEPENDENT
FIRM , this vote in all our school seems to be
fixed , i am not happy to vote in a crooked
election

No signs or directions at Eagle Point


Elementary on where to vote or where to enter
the building. I was locked out of one door and
someone coming by instructed me to go the
front of the building. Very confusing and
frustrating.

We voted at the Monte Christi School off of


New Scotland Avenue. We waited for almost 40
Minutes to vote. The people who were working
for the school board had no idea what they
were doing. I kept seeing voter leaving because
of time restraints 4 people working and none
who knew what they were doing. One voting
machine. The line was out the door this was at
or about 4 P.M. Also there was electioneering
going on from the labors union 190.
They had a truck with a lighted bill board driving
around the school while children were being
dismissed and they were less than 100 feet
from the polling place. I must have seen 40
people leave that were unable to vote. People
couldnt find the polling place either several
people stated they drove around for an hour
trying to fine the school. I never seen anything
like this before and for that reason my vote
wasnt counted. I will support legal action and
would being willing to contribute to the cost of
filing legal action against the City of Albany
School board.

Woman working table was on the phone


ordering "Moroccan chicken". She put phone
down on table almost had me sign in wrong
spot. I corrected her. Gentleman eating a
sandwich. Unclear where the scanner was.
Very unorganized and poorly set up.

We arrived around 6:20 pm to vote. There were


several people waiting to vote. They handed out
the last ballot- they had only had 150 to begin
with! We voted with a paper ballot.

normally the voting location is in the gym where


there is plenty of space between the
registration tables and the booths to place your
vote and not in the library of the school where
there was clearly not adequate space to do so .
there's usually more space/privacy between the
booths were we vote and multiple machines for
scanning ballots when completed. it felt
cramped and not private. it appeared that two
machines were available to scan in your ballot
but i was told i was using the wrong one, even
though no clear directives were given to me at
the time my ballot was handed to me. I had an
uneasy feeling the entire time because its not
the same atmosphere or proper preparation for
the voters as there usually is. i arrived between
11 and 12 to place my vote, at which time i feel
they should have a better plan to make this
process easier and difficult and frustrating for
the voter.

I voted at Eagle Point in the afternoon and


everything was fine. The clerks were helpful.
Signs made it easy to find the voting location

arrived at ASH at 7:26Am but could not vote


due to missing voter "books"

I assumed that we would be doing electronic


voting at school 19.. I know it isn't referred to as
that anymore... I arrived at 4:00 pm and there
was a line getting into the music room where
the voting machines were located...the poll
workers seemed very slow and not very
knowledgeable... I witnessed one of the voter's
attempting to use the electronic section of the
voting machine and neither of the poll workers
said that she had to just slip the ballot into a
slot under the machine... I mentioned that we
always use the electronic section for voting not
knowing that we were using emergency ballots
and the poll workers made no mention of the
same... I then mentioned to others in line that
we slip the ballot into the slot and don't use the
electronic section... the ballot was not secret!!
I used one of the desks for completing the
ballot and am certain that folks in line could see
the way I voted. Regardless I submitted my
ballot and shook my head at the process.

As a Committeeman for the 12th ward 8th


district I had at least 2 phone calls that around
7:30 am The voters were told that they don't
have the ballots .. they were locked up in the
main office .. I will not reveal their names ,
until I receive their permission .

There were no ballots when I went there at 6pm


to vote. Was told it would be at least 20
minutes until more arrived.

My wife and I voted at Eagle Point Elementary


School. The copier didn't
work properly to read our paper ballots. We are
ages 72 and 73 and
attempted to vote at 9:30 AM.

I have lived at the same address for approx 19


and voted in just about all of the Elections.
Voted in Nov for the High School with no
problems. Yesterday was disgraceful. Not only
did they not have enough poll workers, they had
one machine. Waited in line for approx 30
minutes to be told that they did not have my
name on file. How is that possible? Woman
told me she would give me absentee ballot and
then couldn't find one. Ten minutes later came
back with one, told me fill it out , proceeded to
put it under a pile of papers and that was that. I
would be shocked if that didn't wind up in the
trash. Something doesn't smell right to me. For
the School board president to say that he
doesn't know what the gripe is about speaks
volumes. Is it any surprise that the graduation
rate at AHS is so low. Great example to set for
students with an attitude like that. If someone
doesn't follow thru on this would be equally
disgraceful. Would have no gripe if it was a fair
fight !

Does anyone realize that those who were not


able to vote had their constitutional rights
violated. They should be made whole by
allowing them to vote now by absentee ballot
OR to vote at a polling station set up by the city
SO EVERYONE'S VOICE CAN BE HEARD!

I received no information regarding the vote on


Feb. 9th. If it was not for my family and friends,
I would not have remembered to vote. If it was
not for my sister I would not have known where
to vote, Thank God she told me by researching
it online.
I've lived in Albany all my life but am truly
disgusted with the School Board. This is not
first time the either the current or past school
boards have mislead the citizens of Albany.
The Myers School when built, went over 50
million dollars than projected. The school board
has a terrible reputation of misrepresenting the
truth to the tax payers of Albany. Further more
they take advantage of the older population by
doing so as they are the tax payers!!!!!!!! No
wonder no one wants to move to the city as
SCHOOL TAXES are too high. When members
from this board come up for election, I'll be sure
to vote them out!!!!
I will back Mr. Connors in any legal suit
applicable, should he be able to file.

I was able to vote...However after submitting


my vote, I challenged the poller declaring that
my vote was not confidential.
The process to vote went like this:
Voter signs name in the official booklet
The poller then records my name in
chronological order in a corresponding
composition notebook.
Everyone's name is now assigned to a number.
I submit my ballot into the machine.
The number that was assigned to my name
comes up on the screen indicating that public
vote #......... was accepted.
I immediately turned to the poller and said,
"Damn, you know my vote?" she said "what do
you mean"..I explain to her exaclty as stated
above and she shrugs her shoulders indicating
she knew what I meant but couldn't attest "Yay"
or "nay".
The way I see it is the machine recorded public
vote #...and for the purpose of this description,
lets just say it was vote # 1000...IF the district
or school board wants to know who voter #
1000 is then simply, look at the name next to
#1000 is in the corresponding composition note
book.
I do not feel the democratic process was
protected. Nor do I recall a corresponding

Once I found my polling station I had no issues,


but if I didn't watch the news, I would not have
known about the vote. There was no mailer or
announcement from the school board that a
vote was happening. Not getting any kind of
official notice almost prevent normal voting for
me.

I went to the polls at Mater Cristi at approx 4


pm and immediately was approached by
residents saying they ran out of ballots and
were leaving. I walked in and to my surprise
they had only 2 tables set for 2 entire Wards
totally ludicrous and 1 polling machine. Really
for an issue as big as this and 2 of the largest
voting wards in the city I was there for an hour.
Come on they wanted people to walk away.
You have to be kidding me.The election people
were courteous but were not well informed. I
encountered numerous people who left and
didnt know if they would return. And to top it off
the paper ballots were not properly secured
either, folded in half and placed in a folder really
this 2016.Unbelievable an issue as big as this
and they screwed it up . I have voted for 42
years and this takes the cake and they call this
a democracy. So I told my significant other not
to bother voting after work that I would take her
later, another inconvience. So again we went
back at 830ish and the line was out the door
and still only one machine really What are the
combined number of voters in both wards? And
to top it off no one new where to vote and the
professionals could not direct them correctly.
One guy came in and said he lived on Van
Schoick and i said NSES and they said ASH so
who knows. Bill Hogan and the rest of the gang
should be held accountable. Ms Savage was at
the poll and I asked who admin this election
and she said the district and the board had to
sign off and said to her an issue as big as this

A separate list of voters' names and addresses


was being hand-written, causing some delay in
receiving the paper ballot. The pathway for
handicapped voting between desks in the
school library was too narrow for wheelchair or
walker access. The vote tallying machine in the
handicapped area had to be reset because of
an incomplete processing.

I did not have a problem, there were adequate


poll workers and forms and machines when I
voted at 1:00 pm., but I believe that the school
board purposely under allocated resources to
the polling places that voted against the last
referendum.

First went to Eagle Point where we have always


voted for the school budget. Were told to go to
Mater Christi. A lot of confusion at the school.
People did not know what line to go to. Waited
at least a half an hour to get the ballot and then
another half an hour to actually vote.
Witnessed one woman at the table where you
got your ballot, get up and was rummaging
through folders that were on a chair in back of
her in full view of voters who were in line.
Papers were out with no supervision at all.
Total chaos with lines overlapping. Voters
confused about which lines were the correct
ones--the line to obtain the ballot or the line to
actually vote. One voting machine for such a
large crowd was totally inefficient.

To Whom it may concern:


I am disturbed and deeply disappointed as to
how the voting went yesterday. At 5:30pm, we
were in line for over an hour at the Albany
School of Humanities in order to caste our vote.
Never during all my voting experience in Albany
(nearly 30 years) have I encountered such a
waiting time. Volunteers spent extra time writing
down our names and ballot, when asked "why"
they responded that they were instructed to do
so by the school election board. I question the
legality of this.
When I hear all the problem this voting process
encountered, I wonder how many people who
left the voting places without casting their vote
due to the too long waiting were seniors who
would have voted "no" to have their taxes
increased.
What a biased process!
Sincerely,
Barbara Shepard

I signed in, got my ballot filled it out and put it in


the most likely looking available place, a slot in
a box that had other ballots.nothing was
identified as a machine and I was too proud to
ask. I wonder if my vote was counted. How do
the totals at Pine Hills Elementary tally with the
number of voters who signed in and with the
number of ballots handed out?

1. The space designated for voting was a small


CORNER of the library. I think three additional
tables had been brought in, and it seemed no
usual tables were removed. This created a
narrow, irregular obstacle course to move in
from sign-in to the ballot-filling kiosks and then
on to the place to put your ballot (if you could
find it at all, see below). It was next to
impossible for seniors to navigate this peculiar
arrangement of furniture. There was
EXTREME CONGESTION with tripping
hazards at the sign-up because the people
leaving had to squeeze by (with their helpers
and canes) the people who were entering. I am
sorry to say, it seemed like a deliberate
inhospitable act. I have voted at Eagle Point
before, and it was NOT this way.
2. When I arrived at the sign-in desk, a very
nice gentleman volunteer was finishing up his
previous sign-up. A woman seated behind a
large table across the narrow aisle hollered
over to him that he did not have to write down
the address of the person (who had just voted)
right away. I said, "It's all right, finish up." She
bellowed, "You can do that later." The
volunteer became a little flustered, stopped his
recording of the previous voter's name after
writing down only her first name. This just did
not seem good to me; so, on my way out I
reminded him to finish and told him the voter's
last name. I think he got to it. I think the
procedure should be standardized.

I voted at Eagle Point, the library was too small


and not the proper space for voting. There
were not enough machines and only 3 people
to handle the voting.
It was a disgrace and un-American how the
voting across the city took place. I demand a
vote in April! We need to better educate our
students, a new expensive school is not the
answer. We have many new schools in Albany,
have increased students scores?
The high taxes are killing the city of Albany.

I actually first drove to Holy Names Acadamy,


where I typically vote. When I realized that I had
driven to "the wrong spot," I changed my
course to Mater Christi, where fellow voters
were walking around, trying to find a correct
entrance. The set up to sign in was extremely
strange and very inefficient. Voters who were
trying to enter to cast their vote were competing
with voters trying to leave (one way in one way
out). I waited in line for about 20/25 minutes,
which I personally was OK with. I didn't have
anywhere to be. The poor women in front of me
was in line, and was told she was in the wrong
line when she was up next, and needed to go to
the other line where they would have her last
name. There were NO signs for last names. I
was given a piece of paper, checked off my
vote, folded my piece of paper over, and gave it
to a man who placed it in a folder who was busy
signing people in. Some people were very vocal
about their unhappiness with the lack of
organization, the time for the lines and the
paper "ballots." I feel that if the majority of the
people vote in favor of the project, then so be it.
But please do this fairly. I honestly left feeling
uneasy about my experience, especially
handing a folded piece of paper to a man who
was busy taking down names. I have never felt
this way in any other voting experience. Thank
you for taking the time to read!

My experience voting for the Albany City


School's referendum were as follows
parking and access to the building was a
congested mess
only one entrance was unlocked
two other doors that lead to the voting room
were locked
room was way too small for voting
two lines (depending on where you name fell in
the alphabet) to get your ballot
then another line to the one and only voting
machine
all lines were long, zig-zagged around the room
lines criss-crossed one another so it was easy
to be in the wrong line for a long period of time
before you realized it
no signage to let you know where you needed
to be
five poll workers, two of them did not seem to
know what they were doing
took about 40 minutes from time I entered the
building til I cast
my vote-does not include time spent finding a
parking spot and walking from parking to
building
I saw a number of people leave without voting

First the election was not well advertised most


likely to keep people from voting. I only found
out about it because my neighbor had a sign in
her back yard and inquired.
I went to my old polling place. It was closed. I
found a lady who told me to go to eagle point
where the voting machine was jammed and the
wanted us to give them the ballot and they
would feed it later into the machine. No privacy
at all. They would know how we voted. I was
there for thirty minutes waiting my turn. At NO
time did they asks for ID to verify the person
voting was who he was. I was them told to go to
Christi mater school on hurst where the lines
were so long that I saw people leaving. It was
chaos. Again of the four people handing out
ballot only one person checked ID. I was not
checked. The vote was a shame, no privacy,
lack of ballots, extremely long lines I waited at
Christi one hour and 15 minutes. My spouse
voted at a different time and also saw people
leave and not voted due to the chaos and long
wait.

Walked to Eagle Point to vote on the AHS


renovation. It's two blocks away from my
house. My name was not on the list so I filled
out an affidavit. While there I notice they were
having problems with one of the voting
machines. I also notice the people running the
voting were note the same people who run it
during election time. I over heard one guy say
he lost count of the people signing up to vote.
They were also sending a lot of people to Mater
Christi to vote. So, if they too walked to Eagle
Point did they go home and then drive to Mater
Christi?
So I asked around and found out I should have
gone to MC, I txt my wife so she would know
were to go. It was a disaster over there too.
What a mess at both places on such an
important matter.

I had to return to Albany School of Humanities


4 times between approx 5:30pm and 8:00pm
before I actually got to vote. First trip the line
was too long to wait, the next 2 times there
were no ballots...on my 4th trip I voted.

At Mater Christi school they ran out of ballets. I


waited in line for 45 minutes and had to leave. I
was unable to return to vote.

At Mater Christi school they ran out of ballets. I


waited in line for 45 minutes and had to leave. I
was unable to return to vote.

I voted at ASH on Whitehall and when I arrived


around 6:25pm I was informed that they were
out of ballots and that someone went to get
more ballot forms but they had no idea how
long it would it would be before they returned
with the forms. They didn't provide any
additional options for me other to return or wait.
I had my two children with me that hadn't eaten
dinner yet so waiting and returning both were
difficult options. When my husband arrived
home I was able to run back to ASH to vote
8:15pm and the ballot forms were available.

Very long line. Apparently there were supposed


to be 2 lines but none of the votes knew until
we reached the front. They couldn't find my
name in their book. I then had to fill out a form
and put all my personal info on the front of the
envelope (name, social security number, etc.)

I had a very difficult time finding my polling


place. I looked it up online and it said the
normal place that I am used to for most
elections which is the Salvation Army. However,
when I went there I was told the vote was at the
Giffen Elementary School. So I drove over to
the Giffen Elementary school, I walked all
around the building and tried every normal
entrance. They were all locked and I saw no
signs indicating where the voting was taking
place. I then returned to my car and tried to
search for the polling places/contact
information online again. This time I was able to
find a phone number which I called. I asked
where the polling place was and the lady asked
for my address. I provided it and she told me it
was Giffen Elementary. I asked her how to get
into the building and told her that I had tried
many doors and they were all locked. She put
me on hold and then came back and told me it
was the side door off of Morton Ave. I went
looking for the entrance again and eventually
found it, but it was not easy to find and was not
signed properly to allow someone unfamiliar
with the school to find the voting place. I could
definitely see how many people would have
given up, I almost did myself.

To start I was directed to go to my usual voting


poll and when we arrived noone was there. We
then went on the internet and it was difficult to
find the right poll, but once we finally did it was
NOT our normal poll. Finally we arrived to a
long line which was no problem because I
understood it was a big vote. Several voters
who normally vote at Humanities were turned
away after waiting on line being told they were
at the wrong poll. After waiting on line for 45
minutes I was told they were out of ballots.
Everyone waited at least 1/2 hour longer until
eventually the entire place was empty because
there were elderly voters and those with kids
who just couldn't stand there all night. I would
guess over 100 voters came and went without
voting. I was told this was happening all over. I
went home to feed my family and went back to
the poll only to be told still no ballots. I waited
1/2 hour still no ballots. I had to leave to tend to
my elderly mother and could not make it back
before polls closed. It felt like they purposely
made it as difficult as possible. I have never felt
so denied the Democratic process. The only
right thing to do is offer a revote or allow those
who did not sign the votor registry the right to
cast a vote at perhaps a special election. The
board should be ashamed at what happened
and they should have some integrity if they
want us to trust them with millions of tax payer
$$ and state $$$.

Was told to go to normal poll and it was locked.


Finally found right poll and they ran out of
ballots. I left and went back 3 times and each
time no ballots. So I was denied my right to
vote because I could not stand at the polls all
night. I am outraged by this. The board slantef
this vote by making as difficult as possible just
to get what they wanted.

At 6pm I arrived at ASH


And was told they ran out of ballots and were
waiting
For some to be delivered.
I could come back in an hour, they should have
them by then.
I was determined to vote on this issue so I did
go back. But it was a nasty night to be out.

I went to vote at Mater Christie, the former St.


Catherine's (my usual voting place) and there
was one huge line of about 50 60 people
maybe more and then after a 10 minute wait
someone announced that if you name was L-Z
you could form another line. So we did. People
were talking about how they had gone to their
usual voting place but were told that it was the
wrong place and were turned away and sent
here. While waiting in that line they announced
that they had run out of ballots and we had to
wait for more to come in People left. Some
asked when the polls closed so that they could
come back but all were angry. After another
wait were told that there were no more of the
official ballots and that they wanted us to use
what looked like a made up paper ballot. A
piece of photocopied paper with a paragraph on
it and a Yes and No at the bottom to indicate
ones preference. More people left. When I
got to the vote signature table and signed my
name next to my printed name I was given a
ballot and went to a station and checked my
vote. Then I was told to fold it in half and give it
back to the lady who gave it to me. She stuck it
in a manila folder along with the other ballots.
There was no security no privacy no feeling of
assurance that my vote was going to be
counted. Outside in the parking lot I talked with
other voters and we questioned whether or not
they would sort and count only the Yes votes
and destroy the No votes. Some people said
that they voted No and also left additional

Although I received two reminders to vote on


2/9/16 on the Albany High issue, I wasn't told
where to vote. I went to my normal voting place
at the Pine Hills Library and found no voting
was happening nor was there any sign
indicating where I should go. I went to Albany
High School where I had voted when Pine Hills
Library was under construction. The lady didn't
see my name on the registration book and
advised me to check with the school located on
North Allen Street. I finally did find the correct
place and voted. I also realized that no signs
were placed at any of the voting venues to
identify them as polling places.

Lines were wrapped through the building and


the hallway was packed with people waiting. I
had my two small children with me and couldn't
possibly wait to vote in that crowd so late in the
day. I always vote and always bring them with
me and this has never been an issue until the
other night.

#1. - I voted at Eagle Point School after driving


first to my "regular, usual voting location".
After I arrived at 8am (at my different voting
location) I still wasn't sure if Eagle Point was
the correct location but then I saw a man
putting out signs on the one way street off
Western Avenue. SINCE THE USUAL
VOTING LOCATION WAS CHANGED, A
NOTICE ON THE USUAL VOTING BUILDING
WOULD HAVE BEEN HELPFUL TO DIRECT
VOTERS WHERE THEY SHOULD GO TO
VOTE.
#2. Later that evening while attending a 6pm
meeting at All Saints Parish Center, (corner of
Western Ave and Brevator St) for 2 hours our
meeting was interrupted by voters thinking that
they were voting there, at their "usual location"
when it was actually another location. I didnt
know where to send the confused and
frustrated voters.
Again, since Albany made a decision to change
voting locations for such an important vote, they
should have posted a sign at the "usual voting
locations" to inform and direct voters where
they should go.

I am a registered voter in Ward 8 District 8 and


was assigned to vote at ASH. When I arrived
(around 6:00pm) at ASH, there was a very long
line that was not moving. After a 1/2hr of
waiting in the line which didn't move, I went up
to the table to ask what was going on. The
volunteer told me that there were no more
ballots, but were hoping to get some more,
although she didn't know how long that could
be. I wasn't offered any paper ballot to vote on,
but she did offer to double check my name in
the book to ensure I was in the right place. I
was then informed my name wasnt in the book
and that I was assigned to the City Rec
Department. I left ASH and drove to City Rec
Department and was informed there were no
more ballots there either. I asked them to check
my name in the book. It wasnt in the book and
was told I needed to go to ASH to vote. Given I
already knew my name wasn't in the book at
ASH, and they did not have ballots, I decided I
needed to end my efforts of trying to vote (it
was almost 7:30pm at this point)

The polling place was jammed with people. No


official was available to direct us. People in the
lines told us which line to stand in to get a
ballot. The desks for marking the ballot were
surrounded by people. I could see how others
were marking their ballots, and I expect people
could see how I was marking mine. No one was
given a folder to cover the ballot, as we have
been given in other elections. Therefore, I could
also see the marked ballots of people who were
standing in line to put their ballot into the one
machine available. Another machine there was
not being used. I presume it was broken. The
line to cast the ballot snaked around the entire
perimeter of the room and took about 30
minutes to go through. My husband said he
saw people come into the room, look at the
lines, and leave without voting. I have been
voting in Albany since the early '60s, and I have
never before seen such crowds or spent so
much time between entering and casting my
ballot.

The first issue was finding our polling location!


By the 3rd stop, we realized Mater Christi was
the right location. It was jam packed with
voters, no organization at all! No one knew
where to sign in or which snaked line they
needed to stand in. I finally received my ballot,
stood in line for about 30 minutes. Finally a
woman came around with a pen and said,
"here, just fill in YES now and then it's ready
when you finally get to the machine". I filled in
NO and stood another 25 minutes for the
machine. She was pressuring everyone to fill
out their ballot, not only with a YES vote, but do
it without any privacy. The whole experience
was a debacle from the moment I tried to park
my car! The school board should be ashamed
of themselves and everyone needs to demand
a new vote. This just isn't right!

Upon arrival at 5;00 P.M., voters told there


were no more ballots. Several people left. Then
voters were told there were copies made of the
ballot for voting. There was no privacy in voting
as the room was filled with people waiting to
vote. The completed copy of the ballot was then
placed inside a manila folder and left on the
registration desk, in my opinion, very insecure.

I went to vote at my polling place (Mater Christi


School) around 4:45 pm only to find a very long
line. After standing in line the word was passed
down through the crowd that there was not
enough ballots, the people in charge where
trying to get ballots from other polling places. It
was discussed in the line that there seem to be
some confusion (poll watchers) as to how to
vote without the proper ballot. Several people,
including myself just went home the moment
we heard that. Note: the media is reporting
about a dozen people didn't get to vote, I seen
a least that many walk away including myself at
one polling center, what about across the city?

This voting process was very unusual and


suspect to irregularities, I have no faith in the
outcome. We went to our usual polling place at
Eagle Point school only to be told to go to Mater
Christi, which is nowhere near our home. We
then found ourselves in a long line, with
hundreds of people milling about in a small
space, very chaotic and understaffed. There
was only one voting machine, causing a big
backup, took us an hour to vote. I observed
people leaving as they had to pickup kids or
make supper for their family. This was totally
unnecessary and appeared contrived to
dissuade people from voting. Then when I read
that they did not have enough ballots and went
to written forms, which were not controlled, the
whole vote became suspect to manipulation. I
laughed at the Democrat's caucus process in
Iowa, but I think Albany surpassed them with an
unprofessional and highly suspect vote for a
huge bond issue. We sent a message to the
school board the first time, we do not approve.
It appears they were not happy with that answer
so they came back again and perhaps
contrived the answer they wanted.

I went to cast my vote for the Albany High


School proposition with three other eligible
people. Not one of us was asked for
identification. No one in the polling area when I
was there was asked. The people collecting
signatures were unknown to me, so they had
no idea who any of us were. I could have
returned and voted my way multiple times.

I voted at Mater Christi at 4:15 pm. There were


no ballots left. I waited for 30 minutes. After
the wait, I signed in at the registration book and
my name was then printed by the school district
employee onto a separate clip board. She then
handed me a piece of paper that I checked a
box on. It was not a ballot. I checked the box I
desired and then stood with the document for 5
minutes. I asked her where I filed the
document and she took it from me and placed
in a pile under the sign in book on the
registration table. There was no secure
location for my vote. It looked like it was placed
in a manila folder on the table. I have concern
that my vote left unsecured and could have
been uncounted. When I left the polling place
there was a very long line. I explained to the
people in the line - that there was two lines one for the first half of the alphabet and one for
the second. There were no signs - so people
were waiting in the wrong lines. My husband
arrived to vote and left - returning to vote later
because the line was too long.

I was supposed to vote at ASH. I arrived after


work. The lines were very long. Finally as I
neared the head of the line, the ballots ran out.
The staff told us they had called 30 minutes
before to say they were low on ballots. They
tried to call again and their call went to voice
mail. After waiting longer to see if ballots would
arrive, I finally had to leave at 6:25 as I had
another meeting I had to attend. Many other
people were arriving as I left. There were
probably 50 people waiting when the ballots ran
out plus those coming in as I left. I was there
over 45 minutes and did not get to vote. I do not
believe this voting process passes the sniff test!

My wife & I went to the old School 16 on N.


Allen St at 3 on Tuesday. We had a short line 8 10 people lined up to sign in. I noticed a line at
the 1 (?) voting machine & no one was using
the voting machine. It turned out it was
jammed. A worker was opening & closing the
machine. He called someone (Albany County
BOE ?) an stated that it would be at least 20
minutes for some one to show up to fix the
machine. We could slip our ballots in a slot in
the machine to be counted later. That is what
we did. Why not have 2 machines? Cost?

My polling place was moved and I was not


notified ahead of time. My neighbors had the
same experience. I voted but they did not- One
because she did not know where the North
Albany Academy was and the other because
she was afraid of that neighborhood after dark.

My wife and I experienced a slight delay in


voting. We arrived at 10:00 a.m. at Mater
Christi. We found two tables set up to serve 4
different sections of the alphabet. Two
worker/volunteers were stationed at each
section.Two individuals were ahead of us at the
last part of the alphabet.
The workers were both helping a man who was
at the wrong polling place; they directed him to
ASH based on their review of their green
pamphlet.
Next an elderly lady occupied the workers
because she was also at the wrong polling
place. Based on her street address they
directed her to Eagle Point School, completely
across town!
Our turn was next and we voted without delay.
Who knows if the two people who were redirected ever made it to vote.

Upon entering the Pine Hills Elementary school,


there were three lines for voting. No direction
was given by personnel as to what the lines
represented. The voters in line had to inform
newcomers of the apparent alphabetical
assignment of the lines. When a voter
approached the registration table, my husband
and I observed that the personnel often did not
check signatures. In addition, a child was
passing out the paper ballots. Also, there was
no instruction given as to where to place those
ballots. People wander around the machine,
placed ballots in the wrong spot or simply left.
We stood by the machine and told voters for a
time where to correctly cast their ballots. One of
the personnel eventually started collecting
some ballots in a manila envelope even though
there was there was an emergency slot on the
machine for that purpose.

The link on the Times Union article to this site


is broken - you get a Page Cannot Be Found
error. It is on this page:
http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/AlbanyHigh-project-opponents-mull-legal-challenge6820498.php
You are probably losing a lot of people with
stories.
The link is coded as:
http://www.albanytaxpayers.org%2C/
The "%2C" needs to be taken off.

I was personally able to vote after waiting 30


minutes at School 19, however 2 people I was
with were forced to leave due to the wait. The
issue was the long, long line. I saw people who
saw the line just turn around and walk out.
People didn't know there was two separate
lines depending on last name because no one
there got out of their seat to address it. The
whole thing seemed like amateur hour. It's hard
enough to get people out to vote to begin with
and then these shenanigans take place. No
question that people saw a gigantic line and
said to hell with it.

I personally was able to vote in the correct


place . This is because I knew from a prior
mistake and the fact that I work for the city and
as a poll insp that my regular election and
school board site were different. Once there the
site was not well marked set up properly and
minimumally staffed. They could barely take
care of me at 8 am . I am sure they had great
difficulty later in the day when people were
more inclined to vote. The general public can
barely handle voting at the correct place for
general election . what better way to get your
proposal passed than to not have people able
to vote . I do not feel the board did a good job
letting voters know where when to vote and
especially the Truthfulness of the the proposal
without the smoke and mirrors routine that has
been going on. Have the election the same as
the general during a primary or the regular like
it was in November it's easier and fairer for
everyone

I went to my regular voting location (Partridge


St Hybernian Hall) only to find no one there.
Went to School 19 on New Scotland to find that
was where I was to vote. Never received any
notification of any change in where I would vote
for the HS school vote. How many just didn't
vote because they didn't know where they were
supposed to go? It was just pot luck that I had
the time to drive around to find my voting
location.

I voted up at Eagle Point and the machine was


down, wouldnt accept the ballots. Which at this
point I was waiting for 20 minutes for the lady to
fix the machine. She decided to have us all
feed the ballots through a front slot (on the
machine) that appeared to just drop down to
the bottom of the machine.
How were they differentiated from the previous
counted ballots? How were these ballots
counted? Where they combined with those
ballots already counted? Did they reopen the
machine and feed them through the normal
process? Are they just left at the bottom and
hand counted? If so at what point?

My wife and I walked in to vote @ 6:00p.m. @


The Albany School of Humanities. I knew
something was wrong right away as the 2 lines
were almost out the door. We waited for 10
minutes, and the line never moved. During that
time, only one person voted... the voting booths
were empty.
The people manning the tables seemed to be
doing everything in their power to "slow" the
process down. No explanation was given for
the slowness of the lines...
Returning Later @ 7:30, it took us twenty
minutes to move through the line. I doubt that
there were 10 people in my line at that time.
When I got to the table I gave the person my
name, Charles George. My wife, Mary George
had just voted. The person looked at me
blankly as if she had no idea how to find my
name in the list. I looked down for her and
said, "Here it is!" right here.. I'll just sign and
move along... She didn't appear too happy
about this happening so quickly! My name was
next on the list right after my wife's name, This
should not have been a problem.
The people manning the table were not helpful,
and did not appear to want to help.
It looked to me like a deliberate attempt to
make the process so difficult that people would
give up and leave....

At Albany School of Humanities, I waited in line


(that was moving at a remarkably slow pace)
for approximately 45 minutes. They ran out of
ballots when I was half way through the line.
Between 30-50 voters were in line at the time
they ran out, and because they had no
indication if or when they would get more
ballots, the majority of us left. I had an
obligation. Others that were coming into the
building as we were leaving turned around and
got back in their cars. This happened between
6 and 7 pm.
I also would add that even though I normally
vote at St. Sophia, there was a sign on the door
when we got there telling voters to go to ASH or
Mater Cristi. Many guessed wrong and ended
up having to wait in line at both locations.
Voters in line at ASH told us they also ran out of
ballots elsewhere.

Voted at 700 Washington Ave (AHS) around


4:20. This was the voting site for the 11th Ward
only, and my wife and I were the only voters on
hand. Our voter numbers as written next to our
names on a separate sheet by one of the poll
inspectors were said to be 37 and 38. The
DS200 ballot counter read 73 and 74 after each
of our ballots were scanned. Significant gap in
numbers - perhaps an issue, perhaps not.

My concern with voting was the fact that no


identification was checked.

I went to my polling place, Hibernian Hall on


Ontario St, but there was no one there. I went
to School 19. There was a long line. I waiteded
45 minutes, during that time several people
came and looked at the line and left. There
were two workers who had the books with the
names and one who handed out ballots. Never
have I seen so few workers at an election.
There was no way an elderly person would
have been able to stand in line to 45 minutes to
an hour.
I care less about the outcome of this vote than
the fact that we do not know what the results
would have been if it were run correctly.
It defies reason that such an important vote
would have had so few resources dedicated to
it.
How is it possible to the school board to certify
their own election? That is a clear conflict of
interest.

I attended the vote at the Montessori School


around 6 p.m. The person in front of me
obtained the last scanner ballot. I was given a
white sheet of paper entitled a "Paper Ballot"
and an accompanying Gray envelope with an
Affidavit typed on the outside of the envelope. I
was told to fill out the Paper Ballot and at the
table and put it in the Gray envelope and then
sign the envelope. I told them that I had seen
some conflicting information about whether an
Affidavit Ballot was legal, so they gave me the
phone number of a woman at the
Superintendent's office named Catherine, I
believe. I explained to her that I wanted to wait
for a scanner ballot and she told me that they
would be on their way. When I asked for a time
frame, she said she couldn't tell me. I asked if
they would be there before 9 p.m. and she said
that she could not guaranty that they would.
She told me to fill out of the white Paper Ballot.
When I went to complete the Paper Ballot and
then the Gray Affidavit envelope, I saw that it
called for a notary block. I asked for a notary
and no one there was a notary. So, I called
Catherine again. I told her about the Gray
envelope and she told me not to complete that
form. She told me to complete a Paper Ballot
and to put that in a white envelope to be
collected by the person running the poll. After
the call, I told the person running the election at
the school and he said that they didn't have
white envelopes and to fill out the Gray one. I
told him that Catherine had told me not to, so

I experienced significant delays at my polling


location.
First, it was the first time I've ever voted in that
part of the building.
Second, when I entered, it was a mad house. A
high volume of voters should never be the
reason that a polling location becomes overrun.
There was absolutely no structure to the
madness.
Third, I found the line furthest from the door
and went to the back. I waited a half hour to
inch toward the front. As I neared, one of the
poll workers directed a woman from another
line to get out of line and get into ours. He then
shouted that he told everyone to line up
alphabetically. Most people groaned and
switched lines. Some people shouted back at
him. It was unorganized and highly
unprofessional to engage in such behavior. I
will also note that he made no announcements
while I was there other than when he shouted at
the entire crowd trying to vote. Some people left
from line and others at the door never came in
to vote because of this madness. Signs would
have been helpful. Not being yelled at would
have been helpful too.

The line over at Mater Christi was ridiculous


long and my wife and I were just not able to
wait in a line of that magnitude. We have 2 kids
under the age of 2 so this was just not possible.
I am a patient person and I understand that
lines can get long but there was just something
not quite right about the situation. My wife and I
were very disappointed we were not given the
chance to vote.

I was not informed ahead where my polling


place is. When I got to the polling place where I
usually voted, I was told that it was transferred
to another place. I got to vote but maybe there
are other voters who may not have bothered to
go to the new polling place.

I arrived at the polling place at 610pm to find a


roomful of people (60-80) in three lines. [In
previous school votes there, I found 0-2 voters
and a process of about one minute.] A voter
directed us to get in the first line nearest the
door. There were three poll workers and one
small child (6-8 years of age) behind the
counter. As we advanced in the first line, the
male clerk asked our name and gave a ballot if
we had a last name from A-G, He pointed out
that lines 2 and 3 were for voters H-O and P-Z.
There were no signs advising this.The clerk in
the middle was handling H-O and also
recording all names on a yellow legal pad.
While I was near the front of line #1 the male
clerk stated that there were only 50 ballots left;
he made a phone call. As I was waiting in line
#2, clerk #2 left the room and returned with
more ballots.
After she had returned and voters were using
these copied ballots, a man complained that
the machine was rejecting these ballots. After
a few minutes it was determined to place these
ballots in the emergency bin on the machine. I
voted and left by 640pm.
The people were restless and complaining. I
do not know how many voters left the room
without voting.

My wife and I went to vote at Mater Cristi. The


line was so long that she missed an
appointment she had for 4:30. We were
appalled and shocked by the lack of booths and
privacy stands for so many voters to fill out their
ballot. It seemed like a 3rd world country with
only one machine for so many wanting to vote
and lack of privacy for our ballots. What a
disgrace and travesty on ourfreedom to vote
when it is so mishandled, or is it simply
manipulated ?
How can our schools be well administered
when even a local voting day
shows such incapability! Spending money on
educating parents&working
with problem students to build both skills and
morality would be far better
spent. It would keep more residents in Albany
who are leaving due to already being unable to
pay such high taxes; and this project assures
us they will soon go up again. It's not buildings
that teach children skills and
integrity; it's involved parents, teachers and city
officials showing commitment, caring and
honesty, and that means using resources for
their
benefit .... not for unsound power and politics.

while I was standing in line to vote there were at


least 3 voters that were at the wrong polling
place. Usually we vote at Holy Names, but it
was changed this time . It was confusing

I checked online on the morning of the 9th and


was informed that Ward 8 was to vote at 108
Whitehall.
We got to that voting site and were informed
(after a very brief wait) that our polling place
was Mater Cristi school.
The wait at Mater Cristi was too long especially
for my partner who cannot stand for more than
a few minutes without severe pain. We left &
due to previous commitments we were not able
to make another attempt. We would have
voted NO

There were no ballots when I arrived to vote at


the School of Humanities on Whitehall Road
around 6:30PM. After a wait of 1/2 hour we
were given paper absentee ballots to fill out. I
filled mine out and placed in in the slot of the
voting machine. It was not tallied electronically
and I'm not sure my vote was even recorded. I
was not even told where to place the ballot; I'm
assuming I put it in the right slot, but there were
no personnel around to ask. This was highly
unprofessional. There really should be a re-vote
because these irregularities call into question
the final tally, which according to reports was a
288 vote difference out of about 8000 cast.

I feel that your question of where we voted


does not matter as the process was botched
and rigged as the voting process was done by
the school board not the board of elections.
Since the vote was yes the fix was in and see
that the vote was yes there won;t be another
vote the school board won great for them sucks
for us that wanted to vote fairly and sucks for
us that now have to have taxes increased to
pay for the hs that is disrespected by the
students and disrespected by facilites, and the
school district for not tending to the up keep
now you want us to pay for bigger and better
when you could handle what was never
maintend thanks a bunch.
We have a neighborhood website that we post
info on. Many of responded this is my
response to the neighborhood site the second
post is my post that I put on Facebook and the
local news media.
Joe and everyone else. unprepared is an under
statement. My theory then you will really see
how bothced. ok If you take the numbers of
5300 expected to vote for the WHOLE city of
Albany divide by 3. Why three aprox average of
voters of age per housing unit such as house,
condo, apt. not whole apt building but each apt
unit that pays rent. Why I am figuring mom,
dad, and one child old enough to vote divide
5300 by 3 you get 1,766. Really the school
board thought that only 1766 units were going

I did not have problem when voting on 2/9/16.


However, I feel there are several issues why
this vote should be recalled.
1) Why was this referendum put to a vote in
February instead of May when school budgets
are normally voted on?
2) The school board has not been fully
transparent.
3) How is it possible that the school board was
not prepared for a large voter turnout when the
referendum so very important to all taxpaying
homeowners.?
4) We need to be assured that the "substitute"
ballots were properly secured and tallied and
that all absentee ballots were counted.

I went to Henry Johnson Library and when I told


the poller where I live she says "you have to go
vote at Hackett School". I said no I don't and
showed her the website showing my district had
many choices in where to vote including the
Library. I said, "by the way I want to yes". Her
eyes lit up and said "ok I then can give you a
paper ballot." It all seemed very shaky.
Especially her not knowing what districts could
vote there. I came to realize I could have voted
in every polling spot if I wanted. What is more
disconcerting is why couldn't people vote any
where they wanted? it seemed like a big scam
to me. Another black eye for this area.

There are many scenarios like my own, which


are provided here to document problems with a
local election system. I brought my aunt and
uncle to a school budget vote to Mater Christi
School. They are over age 80 and waited over
30 minutes to sign the register. The polling
station ran out of pens to mark ballots.
Relatives had no privacy marking their ballots.
They waited 25 minutes to record ballots, since
there was only one voting machine. Several
elderly people left having health problems,
which disallowed them from standing in long
lines to vote. There were no chairs to
accommodate the disabled or aged. No one
was available to help elderly into the structure,
and I now realize there was no public
announcement offering the elderly rides to vote.
With large crowds, there were fire safety and
security issues.
After bringing relatives home, I went to vote at
my usual location, Eagle Point Elementary
School, where I waited 25 minutes in line to
sign the register. They were mandating that
inspectors write down the name and address of
every voter. They told me they were "ordered"
to do that. I questioned the legality and asked
permission to review the register they were
creating; it did not have any institutional name
on it. I was not sure who would retain
information or if it would be made public. They
did not find my name in any register and
directed me to All Saints School. (The

The first time I went to vote there was a man


standing outside the entrance to the school. He
announced that there was at least a one hour
wait to vote. I and five other people entering at
that time turned around and left. It was about
4:45 pm.
I came back about 6:30 and again the lines
were astounding. I was determined to wait and
so I did. I did witness several couples give up
and leave however.
I do wonder about the other people who left at
4:45. Did they ever return? Maybe work or
personal obligations made it impossible for
them to try to vote againn.

I went to School 16 just after 7am, but after I


filled out my ballot I found that the machines
were not working. They instructed me to put
my ballot in an envelope and they wrote my
name on the envelope and told me to come
back. I went back after 9am, and they gave me
the envelope back and I placed it in the
machine.

Our family encountered process irregularities


while voting at Pine Hills
Elementary School, 41 North Allen Street,
Albany, NY. We have contacted the Albany
County Board of Elections twice to report the
issues we encountered, but they have not
returned our calls. We thought we would
provide this summary of our concerns in the
hopes that appropriate action will be taken to
nullify the vote and order a re-vote at a later
date.
My wife went to vote at 11:30 am on Tuesday,
2/9/2016 and encountered serious
disorganization -- polling staff asked individuals
to yell out their names in order to get voters into
the right lines to sign the registry and obtain a
ballot. Next, there were no privacy screens in
place at the tables where one fills out their
ballots. No pens were available to complete
ones ballot; voters were encouraged to borrow
another individual's pen after they completed
their ballot.
My daughter and I reported to the location to
cast our votes a little after 6 pm on Tuesday
evening. We encountered the same
disorganization in that no signage was in place
to organize voters into lines to sign the registry.
A young man finally yelled out for voters to get
in three lines based upon the first letter of their
last name. Staff at the registry tables were
passing registration books back and forth as

When I went to vote yesterday at the ward15


voting location, Eagle Point school, the set up
did not comply with handicapped access
regulations, making it difficult and in many
cases impossible for elderly hanicapped
individuals to vote.
Also several people who went to the
Presbyterian church on Western Ave in Albany,
our normal voting location , were directed
deliberately, by a note on the door, to Mater
Christi Church , New Scotland Ave. Out and
out lie. Confusion prohibited voters from ward
15 from voting.
Sleazy and underhanded tactics. Dirty election.
I call and insist on a revote.

I was at the School of HUmanties when they


ran out of ballots. I left and due to family
responsibilities, could not return. I was going to
vote YES, just like others who left. So, quit
stirring up the discontent, especially if you live
outside the City and this doesn't affect your
property taxes.

We are temporary out of the country and spent


over $80 going back and forth with ballot.
Election should have been held during normal
election process in November by Board of
Election and not by the school board during a
time when voters may be away for winter
months. question...if the school board had won
this past November when it was voted on would
they have held this second voting process???

I arrived at Hackett Middle School and saw no


signs indicating it was a polling place. Further
investigation led me to one small sign near the
south driveway. I followed it to a locked door
"out back (c.10 AM). Knocked (no response). I
was leaving when the door opened and I was
directed to a small back room where I was the
only voter (several election employees). Easily
my strangest voting experience in forty-plus
years in Albany.

I went to the library and waited for one minute.


I signed the book and voted. Parking was
ample and voting was easy.

We voted at Hackett and I was #410 and like


the people immediately in front of me, I
received an absentee ballot. They said they
might get more ballots in but couldn't be sure. I
was instructed to put my name and ballot
number on the outside of an envelope and the
# inside on the informal ballot. We got there at
8:10 voted at 8:30.

I just want to register my total lack of


confidence in the Tuesday vote.The ineptitude
of the school district "leaders" is astounding.
I was able to vote w/o incident Tues afternoon
at Montessori Magnet. However, by the time my
husband got there he was given a different type
of ballot that was then handed back to a
worker.

I just want to register my total lack of


confidence in the Tuesday vote.The ineptitude
of the school district "leaders" is astounding.
I was able to vote w/o incident Tues afternoon
at Montessori Magnet. However, by the time my
husband got there he was given a different type
of ballot that was then handed back to a
worker.

I voted at the school on Tremont Street Albany,


Tuesday evening, 2/9/16 at 6:42 PM.
There were no ballots, and I had to vote on
paper. When the individual took my ballot, he
put it in a manila envelop stuffed with dozens of
other ballots. No lock box, just a manila
envelope on a chair.
When I served in Iraq, a war torn, third world
Country, I as an MP oversaw security for said
elections.
even there, they had a lock box for the ballots.
Not in the City of Albany.
I feel that my vote could easily been changed or
tampered with.
I have no, no, no, confidence that my vote was
recorded as vote. I feel betrayed, and used. I
am a Veteran, and to have my vote stolen, as I
believe it was, is very traumatic to me.

Three people in my family voted at Eagle Point


at different times during the day. Everything
there ran smoothly. No surprises. In and out in
a few minutes. Nothing negative - except our
Neanderthal neighbors.

I went to vote at my regular voting place on


Western Avenue at 530 which I believe is
called all saints academy and was told there
was no voting at that site and they did not know
where to direct me. I had to spend time in my
car looking up voting places on my phone for
the correct site for my address. We did not
receive any post cards telling us the site had
been changed. I then drove to Mater Christi
school , had a great deal of trouble finding
parking, the line was out the door, and it took
me well over an hour to finally cast a vote. I'm a
senior and am fortunately able to do computer
searches on my phone. I know that there are
many who are not and most likely gave up and
went home. At the voting place there was only
ONE machine for hundreds of people. I was
told this same location had also run out of
ballots earlier. I was very disheartened at how
this vote was managed. It felt like they were
trying to make it hard for people to vote. I would
like to see the current vote disqualified or at the
very least a second vote held for those who
were unable to vote.

I was not informed where I was to vote, had to


find the location myself.I agree with TU there
should be a revote.Our taxes are too high.Why
can't they rehab the building.It seems ridiculous
to spend millions and have our taxes increase,
for some students to cause destruction.The
money could be spent more efficiently.Would
like to leave NYS. Kathy Sheehan is too
frivolous with our money. Not a good rep for the
city of Albany. She does not have our best
interests.

I was not informed where I was to vote, had to


find the location myself.I agree with TU there
should be a revote.Our taxes are too high.Why
can't they rehab the building.It seems ridiculous
to spend millions and have our taxes increase,
for some students to cause destruction.The
money could be spent more efficiently.Would
like to leave NYS. Kathy Sheehan is too
frivolous with our money. Not a good rep for the
city of Albany. She does not have our best
interests.

The ballot I got said absentee ballot. The


machine that was there to take the ballot was
beeping so the gentleman that was there said
to shove it into the slot.. I was given an envelop
to put my ballot in. The lines to vote were long
and not properly identify until you were close to
the desk. The school I voted from had a school
function going on and parking was hard to find.

My wife and I went to vote Tuesday at Eagle


Point Elementary school at 1044 western ave.
When we got there we were handed a ballot but
when we went to the voting machine to scan
our ballot it wasn't working. We were told to put
the ballot in a tub under the machine. This was
unaccepatable to me. How do we know if our
ballot was counted and how do we know it was
registered properly? It made me question the
whole process. When we went home we called
the board of elections line and were told that
this was happening at other sites also. This
makes me question how the whole process
was handled and weather it was an honest
process. I feel the election should be done over
and the next time there should be enough
ballots and everyone should have a chance to
vote and the machines should be in proper
working order.. In this day and age it is mind
boggling that something like this can happen.

My polling place was locked!

My polling place was locked and I was not told


of the change in polling locations.

I was unable to vote due to the change of


polling location and no information regarding
the change.

I served as a poll inspector at North Albany


Academy. I witnessed quite a number of
people being shuffled around to various polling
places. One in particular, had a mailing from
the district, saying he was to vote in North
Albany. He was showing this to the two other
inspectors, Willie and Simone, and they
agreed, but our book said he was to vote at
Arbor Hill Library. He was disabled, clearly, and
had walked here, and now had to walk back to
the Library. There were numerous people from
his area, who were told wrong. Messed up. I
did vote.

I was not aware of the change in polling


location. When I finally found out where to go, I
was not even IDed before voting!

My polling location was changed and I was not


aware until I tried to vote at New Covenant
Presbyterian Church. Once I got to the right
place, I was not IDed and was able to vote.

My polling place was not holding votes and I


was unable to vote because of this. No-one
informed me of the change in polling locations.

We (Margie & Barry Manning) live in the Albany


Shaker Park area off Albany Shaker Road. We
have in recent years voted in the Atrium
Nursing Home on Henry Johnson Blvd. And we
voted in the first AHS proposal there. This last
vote we went to the Atrium and found that this
was not the voting place and the resectionist
said many people have come in to vote from
this area but she did not know where to send
them or us. When we actually found where to
vote (school #20) we were only #'s 14 and 15 to
vote. When we told the people at the polling
place of the confusion their response was "we
wondered why no one from the hill had come
in". My wife called the School Board to
complain she was greetedabrup t ly and told
that notices were sent out informing voters of
the polling location change, which we believe
not to be true because we asked many of our
neighbors if they had received a notice and not
one had. We believe this was deliberate to
exclude the Shaker Park area from voting
because most of us are homeowners and are
aginst the New AHS proposal.

Voting was poorly publicized:most people didn't


even know there was a budget vote taking
place.
The distance to the polling place was a
hardship...no direct bus access, too far to walk.
Thank you for initiating this survey

Was able to vote "NO" but definitely am upset


with how this vote was conducted!!! Would the
shortage of ballots be accepted in a PRIMARY
ELECTION....I THINK NOT....WHAT IF THIS
WAS FOR THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED
STATES? WOULD THESE PRACTICES BEW
CONDONED?
l AM TOTALLY IN FAVOR OF ANOTHER
VOTE!!! OUR "NO" VOICES WERE HEARD
ONCE BUT FELL ON DEAF, DEFIANT EARS,
LETS TAKE BACK ALBANY
VOTERS....CHEERS FOR MIKE CONNERS
FOR TRYING TO MAKE THIS
HAPPEN....THANK YOU

I was at the New Scotland Elementary School


approx. 3:15pm . I was fourth in line and was
told the voting machine was jammed. Neither
of the people working at this location had any
idea how to deal with this. After multiple calls
and 25 minutes later it was decided that they
would use hand written votes which would be
dropped into a slot. 30 minutes later I voted.
During this time several people left without
voting. Witnessing this confusion makes me
wonder if these votes ever made it anywhere
and if they were ever counted!! The entire thing
was disgraceful and this vote should be redone.
At this point I have no faith or trust in this
system. With the amount of school taxes we
pay we should have a loud and clear voice in
this decision!!!!

We (Margie & Barry Manning) live in the Albany


Shaker Park area off Albany Shaker Road. We
have in recent years voted in the Atrium
Nursing Home on Henry Johnson Blvd. And we
voted in the first AHS proposal there. This last
vote we went to the Atrium and found that this
was not the voting place and the resectionist
said many people have come in to vote from
this area but she did not know where to send
them or us. When we actually found where to
vote (school #20) we were only #'s 14 and 15 to
vote. When we told the people at the polling
place of the confusion their response was "we
wondered why no one from the hill had come
in". My wife called the School Board to
complain she was greetedabrup t ly and told
that notices were sent out informing voters of
the polling location change, which we believe
not to be true because we asked many of our
neighbors if they had received a notice and not
one had. We believe this was deliberate to
exclude the Shaker Park area from voting
because most of us are homeowners and are
aginst the New AHS proposal.

First went to my regular voting location, there


was a sign saying its not a voting location, call
school board- did that and was directed to vote
at Mater Christi, Had to go back to work; later,
about 4:45 went there and was advised by an
acquaintance I saw there that they were
running out of ballots. I verified this at one o the
voting tables- more ballots were coming they
said. Meanwhile they couldn't say when, the
lines were long, and I had an upcoming
appointment. So I could not vote, after two
attempts.

I arrived to vote at School 19 (New Scotland


Avenue) around 5:30 p.m. The waiting line
stretched out of the room where the voting was
taking place, and well out into the hall. If I had
to guess, there were 50-60 people in line. I
have voted at School 19 many times, and there
has never been a line of more than three or
four people before.
My wife is disabled, and I cannot leave her for
more than an hour or so at that time of day. I
had already been away for a half hour at
evening services at Temple Israel, and I
guessed that the wait to vote would be at least
an hour (the line did not appear to be moving),
so I went home without voting.
As noted, my wife is disabled, so she votes by
absentee ballot. We could be wrong, but we do
not recall her receiving an absentee ballot for
this referendum.

Good Morning,
While attempting to vote on Tuesday I checked
the website for the polling
place.(albanyschool.org) I live in Ward 8 and
the site indicated Mater Christi. I went to Mater
Christi and attempted to vote but was told I had
to go to School of the Humanities down on
Whitehall Road.This is approximately 2-3 miles
away.It is my opinion that this election was
made difficult for people to vote and I hope you
proceed with your lawsuit.Thank~you for trying
to help us ! Molly Larson

This is Regina Dew, again. Just got off the


phone with Catherine Culligan? and the School
Districts Lawyer, Paul?, listening in. She had
called me earlier wanting to talk to me later. I
told her my time limits, need to be at the
Doctors at one. By 11;30 they had not
called....tried tracking her down and finally
succeeded....she tried to blow me off, saying
she talked to me at the polls, and quoted me as
saying I said everything went well....I said not
quite and related the story of numerous people
with printed material from the school
district...sending them to the wrong. Being one
of the few caucasian poll workers, I feel not
heard.

i can not express my outrage enough!. It


started when I went to St Sophia to vote. A note
on the door stated I must either go to the ash
school or all saints. I figured I would go to all
saints, Upon arrival i waited in line 1.5 hours to
find that I was in the wrong place. I then drove
to the ash school to find that there were no
ballotts available to vote with. I was told that
new ballots were on the way . I waited another
hour and fifteen minuets. I then asked if anyone
knew of when they might arrive. I was given a
phone number to call that was constantly busy.
I again asked if anyone could assist me , I was
told I could write my ballot on a piece of paper. I
was amazed by the level of apathy and
incompetence that was I receiving. I was
growing more and more frustrated because I
had to make dinner for my family and wasted
so much time for an event that should have
taken only minuets to complete. In conclusion
as a taxpayer I feel that the vote is tainted and
incomplete. I would have loved to cast a vote
that concerned my family and wallet. I just feel
that in a vote that was very very close in count ,
That my vote would have mattered. Where is
the accountability to make sure each tax payer
has a fair and equal opportunity to vote on
important matters?

When I got into the School of the Humanities,


Whitehall Road, there was no one in front of
me. I said "hello", two women and one man
were looking for something and couldn't agree
on it, and they let me wait for about 5 minutes
without giving me my ballot.
It seemed that there was complete confusion. I
said to the man, who came after I did,
"confusion"," that is what we need.".
Once I got my ballot, it took me less than a
minute to fill it out and successfully scan it. My ballot was counted. Please to
not publish my name,etc.

Our polling place was changed to the Hibernian


Hall a few years ago. On Tuesday I went to
vote on Ontario Street, no voting, I proceeded
to previous voting place at the previous School
#19, on New Scotland Ave. I was able to vote
there. Machine was jammed, so votes were
deposited in a drawer under the voting
machine. I feel that leaves big chance of
human error, both being lost in the shuffle or
counted incorrectly.

When I came up to the table to sign the register


and receive my ballot, I was asked to give my
name and also my address. It was checked by
the woman with the register (for verification?),
but also written down separately in another
notebook . The woman writing in the notebook
had trouble with my address and asked me to
give it several times, then the woman with the
register told her not to bother asking me as she
could give it to her from the register. After that,
a number was assigned to my name that I
believe may have been the ballot number, and
it was written down next to my name in the
notebook.
I found this unusual, but I assumed that the
ballot and the notebook would be collected to
separate locations. Since they were not, the
school district is in possession of material that
allows them to easily determine how I and each
person in my ward voted, and connect each
ballot to each name and where we each live. I
don't know if it's illegal to collect the information
this way, but it is certainly irregular, as well as
uncomfortably open to abuse.
I know only the first name of only one of the
women at the table (I read it off her name tag),
but these women were doing what they were
instructed to do and are not the source of the
irregularity.
I would feel more secure if I knew these
materials were destroyed, or at least
dissociated from one another. I would like to

Voted at Mater Christi around 7:00PM. Took


over 30 minutes to complete the process. No
one was coordinating the operation and the
place was packed, so there was mass
confusion. The problem at that time was that
they only had one (1) voting machine, so it was
the choke point in the process. Five people that
I knew got fed up and walked out without
voting. At least two people that I didn't know
walked in, looked around and said they were
leaving because the hassle wasn't worth it. I
and one other person that I spoke with were
back a second time after having come first
around 4:00PM only to find that they had run
out of ballots and didn't know if they could get
more.

The process was completely smooth at Hackett


Middle School at about 5-m. Everything went
just fine.

I had an approximate 20 minute wait in line.You


could here someone yelling that we have run
out of ballots but more care reroute,we just
don't know how long it will be before the ballots
arrive..
I was handed a "ballot"told to place my vote. I
then returned it to the gentleman who handed it
to me.I am not sure if my vote was ever
submitted to the Board of Elections??

We went to our normal polling place to vote and


was told there was no voting there and they did
not where to go to vote.

My wife and I awaited at least a 3/4 hour wait at


Delaware Community school. The people at
the the sign-in desk were terribly inept and
flustered with the whole voting process.
We vote in every election and the process did
not follow the usual way things are done when
voting. We did sign the book with our
signatures but there was no "count" or
"number" that usually occurs to keep track of
the voters which seemed very odd.
In addition, some people came to vote and
when they were not in the "sign in" book, name
and addresses were taken, no id asked for but
were still given a ballot to vote.
I mentioned to my wife at that time that if this
was the case throughout the polling places,
people could vote numerous times.

My experience with voting irregularities started


with the misleading postcard funded by the
campaign fund of Mike Connors and continued
with the misleading and destructive sounding
robocalls (2 in fact) from the mystery voice
known as "Adam. I found it highly and
suspiciously. questionable that Connors was so
deeply involved in derailing the AHS renovation
vote. His behavior and tactics are beyond
disgusting and are totally unexplained. His
position on this matter to fight and obstruct all
efforts to improve the very degrade highschool
environment strike me as inherently immoral.
His position as a county official bears no
relationship to the levee of taxes in Albany., He
lives in Colonie/Menands, NOT ALBANY. He
has no business meddling in the affairs of the
Albany City School District. Property tax rates
for the City and County are separate from the
school district taxes, which are manged,
monitored and accounted for by the Financial
Officer of the School District. Today (2/12) a
robo call came from Connors referring voters to
this website. I called the District office to inquire
why Connors persists in picking a fight instead
of offering his experience and expertise in
reaching a positive outcome for AHS's
renovation needs and all interested parties. As
far as I can determine, the Feb. 9 voting
glitches were unfortunate and revealed
inexperience in the staffing of polling sites
rather than any nefarious purpose to skew the
vote. The underestimation of how many voters

I voted with a paper ballot at the Albany School


of Humanities on Tuesday night in the 7pm
hour. While there, they were handing out one
sheet of 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of paper to vote with.
No envelope included. When I went to vote, a
tall, blond man, who I did not remember seeing
in my line to sign the book, stepped in front of
me, and attempted to stuff a very thick
envelope into the top slot of the voting machine,
where the electronic ballots would have went.
Since that wasn't working out for him, he
stuffed this very thick envelope, obviously
stuffed with several pieces of paper, into the
blue-colored Emergency Ballot slot. He had
trouble getting it in, it was that thick. There was
absolutely no oversight of the lone voting
machine at that site. No representative of the
City School District of Albany was near the
voting machine. I could have easily have taken
out or placed extra ballots in that slot. No one
was watching. The emergency blue box was
stuffed full. Too easy to grab them out. Albany
City Common Council Member Jack Flynn was
way too close to the voters, even next to the
voting machine, and definitely too close to
those in line. Very uncomfortably close. I told
the school district to check their video, to verify
my claims. No oversight what so ever at ASH
when I was there to vote in the 7pm hour.

I arrived at the Montessori school to vote at


7:15 a.m. When I went in, they told me they did
not yet have ballots or the voter name registry.
They had called & said they should arrive in 15
mins. I waited in my car until 7:45 and then had
to leave for work. I only live a few blocks from
Montessori, so I had wanted to vote on the way
to work, in Menands, since I had a commitment
in East Greenbush after work, that would last
past 9:00 pm. However, since I knew the vote
would be close, I left work early to come back
to Albany to vote at 4:45. The women working
there were surprised to see me and told me
they did not get the things needed for voting,
until 8:15 am - and mentioned they had been
locked up somewhere downtown. I want to
mention that I did vote YES - but I still believe
another election is warranted because people
were deprived of their due process. I am
disappointed that the school board is thinking
only of themselves and not the community in
basically saying 'Tuff luck'. I am also
disappointed that Mayor Sheehan does not see
the automatic need for another vote. Thank
you for this opportunity to voice my opinion.

No place to park except for one empty spot.


Expected a number of people inside - not so.
Only one person ahead of us. Why was there
no available parking for the voters? POOR
PLANNING!

I went to to polling place that I was instructed by


mail. Only to be told that I was not listed in the
roll. I told them where I lived and they said I
should probable go to the Pine Hills Elementary
School but they were not sure. I went to the
Pine Hills Elementary School and I was listed
on the roll. I was given a ballot but could not
enter it in the machine because the machine
had jammed and nobody know how to clear the
jam. I then put my ballot into the emergency
slot.

We had to find out were to go to vote, and I


believe we should have to vote again for the
school board do to all the difficulties that
happened

we got to the polling place went in on the side


of Russell Rd door was open once inside there
were no sign telling where to go to vote.when
we found the room that it was in . the room was
so small you could just get around the table to
vote .it was a bad location for elderly people to
find and to vote
there was nobody else there to check to see
that all was done legally

While registering to vote, I was informed by the


election monitors that the machine was
jammed. I was further informed my ballot could
be placed in the "emergency box" located
under the machine. I noticed several other
voters doing the same, then immediately left
the building. Others formed a line to the right of
the machine waiting for the machine to be
cleared. As I placed my ballot in the
"emergency box", I noted several other ballots
that had been placed there by other voters
before me. At no time was ever any assurance
that the paper ballots like mine was to be
integrated with the electronic tabulations.

the place was closed and i was not able to vote

I had absolutely no problem voting at my polling


site. I always vote in every school board
election, so unlike some of these "fair weather
voters" , I knew where my polling place was. I
walked in, had friendly and helpful poll workers,
voted with no problems whatsoever, and went
on my merry way. My husband also had no
problem voting at our polling location. FYI, this
is not a grassroots action. This is old machine
Albany politics at it's best. Show some
backbone and put your names out there,
people. I have to to put my name on this form
in order to submit a statement, but you don't
have to put your name on here for me to know
who I am telling about my experience? Shame
on you.

I personally was able to vote (stood on a long


line, snaking up and down the hall), but
witnessed others who walked in and simply
could not wait in that kind of line and I saw
them turn around and leave. This was around
5 pm. I was told that they had run out of
ballots, which might explain why the line was
stalled for so long.
I have never in my 10 years of voting in Albany
(every election) seen such a mob scene at a
polling place.

Irregularities, my neighbor had to wait a long


time. She was able to vote; but when she
placed the ballot; the voting machine told her
that her ballot was stuck in the machine. She
had to call a representative to take the paper
out. They gave her a paper ballot; she is not
aware if her vote was valid or no. My neighbor's
name is Margie La Sala (518) 482-0636.
I went to vote before 9:00pm. All doors were
already closed before 9:00pm. I saw a person
in front of the school. I was able to go to the
library but I was not allowed to vote even when
other people were taking ballots to vote. This
was at Eagle Point Elementary School. My
name is Maria Onetti-Bischoff (518) 437-9456.

voted at eagle pt-not my regular voting placeonly 1 voting machine-didnot opened until 7

;23

my wife and I never received our absentee


ballots

Normally we vote at St Sophie's church, we


found out that moved us to Ash school. No
notice, no flyers were sent to us. Our neighbors
all around our neighborhood did not know
where to vote either. Many people just gave up
and didn't vote. Another election in the spring
should be held especially for the elderly and
keep us informed of where to go!

My husband and I were able to vote at ASH


around 7 pm, though there was a wait. The
ballots were just photocopied pieces of paper.
When we went to put our votes in a receptacle,
the receptacle was overflowing. Votes were on
the floor and on top of the bin. My husband said
he had to cram his vote in the bin. Anyone
could have picked up the votes that were
outside of the receptacle. Votes could have
easily been lost or discarded. Some were in
envelopes and some were not. I don't think this
vote was done properly, whatever the outcome.
I think there needs to be an investigation and
perhaps the vote done over. Why weren't the
votes scanned in as they have been in the
past?
Also, this is the fourth voting place we've gone
to in about a year. I had to make several phone
calls in order to find out where to vote. I think a
lot of people were confused about their voting
place. The people in line with me had gone to
vote elsewhere and were sent away to come to
ASH and they were not happy. I feel as if the
city made this vote as difficult and disorganized
as it could possibly be. Why can't we all vote in
our usual polling place using scanned forms as
is now standard? Why on earth was this such a
mess?

My experience in voting for the New Albany


High School on Tuesday, February 9, 2016 at
the Ash School of Humanities was during the
day, therefore I did not have as negative
experience as other voters during the morning
and late afternoon, early evening. But all voters
should have a positive experience. I did notice
a third person at the voting table writing down
my name, (after I signed on one tablet), on a
separate tablet of paper, which I believe
included my voting sheet identification number
which is against all privacy issues.
Prior to voting, I attended the meeting at
Martel's on Monday, February 1, 2016. I was
less than satisfied as the spokesperson
indicated if this vote doesn't get approved on
Tuesday, February 9th, it will never get
approved, (which is not true). Also, the facts
were misrepresented indicating there would
only be a $19 a year increase if you had a
home value of $150,000, but it wasn't until the
last question was it brought out the bonds were
maturing and the taxpayer would be receiving a
reduction in their taxes by $165, therefore the
increase would be $184 per year.
I agree there needs to be a new Albany High
School, but I totally disagree with the current
plan, a nine year plan costing the taxpayer an
exorbitant increase in taxes over a longer
period of time. This is a real estate transaction
and not just a scholastic transaction.

The persons running the school vote at the


location where I voted were completely
unorganized. They gave no instructions as to
what was happening. They ran out of ballots
two people ahead of me and gave us paper
ballots to use. Where I voted there were not
sealed envelopes as reported on the news. We
handed the ballots in and they were put in a file
folder. Everyone's together. Nothing secure
about that. From the moment I walked into the
polling place people were commenting on the
inefficiency of the workers and the
disorganization. Regardless of how anyone
voted, either for or against you knew what the
outcome was going to be. It just leaves a sour
taste in your mouth that the vote was not on the
up and up. At least let the people who take the
time to vote feel like their vote counts.
Otherwise, why even spend the time and
money to have us vote.

I first tried to vote at Olav Sholom Apt. where I


voted on the last Albany High School budget
and it was closed. Then I went to school 27
where I had voted years ago for the school
board and after waiting for some time in line I
was told I was in the wrong place and I should
go to Mater Cristi. After looking at the VERY
LARGE crowd my wife and I went home to
have diner and came back to vote at 8:30 still to
find the line out the door. When we got inside
there was 1 voting machine and the line was
like a coiled rope winding around the room.
How can we expect the school board to handle
such a large project and educate our children
after seeing such a fiasco!!!

Arrived at Mater Christi at 4:15 pm only to find


long lines and after twenty mins were told by
angry exiting voters that there were no ballots
available to vote. Poll persons announced that
forms would be coming up from downtown.
There was no time-frame so many people left
for various reasons. They were angry and in
disbelief of the situation. One lady was very
angry and said, "they are going to hear from me
about this". A news person setting up a camera
asked her if she wanted to go on camera and
she did. I had to leave the line to pick up my
Granddaughter at 4:45 pm from a classroom at
the school. On my return with my
Granddaughter I joined my husband in line. To
alleviate the tension and chaos they had
decided to hand out paper ballots. We voted,
folded the ballot and returned it to the man at
the table. He placed it in a manila folder. It is
from this point on that we do not know what
happened to our ballots. It was a chaotic
situation and the poll persons did not seem to
know how to handle what they were facing. We
left the poling site wondering if our votes be
they "yes" or "no" were really being counted. I
strongly feel that this vote should be put aside
and a proper vote be scheduled at a later date
to allow the resident's of the City of Albany to
express their "yes"or "no" vote in an American
Democratic Election. An election that we as
citizen's of the United States can be proud of
regardless of outcome. I also feel that it was a
huge conflict of interest for the Albany School

I experienced conflicting instructions and a total


lack of professionalism on the part of the
people working the vote. Screaming out
peoples names and addresses so that
everyone in the room could hear, inability to find
names in the book due to not knowing the
simple alphabet and confusion about who was
what number (a system I think is very suspect).

Attempted to vote, but the line was too long and


there was so much confusion that other people
could not wait as well. A total mess, was not
dealt with properly and I am very angry that I
lost my right to vote.

I voted at Giffen Elementary School at


approximately 7pm. They had run our of
machine-scannable ballots and were handing
out plain ballots with plain white see-through
envelopes. My concern is that the envelopes
were see-through and anyone could hold them
up to a light and see how the voter voted. The
voted ballots were not put in any secure bag.
The envelopes were just held in a pile on the
table where the voters were signing the poll
books. The scanners have a secure slot for
ballots when the machine goes down, but they
were not using it. I'm concerned that "No" votes
were destroyed or thrown away and replaced
with "yes" votes without the voter's knowledge.

It was utter chaos with voters being denied


proper ballets and many people
leaving with disgust for the lack of lack of
organization. The school board should be
ashamed and I hope there will be another vote
to gain a true vote.

Eagle Point Elementary School squeezed its


voting apparatus into an under-sized library,
which was not ADA compliant. The narrow
aisles between bookcases could not
accommodate a wheel chair or walker creating a chilling effect on any potential voter
with disability.
Furthermore, there was a McCoy for County
Executive lawn sign inside the entryway - a less
than subtle hint to voters that they were in
Democratic territory. And exterior signage was
limited and confusing. A most unprofessional
setup for an important election - or any election.

Polling place failed to provide "privacy folders"


to conceal completed ballots while we were
walking from the booth to the voting scanning
machine, making it possible for any observer to
look at our ballots. As I understand it, State law
requires the polling place to provide some sort
of privacy shields to protect the secrecy of
people's vote and we have always received
privacy folders in past elections.

WAS UNABLE TO VOTE AT ALLEN STREET


SCHOOL.
NO PARKING CLODE ENOUGH TO SCHOOL.
79 YEARS OLD, TOO FAR TO WALK FROM
BANK PARKING LOT.
DISGRACEFUL.

There was a small wet curled up paper sign


attached to a tree that said "Budget Vote".
There was no signage as to which door would
admit voters.
When I expressed this I got no response.
The admission door was behind a niche at the
side of the building near the dumpsters..again
no sign.
The ballot machine had several problems but
was finally fixed.
Successfully I voted but not without too much
confusion.

I arrived at Mater Christi school and joined a


long stationary line of voters. After about 20
mins voters exiting in anger told those of us in
line that there were no ballots. They had run
out. Later a poll person announced that ballots
would be coming up from downtown but there
was no time-fame as to when they would arrive.
The lines at this time were out the door and into
the parking lot. Many people left not being able
to stay for various reasons. They were angry
and in disbelief of the situation. One woman
said, "they are going to hear from me". She
spoke on camera with a reporter at that point.
As the situation got out of hand the poll
persons decided to do paper ballots to move
the lines along. We marked our ballots and
handed them in to a man signing voters in and
he placed them in a manila envelope. It is from
this point on that I do not know if the ballots
were properly secured as required by Election
Law. I do not know if they were in fact counted.
I strongly feel that this vote should be put aside
and a proper vote be scheduled for a later date.
I also feel that this whole process was a conflict
of interest for the School District to be handling
having suffered a close defeat in November. It
is obvious to me, although they say it was not
intentional, they were making a calculated effort
to undermine a "no" vote. It started with the
scheduling of a Feb vote date knowing
residents leave for the winter months - Failing
to print enough ballots necessary for a smooth
voting experience even though they had the

Voted against the measure the first time by


absentee ballot.
Feels they were singled out this time. Was
unable to get absentee, was told they had to
pick up ballot in person. Too elderly and unable
to do so. were lied to, could have had ballot
mailed to them. They were not told this.
Feel vote was stolen from them.
JL

Went to vote three times. First time waited in


line about 15 minutes only to be told they ran
out of ballots. Left returned about 45 minutes
later. Still no ballots. Told I could write yes or
no on sheet of paper. (Yeah I was going to do
that). Return about 20 minutes later and they
did have ballots. Waited in line that no one was
sure where it was going. Finally found a line
with my last name. Received my ballot and
then had to stand in a line with about 40 people
in it to put the ballot in the only scanner in the
room. Recently having major surgery this was
no easy task. Having lived in the City of Albany
my whole life I personally have never witnessed
such a fiasco!

I tried to vote in the morning around 7:45 but


there was no indication that this was the place
to vote. I walked around the outside of the
building then tried the Library around the corner
and my usual polling place. I returned at 3pm.
There was a long line due to the repeated
failure of the voting machine. After a short time
we were told that we could leave our ballots in a
slot under the machine and leave. Many
refused to leave their ballots after a while I gave
up and deposited mine. as instructed.
For future reference, I believe this site is not
suitable for such activities there are only a few
parking places and only one way in or out of the
lot.

I walked to ASH to vote . West doors locked


and no signs for where to vote . North doors
locked , no signs . East side had a small sign
and 2 doors open . Parking lot was full , it was a
school day . No one was waiting to vote , but
there was no place to park in lot . There was on
street parking but school doors there were
locked . I informed my 81 year old , property
owning , tax paying , mother , of the situation .
She did not vote . She had voted on Election
Day at her normal polling site , Saint Sophia's ,
where there was plenty of parking and signage
. Not to mention better weather .

In the fall of 2015, we voted at the Hibernian


Hall on Ontario Street. Last Tuesday, February
9th, we went back there to find out that this
wasn't the voting location. Fortunately, my wife
guessed that since no one was at the Hibernian
Hall that the proper voting location was at the
elementary school on New Scotland Ave.
There was no sign on the door or anywhere at
the Hibernian Hall directing voters to the correct
voting location.
When we asked about this at the elementary
school, one of the voting officials tried to tell us
that the last school vote was held at the
elementary school. This is not accurate .
I believe that the voting location should have
been made clear.

Lines waiting to vote They had set up 2 tables


for registration after people complained about
the wait.....There was confusion on the part of
the workers which table people should go to.
At one time one man had difficulty submitting
his ballot in the one machine that was there and
had to ask for help.
It was like mass confusion. I don't think they
were ready for the number of people that were
there to vote.
I have been voting since 1960 and have never
seen such poor preparation .

we went to 3 places before we found where we


were supposed to be... the wait was 15 or 20
minutes because people in front of us had had
the same problem and in many cases they had
no name recorded so had to do a write in ballot
and no one seemed to know where they
were.....too many people and too few workers

I did not receive any notification of the polling


place for the vote so I went to my usual voting
place (Convenant Presby Church on Western
Ave). There was a sign stating that the polling
place was at Mater Christi on Hurst Ave. I
thought this a bit odd, but went there and
waited in line only to find out that I should be
voting at Eagle Point - which is only few blocks
from my house! I heard at both places that
there had already been several problems. I
mentioned the incorrect notice at the church,
and I have to say it was a bit of struggle for the
person in charge to understand what I was
saying - she kept asking me what address I
was questioning. She finally did make a call
and said it would be taken care of. It took me
almost an hour to finally vote at a place I could
have easily walked to. I was wondering how
many others may have given up and never
voted - one way or the other. Thank you for
following through regarding this issue.

We went to our normal polling place to vote and


was told there was no voting there and they did
not where to go to vote.

Had problem finding correct polling place, long


lines after finding polling place. Had to return
with an I'll wife because of this and to top it off,
polling place was waiting on more ballots as it
had run out of number it was allotted. Several
people that wanted to vote left with us and
weren't coming back to vote unlike us.

My Wife and I both "voted" on N. Allen St.


When we arrived we were treated courteously,
however, the voting machine was not working.
And though a nice young man was trying to get
it fixed, we waited 45 mins, finally being told to
'just put it in the slot'. I have absolutely no
confidence our votes were counted. By putting
the ballots 'in the slot' it opened up numerous
opportunities for those who did not agree with
our ballots to assure they weren't counted.
However, we had no other choice as we both
had to return to work. I was told by others they
did not vote for that very reason. I was also told
by some that voting sites were not open when
they were supposed to be, other machines
were not operative, two neighbors COULD NOT
vote because there were not enough ballots
available. I am appalled by the way this vote
was handled, so-much-so I am discussing with
friends and neighbors the possibility of legal
action to invalidate the vote. Regardless of its
outcome each and every resident of Albany
should feel confident their voice was heard.

was not aware of my poling place...had heard


via news programs that pole places might have
changes but nothing on literature that I received
contained the poling location. Needed to go to
2or 3 locations to find poling place.One of the
lines at the poling place had to wait while a
voter who had also gone to numerous places
trying to find out where his poling place, finally
he was given a write in ballot because his name
was not found.Poling personnel express
concern that numbers on ballots didn't match
up when she was giving me my ballot.

I was able to vote but they had run out of ballots


for the voting machine and had printed ballots.
The staff seemed disorganized about waht to
do.
They also ran out of envelopes to put the
printed ballots in.
When asked about the turnout, the person said
it was a good turnout and hoped for a certain
result. That sounded like politicking which I
didn't think was allowed at a polling place.

Hello Michael....living in the Shaker Park


neighborhood we had to find out where to
vote...the block where School 20 is was coned
off to make for no parking...had to park across
the street from Sacred Heart Church... they
made it hard on the senior citizen Mike keep
up the good work. If you need help keep me in
mind. JE

Yellow election card sent us to St Sophia, sign


on door to go to ASH. Got to ASH about 6PM to
find long lines, very little guidance, and a wait of
10 minutes to find they were out of ballots. I
saw many (20-25) of my neighbors leave in
disgust. My wife went back to vote, I did not,
don't know about my neighbors?

I was unable to vote because the location


where I went to vote "had three ballots left". I
was probably the 15th person in line at the time
n

I had an approximate 20 minute wait in line.You


could here someone yelling that we have run
out of ballots but more are enroute,we just don't
know how long it will be before the ballots
arrive..
I was handed a "ballot"told to place my vote. I
then returned it to the gentleman who handed it
to me(who had full access to how I voted and
control over where my vote was sent).I am not
sure if my vote was ever submitted to the Board
of Elections??

We took our place in the already-long line at


Mater Christi School (we live in Ward 8) at
about 4 PM and had just made our way into the
main room (4:15 PM) when one of the poll
persons advised that there were no more
machine ballots (only one machine was being
used) and that arrangements were being made
to obtain paper ballots. 20 minutes later the
line began to slowly move forward again when
photocopied paper ballots arrived. In the
interim, 5 to 10 persons in our immediate
vicinity left the line (there was only one line until
you came to 2 tables set up to handle your
alphabetical placement) saying that they hoped
to return later but first needed to "pick up
children at school" or simply gave up. The
completed paper ballots were not secured:
some election personnel at the desks slipped
the completed ballots in folders: two others just
put the folded ballots under piles of paper on
their desk. When we left, we received the last
two paper ballots our election person had.
Note that one of our local TV stations had a
camera person present who can attest to the
size of the crowd, the length of the line, the
voters' frustration and the lack of direction and
supervision at the polling place. It took us over
one hour to vote.
The district's web site gave conflicting
information on your polling place depending on
whether you gave your street address or ward
number. The people directly behind us in line

there was a line of about 20 people long with 3


workers when i showed up the first time. I only
had 15 minutes before i had to go to my second
job and couldn't wait so i left to return later. the
workers seemed very confused and fumbling
with papers when people were trying to get their
forms to vote. I then returned at about 830 to try
again. again, another line, not as long but still
workers fumbling with papers trying to get
voters signed in. yet, only 2 workers this time.
One worker had a stack of ballots that she said
were "no good." she put them to the side and
told the other woman not to pick from that pile.
not sure if they were filled out ballots or not. i
then came to second in line, where the old
gentleman in front of me was just trying to get
his ballot and didn't know what to do, they had
him sign on a line that wasn't across from his
name, which i thought was odd. he then was
given his ballot. i then got to my turn, where
they couldn't find my name, so i found it for
them in the book, as it was next to my wife's
name who had already been there earlier in the
day. i made sure i signed the correct line, and
took my ballot. meanwhile 1 person was writing
my name down on a yellow notepad with a
number. i believe my number was somewhere
around seven hundred ninety something. i
voted and then as i was leaving saw the man in
front of me confused on how to cast his vote. i
showed him how to put it in the machine face
up, and we were both on our way. as i was
leaving i saw what seemed to be a third poll

I was able to vote myself, but it took over 45


minutes and there was incredible confusion at
the Mater Christi polling place. This was
between 5:15 and 6:10 p.m.
Ballots were not secure; no folders were given
to those standing in line to honor the privacy of
the vote. The marking stations were not
private. People standing in line to place their
ballots in the machine would have been able to
look over my shoulder to see how I voted.
The waiting time for me was 25 minutes from
the time I marked my ballot until I got to the
machine.
The voting machine was tended by a volunteer
who happened to be an employee of the Board
of Elections (so she said) who came in at 5:30
and saw the chaos. She was able to least help
with paper jams in the machine.
I personally saw three people with marked
ballots leave the polling site because they said
that they couldn't afford to spend the time
standing in line to cast their ballot. I can't say
how many came in, looked at the line and left
without voting, but I did see some who
appeared to be doing just that.
The Board needs to do this again. The slim
approval will be forever tainted if they don't do
so. And the board must realize that the bad
taste in the mouth could make it very hard to
pass the regular budget in May.

I completed this form from a link on the


electronic times union so not sure if you want
me to complete again. I received a phone call
from Mike Connors this morning stating that if I
had an issue I should complete... so I will do so
again just to make sure you receive it. I will be
brief: I felt the election site did not protect the
confidentiality of the vote based upon the way
in which the privacy screens were set up,
voters in line entering the classroom could
literally see which response I checked if they
wanted to. Next: the poll workers were
inadequate to the task, they never explained
what type of ballot we were using nor how to
use it. The only reason I knew how to use it
was because a woman ahead of me slid it in a
slot below the electronic reader b/c the reader
wouldn't accept it. I then stated loudly that we
usually submit our votes electronically to her
but I guess not today. She just shrugged her
shoulders. If there had been anything on the
radio/tv news stating that there was an issue, I
did not hear it. I seriously think this vote was
poorly run regardless of how I voted. It amazes
me that the board underestimated the number
of folks that were going to vote based upon how
close the prior vote was and the strength of
voters feelings about the reconstruction project.

We got there early AM,(VOTED NO),the only


problem we had was them finding our name.I
heard there were a lot of problems later on in
late afternoon.Hearing about those problems
and what I read in the TU I think there should
definitely be another vote in late spring,when a
lot of NO voters are back from the warm
south.SOMETHING STINKS about this whole
thing.DONT YOU THINK !!
Thanks
Bob Harper

I normally vote at St. Sophia Church on


Whitehall Rd. I went there to vote on Tuesday
and found a note on the door saying there was
no voting at thi location. Go to Mater Christi or
the school for the Humanities. You can also
callBoard of Elections. As it was after 5pm, I did
not think the Board of Elections would be open.
I went to Mater Christi and found very long lines
and told I needed to go to school of Humanites.
I was told by a person (wearing name tag) that
she was waiting for ballots as they had run out.
I witnessed people leaving.

I voted at the Pine Hills Elementary School


between 3:00 and 4:00 (don't remember the
exact time), but was unable to insert my ballot
into the machine because of a paper jam.
There were two people ahead of me, and a few
behind me with our ballots in hand. One of the
women came over and told us to place our
ballots into a slot underneath the machine
where they apparently fell into a box. As I left
with the gentleman who was in line ahead of
me, I said, "Well, now I know how election fraud
can happen." He shrugged and put his hands
out in kind of a "What are you gonna do?"
action.

I voted at the Pine Hills Elementary School


between 3:00 and 4:00 (don't remember the
exact time), but was unable to insert my ballot
into the machine because of a paper jam.
There were two people ahead of me, and a few
behind me with our ballots in hand. One of the
women came over and told us to place our
ballots into a slot underneath the machine
where they apparently fell into a box. As I left
with the gentleman who was in line ahead of
me, I said, "Well, now I know how election fraud
can happen." He shrugged and put his hands
out in kind of a "What are you gonna do?"
action.

I sent the wrong email address to you earlier.

We went to mater Christi at 8pm there was a


line out the door, people came and left not
wanting to wait in line. We got a ballot with no
identification required. No one was checked for
id. When we found the table for a ballot we had
to wait until someone finally came over to us.

I voted at the School of Humanities and since


school was in session there were not enough
parking spaces for voters. I had to wait until
someone left their spot. I usually vote at St.
Sophia on Whitehall Rd which has ample
parking. There was no accommodation for
handicapped voters.
Even though I had a chance to vote, I am
appalled how disorganized the voting was. This
was a very critical vote and affects everyone in
the city. How they underestimated the number
of people voting is complete mismanagement
and unfair to voters who were making the
commitment to vote. The waiting time and lack
of ballots is deplorable. This was definitely an
unfair vote and should be overturned and
repeated. The citizens of this city should 've
able to be heard.

The line to vote was wrapped around the


hallway and into the actual voting "room" at
Mater Christi school. We waited over 30
minutes to enter the room. The voting was
absolute chaos. An unidentified woman was
trying to "direct" traffic. The lines were getting
mixed up. People were lined up with ballots
waiting to put them in the machine while others
were right next to the machine waiting to sign
the book. There was absolutely no privacy.
There were not enough ballots at this location.
A large truck with an LED sign was driving past
the school urging people to vote for the
proposal. The truck drove right past the
entrance to the polling location and parked at
an intersection close to the school.

We went to our normal place of voting & denied


access. Told we needed to go to Monte Christi
by a stranger. Found Monte Christi school and
waited in line with over two hundred people in
confined space to vote
It was claustrophobic, overwhelming and
frustrating. My sister, Denise Prokrym had to
leave and was unable to vote due to the time
restraint. Others in line did leave. People had
small children with them, others had to go pick
up children. My mother, Margaret Tierney, age
82, was frightened. I have to hold on to her for
fear of being mauled or pushed by crowd.
There was over two hundred (200) people
waiting in line to get to the one and only voting
machine in the building. Finding our registry's
book and receiving a ballot took us over 2
hours. In line for ballot the woman manning the
registry got up and announced "I need a break,
I have to go" and left the table, leaving in
unmanned & leaving a huge numbers of people
angry. The crowd circled the room with
entangled lines of people attempting to get to
the one machine to place their vote. A neon
sign lighted and reading "VOTE YES" was at
the corner of the school with a group of adults
picketing with signs also reading "VOTE YES".
A woman walked out of the school as we did
and looked at us and stated
"fuck this, what a joke" , and left also not voting.
I believe this was an attempt to discourage as
many people from Ward 8 as possible to
abstain from voting NO as our Ward

I am disgusted with the way this was run and


can't believe this would be legally binding given
the documented irregularities. I waited over an
hour to vote. The woman in front of me had
voted at Mater Christi her whole life and they
told her she wasn't registered. They had a
huge truck with a lighted sign to vote in favor
sitting in front of the school. People left; they
couldn't wait an hour to vote. It was so
crowded and the lines were snaking in so many
directions there was no privacy to the voting. It
was chaotic. I can't even measure the number
who left. This must be overturned. The kindest
thing I can say is it is an embarrassment.
Please let me know how I can help with this.
No wonder realtors won't show anybody a
house in Albany.

I arrived at Mater Christi around 4:35pm. There


was a line and the people coming out of the
polling room were letting those of us in line that
they were running out of ballots. I stayed in line
while others left. I was being told to leave and
return later. I choose to stay. When I finally
reached the room, there were no written signs
of where I needed to be and which line. There
was no direction or communication other than
we have no ballots. You can come back later
or fill out this paper vote. I took the paper vote.
When I handed it back in, they had no idea or
manner in which to hold it safely. Some poll
takers put them in a folder, others under a
notebook, and some were left out on the table
mixed in with other papers. So, I left upset
knowing that my vote would not be counted
correctly. I went home to call the Board of
Elections only to be told by the City of Albany
that they were not responsible for the election
and couldn't help me. They did give me a
number for the county, which I did call. Security
answered the phone and had no idea
whatsoever what I was talking about or how to
go about helping me. REALLY?? Anyway, I
also learned that $10,000 was spent to put this
vote on, with my tax dollars... WHY?

Two voting machines --- no sign indicating one


was not in working
order. Ballots removed with no process
noticeable to insure proper
handling. Voters waited while workers seemed
indifferent to
situation.

I vote at school 27. The voting took place tin he


small library instead of the cafeteria. We were
packed in with long lines. There was virtually no
privacy to vote. The "privacy booths" were on in
a corner next to the tables where people were
signing in.
Unacceptable.

At 6PM, I went to St. Sophia, there was a sign


sending me to ASH. The line at ASH was long,
about 40 people. I waited online about 20
minutes and then a worker announced there
were no ballots. She said we were welcome to
wait or leave and come back. They had no
idea when the ballots would be delivered. I
went back at 730 and voted.

Although my husband and I were able to vote,


we found our polling place to be very difficult for
elderly and handicapped people. There was no
way to reach the voting area without walking a
considerable distance from any parking area.
My husband has health problems that prevent
him from walking too far. We would have
arranged for an absentee ballot, or used a
transport chair had we known how far we had
to walk. However, the polling place was not
where we regularly vote nor where we voted in
the last referendum, and so we were not
prepared. Also, the voting area was so confined
there was absolutely no confidentiality.

Voting date held when many voters are in


florida

You held a second vote because you didn't get


a yes on the first. Now have a third vote
because we didn't get a no on the second. It's
only fair, right? What a joke, why bother with a
vote to begin with?

I had no problem voting because I went early


enough in the morning, however, I didn't think
that the voting machine should have been
placed right in front of the officials who have me
the ballot and asked my address. The voting
machine was directly in front of them where
they could probably see my vote. In fact, later
on in the day when my husband voted, the
official who helped him cast his vote was trying
to look at his ballot. Other than this, nothing
else out of the ordinary. Thank you

AFTER MARKING MY BALLOT I TRIED TO


INSERT IT INTO THE MACHINE SEVERAL
TIMES. NOTHING! AFTER REPEATED
ATTEMPTS MY HUSBAND ADVISED ME
THAT THE MACHINE WAS NOT
FUNCTIONING. IN OTHER WORDS ...IT
WAS BROKEN. THAT LEFT ONE WORKING
MACHINE. DISTRICT PERSONNEL NEITHER
ADVISED OR BLOCKED OFF THE BROKEN
MACHINE. THIS OCCURRED AT ABOUT
1:30 P.M. CAN ONLY IMAGINE THE DELAYS
AND FRUSTRATION DURING THE BUSY
HOURS.

I have voted at ASH since 1990. When I got


there , my name was not in the books and I was
told I would have to go to Hoffman Parks and
Recreation. Later in the day, I brought an
elderly woman to her voting place, Mater
Christi. I waited 30 minutes. When she came
out she was unable to vote because there were
no ballots and workers had been waiting for a
delivery for an hour already! I saw many people
leave during that time.
Additionally, the vote was scheduled when the
Tax-base would be in Florida.

I first had to find my voting place online as I


wasn't notified. Since the polls were to open at
7AM I arrived at 7:30. It was at Hackett Middle
School but there was only one small sign by the
corner of Leonard Place(a small side street)
and nothing in front. After driving to the back of
the building I saw no signs but there was a door
with kids hanging around so I tried that and was
let in. There was a closed door that was pointed
out. I went in but was told by three women that
the machine wasn't working so I couldn't vote. It
seemed very suspicious, maybe they thought I
would vote no and didn't want me to vote. I
went back that evening and was able to vote
although it seemed very unorganized. The
whole process was very disturbing. It seemed
as though the school board was trying to rig the
election by not publicizing the date or polling
places, having it in the middle of February(I'm
sure that they were hoping for a blizzard),
running it so poorly that people would give up
and not vote and allowing many chances for
fraud to take place, including, but not limited to,
miscounting of the votes. The whole process
was a complete travesty and all involved should
be fired and/or charged with whatever violations
that apply.

I had to stand in a long line for over an hour. I


was outraged and finally left without voting.
How dare they! I am white, I own a very nice
home, and I have a high income. I should not
have to vote as if I were some poor person in a
poor neighborhood!

After a 13 hour day, I went to ASH to vote. Not


my usual place, which is St. Sophia's. The
reminder post card from the Albany School
Board did not state where the voting was taking
place, nor did it state the hours. I found both
online after some digging. When I arrived, I was
told by other voters that there were no ballots,
that they had run out 45 minutes earlier, and
the voting officials had no idea when they would
be getting them. Frustrated and angry. I headed
home.

When my wife and I arrived to vote at Pine Hills


School, around 2:00 PM, the scanner was
jammed or broken. We had to put our ballots
into the "emergency slot" so we don't actually
know if they were counted, or if someone could
have looked at how we voted before processing
them.

My ballot registered that my vote was counted


when it went through;however, the voting
machine jammed. The poll worker told me that
the ballot was counted but it didn't drop in the
basket. Now after hearing all these stories and
reading the different incidents in the newspaper
I can't help but wonder if they knew I voted NO
and the machine was set to discard my ballot
even though it said it was counted?
I wouldn't be suspicious but it seems there are
too many stories and incidents to just believe
what I was told. We need a revote for fairness.

I went to vote on Tuesday and waited in line for


30 minutes just to sign in. Then I had to stand
in another for 20-30 minutes to put my ballot in.
They only had one machine and there were
many people who left because of the lines.

My place to vote is at the Hibernian Club and it


was not open,there fore I was unable to cast
my ballot!

My polling location ran out of regular ballots. I


had to vote using a paper ballot. There was no
accountability regarding these paper ballots for
the voters picked them up from a stack and
were not handed to them by the election
inspectors. I picked up several trying to select
just one. My honesty made me put the others
back on the stack and hopefully others did as
well but there were no safeguards in place to
prevent someone from voting more than once.
I know the election inspectors were
overwhelmed with the volume of traciffic and I
fear things got lax near the end of the night.

While I did not have a problem casting my


ballot I have no confidence in the voting
process due to the reported irregularities and
the mishandling of the process by the School
Board.

The previous time the referendum was on the


ballot I voted at Atria Shaker on Henry Johnson
Blvd near Albany Shaker Road. On February 9
I arrived at Atria Shaker and was told the
location was changed to the school next to the
YMCA on North Pearl Street. I was never
notified of the change in location. I believe I
should have been notified of the change in
location by mail.

My wife and I went to our normal polling place


(new Scotland elementary) at approx 3:40pm.
Right away we were surprised that as students
were leaving school and parents were picking
up their children, we went into school and there
was no security AT ALL. Really anyone could
have entered school with no regared for student
safety! Upon reaching the room we normally
vote in - we were surprised to see a line that
overflowed out into the hallway. After standing
in a NON MOVING LINE for 15 minutes, I
finally poked my head in the room and inquired
why there was no movement. I did notice and
was surprised to see ONE VOTING MACHINE!
Also we were not informed of any problems by
the two election officials - turns out there was a
paper jam in the ONE VOTING MACHINE and
the two election officials had no idea how to
rectify the problem. We spoke up and
suggested a paper ballot and that suggestion
was accepted, however another 10 minutes
had passes and we observed 8 people turning
around and leaving, all stating the same
frustrating statement , that they didn't have time
to wait for this. When we finally got to the table,
we were both given a sheet of paper and pen
and were told to make our selection and put
paper in emergency slot. Which we did. Out in
the open, both myself and my wife felt their was
no anonymity or confidence that our vote was
counted correctly. The incompetence was
blatently obvious as was the timing of vote (mid
winter). We were sure if this passed (by the

I voted at Eagle Point elementary school. My


first observation was that there was no signage
directing you as to where to enter the building.
The door we normal enter when voting was
locked. To my dismay, I saw elderly people
walking with canes or with difficulty walking
around the building looking for the correct
entrance. There was no flag and no signs on
the Russell Road and Western Avenue
entrances. I entered and picked up my ballot. I
marked it and proceeded to what I thought was
a regular voting machine. I inserted my ballot,
and the machine said my ballot was already
marked. I panicked, thinking I just might have
voided my vote. What really happened was that
I was in a handicapped booth, not a voting
booth. This was a shock to me for two reasons:
the booth was not marked handicapped and it
was in the far corner of the room, mashed up
against a table and bookshelf, which rendered it
completely not accessible to the handicapped.
When I asked for help, all I got was "you have
to go over there." Well, I wanted to know before
I went over there that my vote would not be
voided or counted twice. The staff was not
helpful at all. I did go to the proper voting booth
and inserted my ballot. All worked out, but I was
angry that there were no signs directing voters.
Also, I returned with my daughter later so that
she could vote. There was a non-handicapped
person in the same booth that I initially used
trying to vote. Obviously, the problem was
never addressed, despite my being told that the

I went to Mater Christe to vote and was told that


I had to go to school of humanities.I have
always gone to mater Christi to vote. to me this
was a big inconvenience. I almost didn't go,but
my NO vote was to important

They ran out of ballots at Mater Christi school,


and I waited in a long line for over 20 minutes
before they arrived. Additionally they only had
two people inside running the election
process..while over 40+ plus people waited in
line. A third Albany election board person did
show up after 5 pm..but they were not prepared
at all. Very disappointed in the lack of
responsibility, that the city of Albany exhibits
during times like this !!

Mater Christi School:


I arrived at 5:00pm to vote. The hallway and
polling room was filled to capacity with no
movement in the line. There were NO
BALLOTS. Just confused residents wondering
when their rights would be granted.
I witnessed several people leave out of
frustration. I too left after a 20 minute wait. I
returned at 7:30pm to find the same, confusing,
scene. There were no staffers to help direct
voters as to where to go or what to do. The
people in line were the only ones helping with
direction. The scene was utter chaos, and given
the narrow divide in the final tally, a re-vote is in
order.

Irregularities with voting. Unsecured ballots.


Paper ballots placed in envelopes on desk. I
voted @ 8:30. The workers were totally
exhausted and bamboozled

I and two friends showed up to the polling place


and the door was locked. We pounded on the
door for several minutes, but only got inside
when an employee came to work with a pass
and let us in. We reported this, and they said
they would put someone at the door; by the
time we left, there was still no one at the door.
At that point, an employee came, said they
were understaffed, and that no one would be
placed at the door. As we were leaving we saw
several people walk away because they
couldn't get in the building. The employee told
us to report it if we wanted to because he
couldn't do anything, so we called the Board of
Election, who then referred us to the Board of
Education, and they also said they knew
nothing about it.

I phoned the district the day before and got info


on polling places for 3 addresses. I was given
the wrong info for my brother at 113 Ramsey. I
was told school 19 for him. Imagine my
surprise when at 6pm while waiting on line I
think I see my brother. Yes it's him. He had
gone to school 19 and was sent to ASH. He
had been waiting at ASH for awhile. When I
arrived at ASH I was astounded by the length of
the line. But I waited. Then pretty much
everyone left because there were no more
ballots. I was shocked. My brother was going to
dinner out when he left and wasn't coming
back. I chided him and told him to come on his
way back. He did around 8 pm and was able to
vote. I waited and finally left a few minutes
before 7pm. I had worked a full day and it was
snowing out. They had said they had called for
more ballots but couldn't say how long it would
be. They said they had called an hour before.
Well that's when I made my exit. Reluctantly.
I've lived in Albany my whole life. This was
atrocious. I was denied my right to vote.
Through no fault of my own. And the fact that
they say there won't be a revote is even more
atrocious! How can this be? It was a
COMPLETE DEBACLE. I called the school
district at 8:25 am on Wednesday. Told them
what happened. Left my name, address, and
phone #. No one had the decency to call me. I
wonder if the vote turned out to be a "No",
would they then do a revote??? Please count
me in this lawsuit Mr. Conners. And thank you

My wife and I usually vote at ASH, so we went


after work. There were 2 long lines and neither
was moving. Eventually I got out of line and
went to the person at the desk where they were
processing registration of voters. The
gentleman there told me they were out of
ballots and that he had already called for more
ballots to be brought over. My wife and I had
other responsibilities and eventually had to
leave.... without being able to vote. After
taking care of our commitments, we returned to
ASH (about 8:30) and discovered that our
names were not on their list. They told us that
we were supposed to vote at Delaware
Community School, so we went there. We
eventually found where we were supposed to
go - in an obscure side room. The next day at
work, one of my co-workers told me that the
places that had ran out of ballots were the
locations where they expected greater numbers
of "No" voters. I'm now convinced that the
vote was rigged, and that the official statement
is that "mistakes were made". It is just
disgusting.

My wife and I usually vote at ASH, so we went


after work. There were 2 long lines and neither
was moving. Eventually I got out of line and
went to the person at the desk where they were
processing registration of voters. The
gentleman there told me they were out of
ballots and that he had already called for more
ballots to be brought over. My wife and I had
other responsibilities and eventually had to
leave.... without being able to vote. After
taking care of our commitments, we returned to
ASH (about 8:30) and discovered that our
names were not on their list. They told us that
we were supposed to vote at Delaware
Community School, so we went there. We
eventually found where we were supposed to
go - in an obscure side room. The next day at
work, one of my co-workers told me that the
places that had ran out of ballots were the
locations where they expected greater numbers
of "No" voters. I'm now convinced that the
vote was rigged, and that the official statement
is that "mistakes were made". It is just
disgusting.

Hi, Traffic was all backed up on Marwill St


trying to get the School of Humanities on
Whitehall Road, so I never it made it there.

I arrived at my polling place at 6:30 pm


Tuesday and found the line of people waiting to
vote standing outside in the cold & snowy
conditions. The lobby was full. Found out there
were no ballots and election people did not
know when they would be available. Instead of
waiting outside opted to leave. I returned at
8:30pm and was able to vote. It was very
inconvenient & voting personnel stated they
had called 3 times to get ballots and did not
know if or when they would arrive. I did my part
but the board should know that my time is
valuable also.

I first went to Mater Christi to cast my vote for


the updates to Albany High School at about
4:45PM. Parking was difficult. I went into the
appropriate door but the hall way was so full I
knew there was no way I could wait as I had a
meeting that same night that I couldn't miss. As
the polls closed at 9 I returned to Mater Christ
about 8. I was able to shortly after arriving enter
the room and lined up at the appropriate table.
After signing my name I noticed that a number
was written next to my name that was taken off
the ballot. This indicated to me that my vote
was being tracked which is a violation of my
voting rights. Given my ballot I then stood in
one of two lines that wound all the way around
the room. It was a good thing the fire marshal
didn't stop by as I'm sure the room was way
past legal occupancy. There was only two
voting machines and they did not always take
the ballot on the first try. Eventually my vote
was cast that night.

Witnessed non city resident vote. Former


resident had moved out of city months prior and
also recently sold home in Albany.
Witnessed older woman being told she and her
husband needed to vote at Delaware
Community.. Not New Scotland. Woman said
she'd called District. They told her Delaware.
They had gone to Delaware. Delaware sent
them to New Scotland.
There was some man walking around in and
out of New Scotland polling room announcing
he was counting votes. He appeared to be
looking at ballots. This was intimidating and
uncomfortable.
There were many people that left due to the
long line and wait time.
I was in line for almost an hour.
There was insufficient staff for the voting
process.
All of this was very concerning. Definitely not
good.

I was not even listed in the registery book. it


took 45 min.for the poll watcher to find out what
to do.

I took my mother, 92, to vote @ 5:00. There


were no parking places within two blocks, the
lot was filled, the line outside was long.
Consequently she could note vote.

My wife and I entered the polling place at 7 PM


and immediately realized something was
wrong. There were long lines and no signs or
instructions on which of the 3 lines were
provided. We were told that they were out of
ballots and the scanner wass broken.About 20
minutes later more ballots were delivered but
still did not work in the scanner. We were then
instructed to vote manually and place ballots in
the emergency slot on the machine. We
witnessed several dozen people leaving without
voting and in frustration during our 45 minute
debacle. The staff was very courteous but
obviously had received little or no training.At
one point I asked my wife if we were in a third
world country. Totally unacceptable and
frustrating.

My wife and I entered the polling place at 7 PM


and immediately realized something was
wrong. There were long lines and no signs or
instructions on which of the 3 lines were
provided. We were told that they were out of
ballots and the scanner wass broken.About 20
minutes later more ballots were delivered but
still did not work in the scanner. We were then
instructed to vote manually and place ballots in
the emergency slot on the machine. We
witnessed several dozen people leaving without
voting and in frustration during our 45 minute
debacle. The staff was very courteous but
obviously had received little or no training.At
one point I asked my wife if we were in a third
world country. Totally unacceptable and
frustrating.

After leaving work I had to stand in line for an


hour . There were people standing in line out
the door and all seem to be annoyed which
made the wait unpleasant. The wait was
apparently caused by the fact that shortly
before I arrived the people in charge were
waiting for more ballots to arrive after running
out. My co-worker had been there for an hour
and said that is what happened to cause him to
wait. As people arrived there was so much
confusion as to where to stand in line so they all
were merged together. Finally someone started
to tell everyone which table was for which
letters of the alphabet the last name started
with. While waiting in line I never saw one
person asked for their ID. There was only one
machine up and running to use once we got our
ballots, which meant another wait in a long line
before actually casting the ballots. It's my
opinion that the whole process was very poorly
organized. I did see a few people give up and
leave because they just couldn't wait any
longer. Everyone around me seemed to be very
disillusioned and unhappy with what was
happening. I feel that the whole process was
conducted very badly and should be redone.

Had to go to three voting stations to find the


right place. No help was provided by anyone.
Voters had to figure out amongst themselves
where to go. Past voting stations were used as
a guide as to where to go next. That last voting
stop was a complete mystery as to why it had
been set up.
Once at Mater Christi, the chaos reigning was
overwhelming. There were lines snaking
through other lines. No one was helpful in
providing any sort of information. I have
witnessed people leave prior to voting. This
was probably due to the lines extending to
outside of the building.

Arrived at polling place at 6PM (after working all


day), they were out of machine readable
(normal) ballots. The poll workers were
showing us the emergency paper ballots (they
had LOTS of those, cranking them off at the
copying machines, no serial #s, no way to track
them) and the affidavit envelopes they wanted
us to put them in. They wanted the affidavit
information filled out (print your name, sign and
date, although they weren't going to provide a
notary public). I objected to putting my name
on the envelope for the same reasons Chris
Higgins apparently did over at Hackett. I don't
want District employees opening an envelope
with my name on it and announcing what my
"secret" vote actually was. Eventually got
Catherine Cutting on the phone, She said "use
a plain white envelope, no markings on the
outside". I gave the phone to poll worker, she
explained that to him, and they changed their
process to plain white envelopes. They
processed a lot of ballots that way after
processing quite a few with the affidavit
envelopes. I still refused, as the ballots in their
plain white envelopes went into a manila
envelope on the polling table (along with the
affidavit envelopes, I wonder who read their
names and opened those ballots...), with no
real security. Where was the locked ballot
box? Where were these ballots going to be
counted? When they left the polling place,
were they sealed in a container with a
numbered seal and the number of ballots and

At 6:10p there were no ballots. People were


being given a mimeographed, undated 8 x11"
paper with verbiage that was a "copy" of the
ballot, an envelope where the voter should sign
their name and a line for the notary publics'
signature. Voters were upset and questioned
the legality of the process. Voters were told to
call Catherine Cutting to verify "this" is the way
we'd vote. I refused! We were told there weren't
enough ballots delivered because the district
DIDN'T THINK there'd be enough people
voting. Voters accepting that explanation had
their ballots placed in an envelope and again in
a larger envelope, unsecured. Some voters
could not wait for official ballots to arrive, they
left to attend children at home, dinner to be
made, or were just tired. At 8pm I returned to
vote on an official ballot. A poll worker was at a
table in the back shuffling papers. Was this guy
going through the ballots? The 11p news had
the district claiming victory. If polls closed at 9p
how could all the voting districts deliver paper
ballots to one site and then have a legal count?
I'm sickened by what I've experienced in my
community. I feel the public has been robbed of
a civil right. This is reminiscent of third world
and dictatorial regimes that pretend to conduct
honest and fair elections. I feel this was an
intentional plan to discourage voting and to get
the voting results the board wanted. I cannot
believe this magnitude of incompetence exists
in our school district. If so, they need to be
replaced for the good of our school and city.

I voted at eagle point elementary school library.


The one scanning machine was out of order. I
had to stuff my ballot in a slot on the machine.
There were so many ballots already in there I
could barely fit mine in. This was at 5 pm.
There were so many ballots that needed to be
counted , there was no way to get an accurate
number so early in the evening. It would have
taken hours for each and every vote to count. I
seriously doubt the authenticity of the outcome.
There should be a third vote.
One in which
machines all work properly, polls are open on
time and close on time, and there are enough
ballots for everyone. If the school board is so
confident that this is what the taxpayers want,
they should have no problem with a third vote to
remove all doubt. One where the process is
carried out thoroughly and properly. That way
everyone will know for sure what the taxpayers
really want. There have been too many
mistakes with the vote on February 9th!!!!!

I voted at eagle point elementary school library.


The one scanning machine was out of order. I
had to stuff my ballot in a slot on the machine.
There were so many ballots already in there I
could barely fit mine in. This was at 5 pm.
There were so many ballots that needed to be
counted , there was no way to get an accurate
number so early in the evening. It would have
taken hours for each and every vote to count. I
seriously doubt the authenticity of the outcome.
There should be a third vote.
One in which
machines all work properly, polls are open on
time and close on time, and there are enough
ballots for everyone. If the school board is so
confident that this is what the taxpayers want,
they should have no problem with a third vote to
remove all doubt. One where the process is
carried out thoroughly and properly. That way
everyone will know for sure what the taxpayers
really want. There have been too many
mistakes with the vote on February 9th!!!!!

When I got to my polling place there were no


ballots. That is unforgiveable in 2016 in the
capital city of New York State. I left and when I
returned later I was able to vote, but I know
quite a few people who were not able to return.
Also some ballots were being scanned while
other people were writing their votes on paper
and placing them in envelopes. Has the city
gone back to the 1900s?

Regarding the Tuesday (2/9/16) school vote our


experience was as follows: The problems
began immediately as my husband and I did
not know in which site our ward voted. Our first
attempt at voting was when we went to Mater
Christie Parish Hall (off New Scotland
Ave./Hackett Blvd.). Upon arrival at the site, we
were greeted outside by a young couple who
displayed a good deal of frustration. They
indicated that no voting was taking place at that
time as the polling site ran out of ballots.This
was probably shortly before 5PM. Since we
were already there, we opted to go in anyway to
see for ourselves. At that time the printer
showed up with more ballots.We went inside
and immediately saw a very long line of people
out into the hall. However, since the ballots
were now there and we waited in line. The wait
was about 45 minutes long before we got to the
table to sign in. At that time we were told that
we were at the wrong location and needed to
go to the School for Humanities at Delaware
Ave. The problems continue.....although very
frustrated we drove to the School for
Humanities. Upon arriving at this 2nd location
we discover, once again, a very long line. This
line was moving at a snail's pace, at best. We
waited for 20 minutes and only progressed 2
steps. My husband went to the table and
inquired why this was taking such a long time
and was told they were following the law and to
take it up with the Board of Elections. At this
polling place they were only giving out 1 ballot

There was only one voting machine, causing


the voter line to circle the room and criscross
the line of those in line to get their ballot. The
voting line also passed very close by several
voting tables, making it difficult to have privacy
to mark the ballot. I marked my ballot with my
back to the wall to conceal my marking of the
ballot. One voter moved one voting table about
two feet near the area where the voter line
crossed the line to get ballots. While in the
long line to the ballot machine I clearly saw the
printed side of ballots including how the voter
cast his/her vote. It was a poorly organized and
poorly run event, the worst tha I have seen in
my first voting experience in 1973. Two
couples left while I was in the Lilongwe line in
the hall waiting to get into the single voting
room.
There was someone filming inside the voting
room while I was waiting to get my ballot, with a
camera like the news media use, however I did
see if it was in fact a news outlet that was
filming.

Regarding the Tuesday (2/9/16) school vote our


experience was as follows: The problems
began immediately as my husband and I did
not know in which site our ward voted. Our first
attempt at voting was when we went to Mater
Christie Parish Hall (off New Scotland
Ave./Hackett Blvd.). Upon arrival at this site, we
were greeted outside by a young couple who
displayed a good deal of frustration. They
indicated that no voting was taking place at that
time as the polling site ran out of ballots.This
was probably shortly before 5PM. Since we
were already there, we opted to go in anyway to
see for ourselves. At that time the printer
showed up with more ballots.We went inside
and immediately saw a very long line of people
out into the hall. However, since the ballots
were now there we waited in line in an effort to
cast our ballots. The wait was about 45 minutes
long before we got to the table to sign in. At that
time we were told that we were at the wrong
location and needed to go to the School for
Humanities at Delaware Ave. The problems
continue.....although very frustrated we drove to
the School for Humanities. Upon arriving at this
2nd location we discover, once again, a very
long line. This line was moving at a snail's
pace, at best. We waited for 20 minutes and
only progressed 2 steps. My husband went to
the table and inquired why this was taking such
a long time and was told they were following the
law and to take it up with the Board of
Elections. At this polling place it appeared they

I was able to vote. However, it wasn't easy.


First, my polling place was different than my
normal election polling place. The normal spot
is the school on western ave, an easy walk
from my house. But this time, I had to vote ta
Mata Cristi school, much further from my
house. Not sure why.
When I arrived at Mata Cristi, the entrance to
Hurst Ave was partially blocked by a truck with
a "vote yes" sign, and its gang of supporters.
The problems, which are well known, really
began once I went in.

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