Voter turned away for T-shirt

When Bradley Tucker, 25, arrived to vote at his polling location in Mt. Healthy early Tuesday, March 4, he was ready to support his candidate. Tucker showed his support by wearing a Barack Obama campaign sweatshirt and a matching button. He was ready to vote.

He wasn't ready to be confronted by a poll worker for his choice of clothing.

"When he came up to me, I was kind of surprised, because I had never dealt with this question while voting," said Mr. Tucker. "I could see if I was standing in line, chanting 'Obama,' but I was just standing there waiting my turn and not speaking to anyone."

Mr. Tucker said a poll worker at the Lakeknoll Drive polling location instructed him to cease campaigning and informed him he would have to remove his sweatshirt prior to being allowed to cast his ballot. Mr. Tucker said he was not campaigning and refused to take off his sweatshirt, and was eventually permitted to vote by another poll worker without having to change his attire.

According to Ohio Revised Code chapter 3501.35, no person can "solicit or in any manner attempt to influence any elector in casting the elector's vote." The language of the law is the basis for the decision to ban campaign attire from polling locations, said Kimberly Tucker, a Virginia attorney and author of 'You Can't Wear That to Vote:' The Constitutionality of State Laws Prohibiting the Wearing of Political Message Buttons.

"We have state laws that are sort of vague and open to interpretation," Ms. Tucker said. "That's the problem."

Mr. Tucker's experience is not unique. A young man in Montgomery County was asked to cover his "Barack Rocks" T-shirt before being permitted to vote, according to a Dayton Daily News report.

"We're not trying to stifle anyone's freedom of speech," Steve Harsman, director of the Montgomery County Board of Elections told The Dayton Daily News. "But you just can't do any campaigning inside a polling place."

However, the rule was not enforced at all polling locations in the area. Several employees of The News Record were permitted to vote at multiple polling locations in both Hamilton and Butler counties while wearing buttons with political language. None were confronted or denied access to the polls.

"It's a matter of interpretation of people at the polling place," Ms. Tucker said. "You don't just want people on the street interpreting the law. You want there to be a law."

An argument based on the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution could be made for the right to wear campaign attire while voting, said Dan Tokaji, associate professor of law at The Ohio State University.

"The problem I have with the statute is that it isn't specific enough," Tokaji said. "However, discretion may be the better part of valor."

Inconsistent enforcement of voting rules was not the only issue experienced in Ohio on March 4.

"We have received reports from around the state of independents and Republicans who chose to vote in the Democratic primary receiving issue only or Republican ballots instead of the Democratic ballot they were entitled to," said Paul Tewes, Ohio state director of the Obama campaign, in a statement. "We have also had reports that the voter ID requirements have been misstated at various locations, causing some voters to be turned away."

The Clinton campaign also complained of election irregularities.

"While we expect voting to run smoothly, we have heard troubling reports of irregularities and inappropriate behavior by Sen. Obama's campaign across the state," said Robby Mook, Ohio for Hillary state director, in a statement. "In Cincinnati, we have numerous reports that Obama poll watchers have been reprimanded after wearing campaign paraphernalia into polling places, in clear violation of election law."

To report voting irregularities, call the Voting Rights Institute at 877-868-3874 or via e-mail vri@sos.state.oh.us.