I cannot count the number of emails I have received that I have received from various sources regarding the wearing of campaign t-shirts, hats, buttons, etc., to the polls. I understand they are circulating nationally. All of them say the same thing: that if someone wears those items, they will be turned away and not allowed to vote. As is generally the case, rumors spread quicker than the truth.
In response, the Democratic Party of Virginia put out this statement earlier today, from Nancy Rodrigues, Secretary of the State Board of Elections:
Voters who bring campaign materials to the polling place may be asked to remove or cover it up while at the polling place. The Code of Virginia creates a neutral zone of 40 feet around a polling place where no campaigning may occur. (See § 24.2-604 of the Code of Virginia.) For example, a voter may be asked to remove a campaign sticker or button if you wear it in the polling place. Voters may be asked to cover up a shirt that advocates for a particular candidate. And any loose campaign material (such as signs, pamphlets, or balloons) must be left outside of the polling place. These rules allow voters a safe zone whereby they can vote in private and without distraction or interference. Voters who have questions about the specific policies in their locality, please contact their local Electoral Board.
The Hampton registrar has been even more explicit in the information she is providing voters who question what they can wear to the polls:
Regarding voters inside the polling place when they go to vote, § 24.-604 of the Code of Virginia provides (in part):
A. During the times the polls are open and ballots are being counted, it shall be unlawful for any person (i) to loiter or congregate within 40 feet of any entrance of any polling place; (ii) within such distance to give, tender, or exhibit any ballot, ticket, or other campaign material to any person or to solicit or in any manner attempt to influence any person in casting his vote; or (iii) to hinder or delay a qualified voter in entering or leaving a polling place. …
D. It shall be unlawful for any authorized representative, voter, or any other person in the room to (i) hinder or delay a qualified voter; (ii) give, tender, or exhibit any ballot, ticket, or other campaign material to any person; (iii) solicit or in any manner attempt to influence any person in casting his vote; (iv) hinder or delay any officer of election; or (v) otherwise impede the orderly conduct of the election.
E. The officers of election may require any person who is found by a majority of the officers present to be in violation of this section to remain outside of the prohibited area. Any person violating subsection A or D of this section shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor….
Enforcement of this section is assigned to the Officers of Election, who are appointed and supervised by the local Electoral Board the law does prohibit “exhibit[ing]…campaign material” within 40 feet of any entrance to a polling place, or inside the room. A violation of this law is a Class 1 misdemeanor (see http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+18.2-11).
A voter “exhibit[ing]…campaign material” would probably be asked by the officers, if they notice it, to remove or cover the campaign material while they are inside the polling place and prohibited area.
Outside of the polling place or the 40-foot prohibited area, state law has nothing else to say on the subject beyond the requirement for reporting of campaign finance matters.
These are the rules in Virginia. If you live outside Virginia, please check with your own voter registrar to get the rules in your state.
VIVIAN J. PAIGE | All Politics is Local 
What if I dress in head-to-toe blue? Is that okay?
Only if it’s a burka.
Shorter version: to be safe, just skip the buttons and vote.
My version: I’ll happily be a test case for my protected right to wear an Obama button to the polls. There is a world’s worth of difference between actively soliciting votes inside a polling place and simply wearing a button/shirt. Add this to the list of simple issues that the VA legislature could easily clear up if they had any sense of responsibility toward the franchise.
As one who works a certain precinct in all elections, I, as a member of a certain party, take my button off when I go inside to vote.
I have never, ever seen anyone who is just voting been asked to take of any button or other items when voting.
I think this may be coming up as a part of voter intimidation by certain memebers of a certain party.
There’s a giant to-do about this in PA, right now. Utterly stupid, but hey, why focus on things like making sure there’s enough voting machines out there when we can harp on about buttons? Idiocracy, truly.
This is a big deal. The emails are circulating nationally telling people that they will not be allowed to vote. That’s why I posted this.
Hmm, I hope I didn’t come across as saying that I thought *this* discussion about it was stupid. I was talking about making a big deal/political issue out of people wearing buttons to the polls in PA.
(Yes, on the emails. Had a number of people ask me directly about it. Frustrated that there isn’t any short and clear answer about it.)
You wear your Obama button, I’ll wear a shirt that says, “Vote Content of Character.”
-edited vjp
No wonder it got caught in the spam filter — Please change that to SHIRT.
(I’m so embarrassed.)
Naw, Mouse, I’m leaving it there for all to see since you are so quick to point out typos 😉
MB – it *did* sound like you didn’t think this was a big deal, which is why I responded that way.
linda b – the emails are coming faster than I can respond to them. I have forwarded the message from the DPVA to every single person who has sent me one of those emails. Whether or not you’ve ever seen anyone turned away isn’t the problem; the problem is that people think that they will be.
Vivian, I generally just point out typos in your posts for you to fix, and even ask that you remove the comment in which I point out the typo. Would you prefer that I not tell you? (I long ago gave up trying to get people to use the possessive case before gerunds.)
Thank you for posting this information on your blog. I recieved one of those chain emails and a text message concerning ‘what not to wear at the polls’ and it did have a tinge of fear attached to the message. I immediately went to google and typed in ‘can a person wear campaign materials while voting?’ and your website appeared at the top of the list. I didn’t know about you before and after viewing your site I just wanted to say thank you for caring about the community and human thinking. “It all begins with the mind”, and I can clearly see from your site that you are concerned with the human condition and the content of the information we attain. I live in New York and I will check the rules here as you suggest. Thank you for educating me today, Ms. Paige! I will add your blog to my favorites and check in often to share in the wealth of information on your site! Thank you and have a wonderful day.
Are we to believe that the sight of an Obama shirt (that’s shiRt) or a McCain pin will cause weak-willed voters to pull the lever for the “other guy?” This is just indefensibly dumb. It’s not quite as dumb as our “price gouging” law, however.
Mouse – I’m just messing with you. I fixed it.
Sonya – welcome! And I’m glad you found the information you were looking for.
Brian – the issue is campaigning within the 40 feet. And it seems every election, the topic of the effectiveness of poll workers comes up. Last numbers I saw was that somewhere around 14% of voters make their minds up at the polls!
Thanks! 🙂