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Politics & Government

UPDATED: Fuentes Questions Accessibility to Cerritos Polling Places

City Council candidate Christopher F. Fuentes questions the accessibility to polling locations on Election Day. Also, a candidate sign was found too close to a polling station entrance.

Cerritos city council candidate Chris Fuentes alleges that voters are not getting proper access to the polls on Election Day.

On a tour of the handful of polling places throughout the city, Fuentes documented and photographed some of the problems he says are making it harder for people to vote, including a lack of large, clear signs pointing voters in the direction of the polling station.

"There's no cones with the U.S. flag, the marquee doesn't tell people to vote and there's just no symbols to vote here," he told Patch as he inspected the on the corner of Norwalk and Del Amo boulevards. "How am I getting to this polling place?"

Fuentes noted as he was driving in that area that the lack of legal U-turn spots compounds the frustration of getting to this particular voting places.

At other polling stations in the city, such as the gym, some only have a couple of signs that lead voters into the entrance. In addition to finding the polling stations, Fuentes said that the city until yesterday did not have a map of polling stations, which he said he made a complaint to the and are now on the city's election website.

But he said that the lack of clearly visible signs and the difficulty in reaching polling stations is of greater concern.

"The inconvenience of trying to find a place to vote is like a scavenger hunt," the longtime Cerritos resident said.

Improper Posting of Candidate Signage 

In addition to the inconvenience in getting to the polling stations, a sign for candidate  did not adhere to the 100 feet requirement from the polling station entrance at the Vintage Cerritos senior facility near Cerritos College. The clerk in charge of the polling station, John Carnagie, was notified of the problem and the sign was then moved to meet election laws.

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When asked about the improper posting of his campaign sign, Mody told Patch, "I put my sign (up) long time before. I did not know that I am within parameter.

"I am glad that a poll worker removed (it)," Mody added. "I am a law abiding citizen and I made (the) mistake not knowingly. I submit my apology and thanks to a poll worker."

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Fuentes said that he intends to file a complaint to the United States Department of Justice about these irregularities.

"The [city has] had voting long enough to get it right," he said as he toured the many polling places throughout the city. "It's not brand new and has been going on for 10 years now. The city is supposed to do everything possible for easy access to vote."

When Patch asked interim City Clerk, Vida Barone, about the alleged polling location problems and she said all 11 stations meet the necessary election requirements.

"We have assesed the polling stations with Americans With Disabilities Act standards, evaluated the kits with elections vendors and checked with Department of Justice regulations and our stations have met the standards," Barone said.

"We have to take into consideration many factors, such as whether signs should be placed on the street because they may be distracting to drivers," she added.

Barone said her department always welcomes voter feedback.

"We always appreciate voters input and try to incorporate them in the future and enhance the voter experience," she said.

Barone also went on to say, "I have not received any written complaints from Mr. Fuentes. We get calls in on various issues from misplaced ballots, vote by mail issues, election materials and more."

The city clerk's office then makes it a point to follow up on everything while trying to document the problem and call all citizens back, according to Barone.

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