Partial Transcript: Voter Registration Conversation Secretly Recorded at South Dakota Campaign for Healthy Families Office - October 20, 2008 Approx. 7 PM
Contact: Brandi Gruis, VoteYesForLife.com, 605-271-7581
SIOUX FALLS, South Dakota, October 27 /Christian Newswire/ -- The following two interactions took place Monday evening, the last day to register to vote in South Dakota. "Eduardo" is an actual resident of California who intentionally falsely states he has relative's here in South Dakota. In other parts of the conversation (not transcribed below) there is discussion about what is legal residence, using a relative's address, and how a number of people on the campaign staff are doing this to vote here and then they are going home after the election.
The first conversation is between Eduardo and a man named Josh. Eduardo and Josh are discussing how it is that SDCHF Spokesman Chris Cassidy is able to vote in South Dakota since he is also currently a resident of California only here for the election, and plans to go home when the election is over. The second conversation captured moments later was with a man named Antonio who said he is the "Deputy Field Director." Antonio is heard to say on other parts of the audio that he is here from Pennsylvania working on the campaign for the past two and a half months but he states he is choosing not to vote in South Dakota like Chris.
This transcript only covers 1:53 of a 17:35 minute recorded conversation.
Eduardo: Yeah but, if you have an address...
Josh: Yeah, it's good
Eduardo: ...even if my, my driver's license says California
Josh: Yeah but you can, there's people, you know, people who work here who are like Chris, anybody's who's here now during the election that are going to leave after.
Eduardo: He's from Oakland right?
Josh: Yeah.
Eduardo: I'm from Riverside. How long has Chris lived here?
Josh: Oh, he's just here working on the campaign.
Eduardo: That's it?
Josh: Yep.
Eduardo: You see, why couldn't I do the same?
Josh: I don't know. They should, they should have let you, that's the thing.
Eduardo: Chris did it -but now they are closed.
Josh: It might work -
Eduardo: Why, why don't they have it open til later?
Other voices audible
Josh to Hassan: Do you know anything about voter registration when you're down there?
Josh: It shouldn't matter
Eduardo: You said Chris did it right?
Josh: Yeah, I mean it's on his --- cause you can have it from South Dak ---
Eduardo: The white man who did it. Cause you said Chris did it. No cause you black and you didn't do it. He did. Chris did it.
Campaign staff laughing
Josh: Well Chris...
?????: No I said she did it out today.
Eduardo: The lady who was here with me?
Eduardo: Well, no 'cause I waited for her.
Unknown: Dude, she went to the bathroom.
Antonio: Sometimes they bend the law on some things.
Eduardo: So Chris chose to vote here.
Antonio: Yes. Yes.
Eduardo: But he's going back. Once you vote you can go back, if you want?
Antonio: Yeah, of course, you can switch, it doesn't matter how many times you switch your registration
Eduardo: And it doesn't matter if I'm legally living here as long as I have the address.
Antonio: Yep, absolutely
Eduardo: I register...
Antonio: Ah hmm
Eduardo: ....and then if I stay here until November the fifth and then I go?
Antonio: Yes, yeah, yeah, yeah you can, I mean, it- it all depends on what, what, where your main address is where you can vote. So...
Eduardo: And so if I choose to stay today I can vote.