I remember news stories filed from Afghanistan before that nation’s historic foray into democracy, which reported encounters with Afghani citizens hoarding voter registration cards. These new voters were a bit unclear on the “one man, one vote” concept, and thought that since every voter needed a registration card, it must follow that each voter will be assigned as many votes as cards in his possession.
I’ve learned that a similar fallacy has taken hold among some voters in the 2004 Weblog Awards. I’ve read comments on two blogs from people who think that since voting requires a computer, it follows that each person may vote as many times per day as computers to which he has access.
Here’s one example I found: “Well, I do make the effort to vote both at work and at home. So, even if I don’t like ya, at least I support ya!”
And on another site, another: “I’m even voting from home AND from work just to help get your numbers up there. (all within the rules of one vote per day per computer)”
I need hardly point out that that is not what the rules say. The rules simply say,
You may vote once every 24 hours in each poll.
There’s no ambiguity. That’s ‘You,’ as in “you, the person casting the vote,” and ‘once,’ as in “not twice.”
(The respective owners of those blogs have not — yet — replied that their commenters are in error.)
I’m not bringing this up to rain down scorn onto these multiple electors, and certainly not to beg my own readers to duplicate their chicanery to “get even.” Just the opposite: I had assumed that everyone understood that voting on multiple machines to defeat the once-a-day rule is wrong, but I am evidently mistaken in that assumption. So I am writing to inform my own readers that it is wrong. Please do not do it, not even if you are voting for me. Especially not if you are voting for me.
And if you have already done this, please refrain from voting again until as many days elapse as instances of your infraction. If you have done it four or more times, please don’t vote again at all, since there are only four days of voting left.
I have no way of enforcing this plea for honesty, and no way of knowing who complies and who violates it. Only you, and the One who wrote the law on your heart, will know.
