Fort Worth Star Telegram Logo

Woman thought DPS site would register her to vote | Fort Worth Star-Telegram

×
  • E-edition
    • Customer Service
    • Mobile & Apps
    • Newsletters

    • Local
    • Fort Worth
    • Arlington
    • Northeast Tarrant
    • Texas
    • Crime & Courts
    • Politics
    • Elections
    • Bud Kennedy
    • Databases
    • Nation and World
    • Cowboys
    • Rangers
    • TCU
    • Mac Engel
    • Colleges
    • Mavericks
    • Motorsports
    • Stars
    • High School Sports
    • Scores & Schedules
    • All Sports
    • Football
    • Baseball
    • Softball
    • Volleyball
    • Boys Basketball
    • Girls Basketball
    • Editorials
    • Letters
    • Submit a letter
    • Cheers and Jeers
    • Submit a Cheer or Jeer
    • Bud Kennedy
    • Michael Ryan
    • Cynthia M. Allen
    • Other Voices
    • Business
    • Growth
    • Restaurants
    • Arts & Culture
    • Movies
    • Things To Do
    • Music
    • Nightlife
    • Party Pics
    • Horoscopes
    • Comics
    • Contests
    • Puzzles and Games
    • Food & Drink
    • Arts
    • Health & Fitness
    • Indulge
    • The Keller Magazine
    • Neil Sperry
    • Social Eyes
    • Dear Abby
    • Weddings
    • Arlington Citizen-Journal
    • Keller Citizen
    • Star-Telegram Northeast
    • Mansfield News-Mirror
    • Weatherford Star-Telegram
    • La Estrella
    • Locales
    • Noticias
    • Deportes
    • Entretenimiento
    • Contáctenos
    • Media Kit
    • Today's Obituaries
    • Obituaries in the News
    • Submit an Obituary

    • All Weddings
    • Announcements
    • Bridal Show
    • Contact Us
    • Inspiration
    • News & Advice
    • Vendors
    • Hispanic Heritage
    • Cancer Awareness
    • Healthy Lifestyle
    • Dining, Entertaining
    • Breast Cancer Awareness
    • Think Green
    • Money Matters
    • All About Pets
    • Careers and Business
    • Health and Wellness
    • How To...
    • Women Today
    • Family and Parenting
    • Easy Living Tips
    • Lawn and Garden
    • Giving Back
    • Men Today
    • On the Road 1
    • On the Road 2
  • Public Notices
  • Local Deals
  • Cars
  • Jobs
  • Moonlighting
  • Homes
  • Classifieds
  • Mobile & Apps

Latest News

Woman thought DPS site would register her to vote

By PATRICK McGEE - pmcgee@star-telegram.com

    ORDER REPRINT →

November 04, 2008 01:56 PM

Several McCain supporters said they thought they had registered to vote when they got a new driver’s license — but election workers told them they were not on the rolls.

“The only thing that they told me I could do is re-register and not vote today,” Tammy Baker, 35, of Venus said Tuesday.

Baker said she clicked on a box to register to vote when she applied online for a new driver’s license about a year ago.

She said she was applying for a new driver’s license because her address changed when she moved from Arlington to Venus, in Johnson County.

Sign Up and Save

Get six months of free digital access to the Star-Telegram

SUBSCRIBE WITH GOOGLE

#ReadLocal

But it appears she did not do enough.

Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Tela Mange said people who register to vote online must print out a form, sign it and mail it to the Texas Secretary of State.

Baker, who wanted to vote for Republican John McCain for president, said she did not see anything telling her to do that.

“It just said click here to register to vote,” she said. “It’s pretty misleading. It’s pretty confusing.”

Randall Dillard, a spokesman for the secretary of state’s office, said all voter registrations must, by law, have a signature. He said his office will contact the DPS to try to make the process easier.

“If there’s one person that’s confused, that’s too many, so we’ll continue to work with DPS,” he said.

Dennis McClure, 54, of Keller, said he had the same problem Baker did.

He said he clicked “yes” to register to vote when he was changing his driver’s license a few months ago, but did not remember seeing anything about printing something out to sign.

So McClure was given a provisional ballot when he went to cast an early vote on Friday.

“The guy just told me ... it’s possible that my vote could be challenged and not allowed,” he said.

Jody Lindstrom, 33, of Keller, who moved to Tarrant County from Alaska, said she registered to vote in person at a county subcourthouse when she applied for a new driver’s license in early September.

She never got a voter registration card, even though her husband got one using the same process.

Lindstrom, also a McCain supporter, looked on a government Web site and found she was not registered. She said talking to election workers on the phone just confirmed that she was not registered.

“They told me I wasn’t going to be allowed to (vote) because it was past the date” to register, she said. “They said I could go and vote, but that it would not count.”

  Comments  

Videos

Dog shovels snow in Boston area

Notable figures in black history

View More Video

Trending Stories

When are we getting an H-E-B? The answer’s complicated

February 18, 2019 12:00 AM

‘Threat to democracy:’ Trump’s national emergency draws angry crowd in Fort Worth

February 18, 2019 02:30 PM

In-depth Q&A with ex Rangers manager Banister: ‘It’s on me. Absolutely. That was on me’

February 18, 2019 06:00 AM

Top Class 6A softball players in Dallas-Fort Worth to watch during the 2019 season

February 18, 2019 12:00 PM

CBD oil spill: Texas lawmaker out to clean up this maddening drug law mess

February 18, 2019 06:00 AM

Read Next

Was that hail or sleet? A ‘pretty nasty day’ sets the stage for a rainy week

Weather

Was that hail or sleet? A ‘pretty nasty day’ sets the stage for a rainy week

By Bill Hanna

    ORDER REPRINT →

February 19, 2019 11:47 AM

Parts of North Texas could see an inch of rain Tuesday, including pea-sized hail, with some places seeing even higher rainfall totals. Northwest of Fort Worth, sleet is possible. No travel impacts are expected.

KEEP READING

Sign Up and Save

#ReadLocal

Get six months of free digital access to the Star-Telegram

SUBSCRIBE WITH GOOGLE

MORE LATEST NEWS

It’s everyone’s favorite Rangers video: Joey Gallo taking batting practice

Texas Rangers

It’s everyone’s favorite Rangers video: Joey Gallo taking batting practice

February 19, 2019 10:21 AM
‘It is time to complete that revolution’: Sanders says he’s running for president

Politics & Government

‘It is time to complete that revolution’: Sanders says he’s running for president

February 19, 2019 06:00 AM
These Arlington students are using art to illustrate dangers of flooding and drowning

Arlington Citizen-Journal

These Arlington students are using art to illustrate dangers of flooding and drowning

February 19, 2019 10:00 AM
Tony Romo to make second PGA Tour start at Byron Nelson; his first didn’t go too well

Golf

Tony Romo to make second PGA Tour start at Byron Nelson; his first didn’t go too well

February 19, 2019 08:50 AM
Angry dad slapped stepdaughter’s bully and threatened to beat him up, Texas cops say

Texas

Angry dad slapped stepdaughter’s bully and threatened to beat him up, Texas cops say

February 19, 2019 08:39 AM
Texas GOP searches for candidate to take on Colin Allred

Elections

Texas GOP searches for candidate to take on Colin Allred

February 19, 2019 04:00 AM
Take Us With You

Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand.

Subscriptions
  • Start a Subscription
  • Customer Service
  • eEdition
  • Vacation Hold
  • Pay Your Bill
  • Rewards
Learn More
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletters
  • News in Education
Advertising
  • Information
  • Place a Classified
Copyright
Commenting Policy
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service


Back to Story