Attention independent voters in Ohio: You have to ask for a party ballot to vote for candidates!

Independent voters in Ohio have to ASK for a party ballot, otherwise, just as in California, you won't get the candidates listed on your ballot.

This sad story from NIMISHILLEN TWP: "The couple had told inquiring poll workers that they were both Independent voters. So the poll workers did as instructed: They handed the Kiblers issues-only ballots.... Mrs. Kibler remarked "It's very unfair. Just because you're an Independent, that shouldn't mean that you shouldn't be allowed to vote. My husband's 73 (years old). He just about had a heart attack when they told us that." (Canton Repository)

Ohio Primary: I'm an independent. Can I vote?

The Hankster has gotten so many hits over the past 48 hours from independents in Ohio, I thought it might be worth another mention that YES, independents CAN VOTE tomorrow in the primary.

In case you're just tuning in, The Hankster is an independent political blog, started in 2006. I hope you like it!

A little-known fact: I used to live in Ohio -- Cleveland, to be exact -- where I helped raise matching funds for Lenora Fulani's independent presidential campaign in 1992...

Cleveland's cool! (Just so you know, if I wasn't living happily in New York City, I'd be in Cleveland...) Cleveland is also the home of Dennis Kucinich, one of the most independent Democratic presidential candidates. The Cleveland Plain Dealer is the major paper, they endorsed Obama, and then Hearst didn't like it.... that's some food for thought...

Kinda stokes the Midwestern embers of my heart.... Ahhh, The Heartland... Let's do it!
Love you, Ohio!
The Hankster

Ohio Primary: I'm an independent. Can I vote?

Answer: YES WE CAN
I called the Board of Elections in Cleveland today and asked if I could vote in either the Democratic or Republican primary and the person who answered the phone said yes.

Good luck to independent voters in Ohio on March 4.....


Still watching CNN The Situation Room:
This just in, SEIU, the large service union holding contracts for hotel workers (150K workers in upcoming primaries....)

John Lewis is making a difficult decision....

Obama is making NAFTA an issue in Ohio -- a pro-union state...

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• Editorial: Dems have momentum now, but Ohio's presidential outlook is far from decided-independents key (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
• N.H. poll: GOP primary stirring independents (Boston Globe)
• Our Precious Liberties, Endangered - Dems should not count on independents (New York Times LETTER)
• Presidential candidate Ron Paul hauls in more than $3.5 million from the web (Midland Reporter-Telegram)
• Michelle Obama issues call to black America (New York Daily News)
• Battle for black voters - Michelle Obama says they will 'wake up and get it' (Chicago Sun Times)
• Kentucky: Doctor from Prospect to seek McConnell's seat in U.S. Senate - Michael Cassaro to run as independent (The Courier-Journal)
• Ohio: In Lorain, six-term Councilman David Wargo, D-1st Ward, lost to independent candidate Melanie Szabo by a vote of 670 to 581. (The Chronicle-Telegram)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• Ohio's Lake County independent-minded voters have history of picking the president (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
• William Weld pitches for Unity 08 (NY Sun)
• Pat Robertson's endorsement of Rudy Giuliani heads off Christian Right independent run for president (Lawrence Kudlow-Washington Times)
• Ron Paul supporters independent of the campaign raised $4 million online and $200,000 over the phone in one day (Star Telegram)
• New York: The view from the pundit's desk "Obama dangerous because he threatens Clinton's grip on the black vote" (Buffalo News editorial) The view from the ground "The growth of the Independence Pary and its role in cultivating political mobility among black and other traditional Democratic constituencies is key." (Jacqueline Salit's The Black and Independent Alliance, 2006)
• Ron Walters: The challenge facing black candidates like Sen. Obama who have national ambitions "isn't whether they're black enough. It's whether they're white enough." (Jonathan Kaplan-Wall Street Journal)
• Obama goes for the capillaries-Barack Obama delivers a rousing speech in Iowa on Saturday night, all but calling out Hillary Clinton, and then gets weak-kneed on Sunday morning. (By Walter Shapiro-Salon)
• Obama Shines in Iowa (The New Republic blog)