Could wearing a Pro Obama or Pro McCain shirt to the polls be considered campaigning??

Hey ATS,

I received an email from a friend(one of those overly forwarded chain messages) and it says that going to the polls wearing any Obama/McCain shirts, pins or hats is against the law and will be grounds to have the polling officials turn voters away. It is considered campaigning and no one can campaign within "X" amount of feet to the polls.

I live in Washington state where we can vote by mail so this won't be an issue for me but has anyone ever heard of this? I think it would be such a shame if this is true. I understand not allowing the Obama or McCain camp set up shop outside of a polling office but to enforce this on the average citizen seems a bit much to me.

You can park a bus right in front with Obama or McCain signs and handout pamphlets and all that but once you step inside the polling place all of that is a no-no. One of the daughters, Chelsea I think, got in trouble for handing out muffins or something inside a polling place. I guess just by virtue of who she was they figured her muffins were a Hillary bribe. I dont know if the accusation ever stuck or anything.

Generally the lawn of the polling place is littered with signs and a local politician or two will be hanging around to smile and shake your hand like he's your best friend or some nonsense.

I voted in the Primary wearing a shirt that read" when all else fails vote from the rooftops" and displayed scoped sniper rifle. Given that it does not have a specific candidate message I guess it was a non-issue. I voted for Ron Paul that day.

It looks like snopes.com(site about urban legends/myths) has gotten a hold of the same chain email that was sent to me and I think it gives a pretty good response to the matter. Here is the link I found: Snopes.com

My state, Texas

§ 61.010. WEARING NAME TAG OR BADGE IN POLLING PLACE.
(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), a person may not wear a
badge, insignia, emblem, or other similar communicative device
relating to a candidate, measure, or political party appearing on
the ballot, or to the conduct of the election, in the polling place
or within 100 feet of any outside door through which a voter may
enter the building in which the polling place is located.

b) An election judge, an election clerk, a state or federal
election inspector, a certified peace officer, or a special peace
officer appointed for the polling place by the presiding judge
shall wear while on duty in the area described by Subsection (a) a
tag or official badge that indicates the person's name and title or
position.

I know this is asking for a fight, but you have yet to stage an election to the standard of 1996. 2000 well, who cares about shirts. In Britain we apply electoral law strictly. We do not complain. Maybe that is how Katherine Harris felt, and judging by some in this thread, who can blame her? She was just being patriotic.

Originally posted by Sequel
Hey ATS,

I received an email from a friend(one of those overly forwarded chain messages) and it says that going to the polls wearing any Obama/McCain shirts, pins or hats is against the law and will be grounds to have the polling officials turn voters away. It is considered campaigning and no one can campaign within "X" amount of feet to the polls.

I live in Washington state where we can vote by mail so this won't be an issue for me but has anyone ever heard of this? I think it would be such a shame if this is true. I understand not allowing the Obama or McCain camp set up shop outside of a polling office but to enforce this on the average citizen seems a bit much to me.

I will have to double-check in regards to the wearing of campaign buttons or shirts for Voters, BUT you absolutely CANNOT set-up any tables with literature for any candidates inside the Polling Centers, nor openly campaign for them. Outside of the Polling Center people are allowed to hand out ballot overviews based upon parties, so you can look-over whom you might wish to vote for. Also, no one working at the polls is allowed to have on any campaign or candidate based paraphernalia whatsoever. That about covers it, and I have years of experience of working with Polling Centers and Chief Election Officers.

BTW, sometimes people try to be slick and place campaign literature in with the paperwork placed upon tables for Voter information. The CEO I know however never misses these "attempts" at breaking the law. If you attempt to bend Voting laws or act slick, you will be locked up. The Courts really do not play around with such acts.

[edit on 9-24-2008 by TheAgentNineteen]

My question would be, does it really matter? I think a lot of people at the polls have already made up their minds who they are going to vote for. There are certainly no descriptions of where the candidates stand on the issues printed on the ballot, so you either go into the polling place knowing your candidate and where they stand, or not knowing anything about anything.

reply to post by sos37


I completely agree with you sos37. It doesnt really matter, but I decided to post this message to get some feedback and to determine whether or not this is true. I think its important that a person who is taking the time to go to the their local polling center know that the type of shirt they are wearing may force officials to ask them to leave. Thats all.

Thank you,

Sequel

You are allowed to wear the shirts and buttons, at least you can in NC. According to our director of elections that email is a hoax to keep obama voters from the poll.


"There are some states where you can't, but in North Carolina it is considered a First Amendment right," said Robert Coffman, the director of elections in Forsyth County. "You are allowed to wear literature supporting a candidate or a cause."

An e-mail in circulation claims that people can't wear "any Obama shirts, pins or hats" when going to vote, and that people who do so risk being turned away from the polls.

Eric Ellison, a local volunteer for the Obama campaign, said he thinks that the e-mail is a tactic to discourage Obama supporters from voting.

"We are expecting a record number of voters for this election," he said. "Any time there is a mass dissemination of misinformation it can only be done to compromise people's right to vote."

Another Obama volunteer, Linda Lair, said that the e-mail seems like an effort to discourage people from wearing Obama gear -- and called it "silly."

Bill Miller, the chairman of the local Republican Party, said that when he visited the party headquarters yesterday he heard people talking about the rumor.

"They said they had heard it as a rumor and that it was going around pretty thickly," Miller said. He added he had not seen any e-mails about a clothing ban.

Apparently, the e-mail has been circulating for about two weeks. Coffman said that any time people have a concern about voting they can call the board of elections to get the right answer -- in this case, that it is OK to wear buttons, hats and T-shirts bearing the name of a candidate. There are some limits, Coffman said: People would not be allowed to carry a campaign sign with them or try to actively solicit votes. But things worn in support of a candidate are fine.

It is not illegal to wear supportive apparel to the polls. It is unlawful to solicit, create a disturbance by verbally supporting a candidate. Just to wear an obama shirt is legal. people make up these scenarios to create panic and they have never read the law

Originally posted by Anonymous ATS
People make up these scenarios to create panic and ...

Dude, that's the nature of ATS. All you gotta do is take a look at page one.

I know where I am at in Canada, the laws are pretty explicit.

Nothing with any candidate or party is allowed within (I don't know exact distance) a certain amount of feet, 200 I think, near the polling stations.

As someone mentioned, it shouldn't really matter because the person has already made up his/her mind, but this is not always the case.

Some people may have a candidate in mind but could easily be swayed. These are the people that can affect the outcome when the votes are counted.

Thus, it makes an even playing ground for all involved (supposedly:roll