“did anyone else have to swear on a bible that their address was correct before they were able to vote? just wondering, because i did,” Philadelphia voter Lindsay Granger wrote on her blog after voting in last Tuesday’s mid-term election. “i had to lay my palm on the good book and state my name and address before i was allowed to sign my name in the voting log and enter the booth. they called it an affirmation. i call it creepy… and a little offensive…”
Granger notified VotersUnite.org last week after the incident which, she told the non-partisan election watchdog organization, made her “extremely uncomfortable because i’m not a Christian, and when i brought that up I was told to do it anyway.”
In her blog item, Granger, an African-American, admitted to being “hypersensitive” given “the historical context of black people voting in america”.
When informed of the incident, Bob Lee, the Voter Registration Administrator for the Philadelphia City Commissioners, confirmed to The BRAD BLOG that Bibles are, indeed, included in the package of election materials provided to each polling site, but says no such oath is required before casting a vote.
The incident reportedly took place at Philadelphia’s Ward 15, Division 01 polling place at Trinity Baptist Church on Poplar Street. It was Granger’s first time voting at that precinct after having moved recently from another area in the city.
Lee conceded that, based on Granger’s description of the incident — which he hadn’t heard about until we contacted him for comment — it sounded like the election board at the precinct “needs some training”…
He says that few voters had complained about the bibles at polling places in the past, though “occasionally” his office will receive a complaint about one being placed on the voter sign-in table.
“The bible has been there for ages,” he explained. “I think it’s there for when the board is sworn in to take an oath before opening the polling place, that they’re going to carry out their duty in a non-partisan manner. It’s in every polling place in the city. It’s included in the election pack.”
Granger’s brief report to Voters Unite noted that she’d never been asked to swear on a bible — or at all — in previous elections. “When I voted in 2008 in a different precinct in Philadelphia (not at a church), that was not the case. My voter registration card was sufficient.”
She was also concerned that other voters may have had to go through the same process. “The Bible was sitting out in the open, and the procedure wasn’t done in secret, which leads me to believe that I am not the only person who was asked to do that,” she wrote.
Granger told The BRAD BLOG that the forced use of the bible “was sort of a tag team situation.” She was told by a female African-American poll worker that she had to sign an “affirmation”, since it was her first time voting at this polling place. Lee explained that that part of the process was “routine”. But then, Granger described, “a white woman pointed to the bible” and a “white man was in charge of the log book.”
For the record, Granger didn’t identify anything about either her own race, or that of the poll workers, in either the complaint sent to Voters Unite or in her blog item describing the incident, though she did blog that due to “the historical context of black people voting in america,” she was “hypersensitive about being made to feel uncomfortable at a polling place.”
Given the years-long, well-orchestrated campaign by Republicans and their sympathizers targeting African-Americans for voter suppression, she has good cause for such “hypersensitivity”. Therefore, we broached the subject ourselves with Granger in order to identify both her race and that of the poll workers at her precinct, in the event that it might have some bearing on what happened last Tuesday after more information is gathered.
Lee says that Philadelphia has had very little trouble over the years with such targeted voter suppression campaigns. Though when they do occur, it’s almost always from “outside groups,” he says. “We have very few challenges, other than we’ve had these people in suits, in various cases, standing 50 feet away from the polls telling people ‘you need an ID to vote so you might as well go home'”.
He also recounted an incident in 2004 when, just prior to Election Day, a representative from the Republican State Committee “comes in and drops 63 requests for changes to polling place locations on behalf of Republican candidates for Congress.” They wanted the polling places moved at the last minute, “all in minority areas”, on the alleged basis that the sites were not accessible for disabled voters. “I knew it was bullshit right away,” Lee, a Democrat, said, based on the areas the Republicans were targeting. One requested site change, for example, was “to a church four blocks away with 12 steps leading into it. I looked at it and could tell it was bullshit.”
As to challenges to voters at the polling places themselves, however, the election administrator explained anyone can challenge a voter’s right to vote as “based on identity or maybe citizenship.” But, he says, there are a number of ways for voters to respond to such challenges, none of which require swearing on a bible.
“If there’s a new address, you write your new address and you sign [the affirmation] and the judge signs and that’s it. There shouldn’t be a bible involved in it,” Lee said. Based on Granger’s written accounts and the additional details we provided from her, Lee said he felt the incident was “not racist, but this board needs some training.”
When voting for the first time at a new polling place in Philly, voter registration records are flagged to note the voter requires either ID of some sort or a signed affirmation attesting to residence before voting in the event the voter doesn’t have any ID on them. Forms of valid ID include a drivers license, a voter registration card, or a number of other documents which provide identification, Lee explained.
“i’m not a christian, so why should i have to swear on a bible? would i have been struck down if i lied about my address? doubt it,” Granger wrote on her blog. “the bible doesn’t mean anything more than a qu’ran or a torah or a bhagavad gita to me. if anything, i should swear on a constitution or something.”
“voting is a civic responsibility, not a religious one…and isn’t there supposed to be separation of church and state? maybe some people (ahem, christine o’donnell) don’t think so, but i feel like the idea behind having to swear on a bible (or any religious document) in order to vote is not okay. what if i had refused? would i have been denied the ability to vote?,” she asked rhetorically.
When we asked if Granger’s refusal to swear on the bible along with her signed affirmation could have been used as grounds to keep her from voting, Lee said, “No, we’d never keep anybody from voting. Not for religious reasons for god sakes. We have a difficult enough time getting folks to come out and vote in the first place!”
As to whether a refusal by a poll worker to swear on a bible would disqualify them from serving at the precinct on Election Day, Lee admitted he hadn’t thought about it previously. “You’re right,” he said, “what if someone is Jewish, or something else, and doesn’t feel comfortable doing that?”
While Granger’s was the only complaint we’ve heard, to date, of a voter being forced to swear on the bible before voting in Philadelphia, there were at least four other complaints, at four different polling sites in the city, about the bible being placed visibly on the check-in table, often next to the American flag. A database of Election Day problem reports called into the 866-OUR-VOTE election protection hotline run by a consortium of civil rights organizations details voters who called in to say the visibility of the bible on the check-in table seemed “inappropriate” or made them “uncomfortable”. (See here, here, here and here.) Lee acknowledged his office had received two such complaints this year, but says they are very rare.
After further investigation and discussion with the Judge of Elections (an elected position in Philadelphia) at Granger’s polling place, Lee says he believes she was the only voter asked to place her hand on the bible there before being allowed to vote. “From what I can gather from the judge, they didn’t do it any other time of day,” he explained, and it was done by another poll worker while the Judge was busy with another matter. Lee adds that he’s asked the Judge to put the bible away, in the future, with the other materials after election officials are sworn in in the morning.
Clearly though, the incident was an unsettling one for Granger who had only hoped to exercise her franchise along with millions of other voters last Tuesday.
“the more i think about it, [the] more skeeved out i become,” she concluded her blog item. “not because it’s the bible and i’m not a christian, but because something feels inherently wrong about having to swear on something to be able to vote.”
“maybe knowing the historical context of black people voting in america, i’m hypersensitive about being made to feel uncomfortable at a polling place. or maybe my personal history of ignorant people saying ignorant things about my lack of religion has caused me to have visceral (often negative) reactions to most things religious. whatever it is, it’s so not cool… but it so didn’t stop me from voting.”
Not to worry. By 2016, we will all be expected to put our hands on the Christian Bible and declare not only that we are properly registered, but that we are “devout.”
I met a great lady who talked me into poll watching; not once, but twice. The first time we did it, we observed a Bible sitting on the judges table, but I never saw anybody being sworn in on it.
She has commented on this blog more then once, but we got a laugh when she asked me what I thought would happen if a copy of Al Gore’s “Earth in the Balance” had been sitting on the registration table.
I think this is bizarre: “The bible has been there for ages,” he explained. “I think it’s there for when the board is sworn in to take an oath before opening the polling place, that they’re going to carry out their duty in a non-partisan manner. It’s in every polling place in the city. It’s included in the election pack.”
I have been voting by mail (in California)for about 15 years, just because it’s easier for me, but when I was still voting in person, I never saw any buybulls in evidence. Nor were we required to put our hands on that book when I was serving on a jury.
As a non-believer, I can understand Ms. Granger’s extreme discomfort in this situation, although I am not African-American. It was a clear message that somebody in that precint was saying, “You don’t belong here.”
In a country with an entirely secular Constitution, the Christian buybull is what did not belong in that place at that time.
Nor should polling places be sited in churches. Ever.
Well, there’s a right way and a wrong way of doing it when using a Bible.
Right way: “So help me Odin!”
Re voting in churches. Yes, on the face it’s problemmatic. But without churches donating the space, it would be far harder to vote. At least in my area, 30-50% of the precincts are in churches (which includes synogogues, mosques and one Buddhist temple).
I’m OK with that – provided that, for the duration of the election, the church is willing to affirm – in advance, that the polling place, all access routes, and any provided kitchen, break, and sanitary facilities are specifically EXCLUDED from any special considerations the law may otherwise allow churches. This would specifically included the removal (or covering) of any religious messages/signs easily visible along the access routes. I’m OK with not having to scrub these messages from ancillary spaces (Bathrooms, kitchens).
Brad wrote:
Not for God’s sake, Mr. Granger. For the sake of our secular state as mandated by the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to our Constitution.
Who cares.
I’m an atheist, so swearing on the bible would mean as much as me swearing on Lord of the Rings. Whatever, if that’s what these pinheads want voters to do. Means nothing.
Why does the Brad Blog have to bring in the piece about her being hypersensitive? Even if she wrote it on the blog, what does that have to do with the mission of this site and its community?
This is voter intimidation to dissuade the victim from voting again next time.
The people at the voting station were putting themselves in a position of authority like a bailiff in a court of law. By directing the voter to swear on a Bible, the balance of power is shifted away from the voter. In the face of authority people feel they have less autonomy. But the staff do not have any authority to make anyone swear on a Bible.
The implication is the victim doesn’t know if this unpleasant experience happen the next time they go to vote. It’s like if the police could stop you and demand you perform some ceremony at any time.
I am not a lawyer, but I AM a very experienced Judge of Elections in PA. To my knowledge, nothing in the PA Election Code requires election officials to swear on a Bible.
Here is the section of the PA law regarding the oath I take each Election Day. Please note that it permits affirming rather than swearing and there is no mention of a Bible or any other religious book or object.
Marybeth Kusnick @ 10 wrote:
The point here, Marybeth, is that an election official demanded that a citizen swear on a bible that she was providing the correct name and address before she was permitted to cast her ballot.
Since you are a long time judge of elections in PA, it would have been of greater assistance if you had weighed in on the propriety or impropriety of that demand.
I would instantly demand the person’s full ID, take names of witnesses, then call the cops. The whole nine yards. Nobody fools with my vote. Except for the vote-flipping machines, of course. Ours don’t let you know how they recorded your vote, just swallow the form, and nobody can show the vote.
Garrick #9 is right on. Please don’t let ignorant bullies keep you from voting again. Intimidation happens, but can only succeed if you let it.
“Offensive,” “skeeved out,” etc. are irrelevant. I’m an atheist, and I’m not offended by the Bible. What concerns me is that the First Amendment forbids the government to institute a religion. This is illegal, as is, I’d say, the inclusion of a Bible in the “in the package of election materials provided to each polling site.” What does the Bible have to do with American elections?
As for “offensive,” people — especially people on the “liberal” end of the spectrum — need to develop thicker skins. We live in a pluralistic society. We are going to encounter people, ideas, and practices that we don’t like. We can hardly complain about the Right having hissyfits over a Negro President, or mosques on the corner, or same-sex marriage if we’re going to get faint at the sight of a Christian Bible.
Ernie @ 11 –
For the record, I didn’t read Marybeth’s comment @ 10 as downplaying the main issue of the article. In fact, the larger issue may well be the bizarre fact that Philadelphia continues to supply bibles to precincts, even though they are not needed and may well serve to offend some and/or be used to intimidate voters in ways that we saw in this situation.
Pointing out that nothing in the PA election code calls for such things is quite useful, in fact. And, I should mention, Marybeth has long been one of the state’s most tireless Election Integrity advocate — for years!
I’m pretty friggin offended on behalf of the voter in the article. If someone asked me to swear on the Bible to confirm my eligibility I would absolutely have refused, and I was raised Christian and suppose I still am to a certain degree.
Phew, thank GODDESS I’m an atheist :). Anyway, seriously, folks, I have been strongly impacted in so many ways by a dominating religious demand that THIS (THAT, OR THE OTHER THING) is the ONLY way something must be done. It’s the essence of mind control & inner violence to our dignity when someone imposes their religious beliefs and tenets upon another. It’s called fundamentalism, and is designed to eliminate the autonomy of ‘the other’. This is the real battle we are fighting-for our Constitutionally guaranteed RIGHT to freedom and the pursuit of happiness. When Ms. Granger is reporting feeling ‘skeeved’, it’s a rather mild representation of her righteous reaction to having her dignity & her integrity questioned within a religious context that was entirely inappropriate within a context of doing her civil duty. I must concur, also, that her response was entirely appropriate regarding being hypersensitive regarding our beloved country’s long, and disgusting history of intense voter suppression in the Black and ‘minority’ communities. Until you have immersed yourself in the history of the African American community & their struggle for basic human rights, let alone the right to vote, you will never comprehend the profound basis for Ms. Granger’s feelings of upset and, I dare say, outrage. It is well-founded. This is the fight we all face-the right to have our voices heard through the vote. Thanks. Stepping off the slippery soapbox now.
More than 429,000 Philadelphians voted on Nov 2nd. In 16 years since the law required the Inactive designation and use of an Affirmation of residence for voters who have been reported as having moved there have probably been close to 10 million votes cast in Philadelphia. This is the only time a complaint that a voter had to place their hand on a Bible when completing the Affirmation has been reported. This was an extremely rare case. The experienced Judge of Elections in this voting Division was busy assisting other voters at the time Ms. Granger appeared. Two new Poll Officials serving Ms Granger knew Ms. Granger was required by law to complete the Affirmation to confirm her new address before voting but simply made an error in using the Bible. Two days each year, in every election, 8,500 of our neighbors, possibly friends and relatives, serve as Polling Place Officials. They work a long, often trying day under increasinly complex Federal and state voting rules to make sure Philadelphians can vote. These Poll Officials are under paid at $95 – $100 for the day. All Poll Officials should be thanked and commended for their service to us all. The Judge of Elections in this voting Division was aware of the Affirmation process, as are the two new officials now, and all others in the City will be reminded of the intended limited use of the Bible for their own Oath at the polls during spring training sessions.
I’m shocked and furious that the state sent bibles to polling places with its election materials. How is this even legal? If they hadn’t done that, this incident wouldn’t have occurred. Wonder how many other states send bibles to the polls.