FYI: Farewell to 'Precinct Reporting'

[boston bean]

For as long as anyone can remember, television networks and the Associated Press have reported votes on election night by saying, "With x percent of precincts reporting ..." But, this method of reporting election results is about to go the way of the VCR.

Starting Tuesday night, the results of statewide races will be reported by giving the percentage of "expected vote." The votes reported at the state level at any given time will be divided by the estimate of the total votes that will be cast in the state to come up with the percentage of expected votes.

http://hotlineoncall.nationaljournal.com/archives/2010/10/farewell-to-pre.php

[Newsjock]

1. So when the percentage becomes 105% or 110%

How will Katie Couric explain that to stupid Americans?

[gateley]

2. And our state (WA), for one, is all mail-in (except for two counties). No polls

to report from! :shrug:

[depakid]

6. Washington followed Oregon's lead and does it the smart way

Why anyone still has polling places- much less unverifiable machines that can't be audited beyond me. They actually PAY much more money for elections, while impugning the integrity of their results.

Bizarre.

Kind of like the US health care "system" come to think of it.

[pscot]

9. Mail-in voting makes soooo much sense

It should be universal.

[leftstreet]

11. Actually, vote by mail is an excellent way to disenfranchise voters

Depending on the local elections board, if you don't vote x amount of times your name is taken off the mailing lists.

Not to mention change of address issues, mobile populations, etc

And no polling places on election day.


It's a feel-goody latte liberal voting process and it sucks

[depakid]

12. Oregon hasn't had any such problems and has among the highest turnout in the nation

along with mandatory audits of the ballot counts.

So- how should one put it?

You're simply wrong.

[leftstreet]

20. I wasn't using OR as an example of the potential problems with vbm

You're absolutely right about OR participation rates, and I wouldn't argue that.

But OR is hardly a culturally diverse state with high rates of poverty and population mobility.

[pscot]

18. Feel goody latte liberal?

Oh dear. How am I gonna hold my head up down at the union hall? :rofl:

[AsahinaKimi]

15. California has it ...and I am so glad.

On the day Obama was running for President, I personally walked my vote down to City Hall to make sure it was safe.

[gateley]

10. Oregon and Washington are leaders in many areas. :-) nt

[depakid]

13. Death with Dignity

Now that the Greens hold the balance of power in Australia, they're pressing similar legislation- using Oregon as a model.

(Goes to show what happens with preferential voting and proportional representation).

[gateley]

17. And recycling! I remember my brother coming up here 25 years ago from

CA and flipping me shit about recycling (I'd dive after something he'd throw in the garbage that could be recycled). Now... :7

[Suich]

21. Do you know which 2 counties?

:hi:

[hlthe2b]

3. Screw that....

I should think you can still get precinct level votes from the SOS site in each state. AP really wants to cover their tracks, it seems to me. :shrug:

[boston bean]

4. how are they going to confidently predict the "expected vote". I don't think this is a good idea.

We should be dealing with real numbers.

[robcon]

7. Can't use precincts, since mail-ins are not in the precinct counts.

And since mail-ins are such a large part of some states' votes, the TV stations are right.

[boston bean]

8. are most mail in votes counted that night or over the period of time?

[Suich]

16. I don't know...anyone?????

[Old Codger]

19. vote counts

In Oregon they are counted on election day, none before...

[Suich]

22. Thanks!

I wonder what happens in the states that have "early voting."

:hi:

[csziggy]

23. What I remember from 2008 here in our Florida county

They released the number of votes cast each day and the number of Democratic or Republican voters, but not the totals for each candidate. I don't remember at what point that was made available, maybe at the closing time for the polls.

[hlthe2b]

14. No.. they can manipulate it any way they want...

This is BS and it raises the concern re: election shenanigans.

[bemildred]

5. I don't really care what AP and the networks do.

I don't watch TV.