Democratic model

Counting other countries flaws.

A little something to take into account while drafting constitutions and other documents outlining electoral procedure. Might want to write something in about validating voter registration. I know I know, b****y emigre you're probably all thinking - on about bureaucratic technicalities again damn she is such a bluestocking tightwad. But really, whoever is writing up the constitution might want to include a bit about checking on people registering household pets and imaginary friends.

Dog registered to vote
Otago Daily Times NZPA

Toby the jack russell terrier signed up on the electoral roll with his paw print and received a voter's card for the general election, his owner says...

When Mr Rhodes, an aviation safety specialist, received his electoral roll confirmation forms this year an extra form was supplied for people who had been "inadvertently overlooked". At the time, he was frustrated with the Queenstown Lakes District Council's regulatory contractor, CivicCorp, and with the "bureaucratic nonsense" he had to deal with while trying to subdivide his property.

"So I thought, for the hell of it, I'd put Toby's name on it, and sign it, and see what happens."

Mr Rhodes says he gave his dog the full name of Toby Russel Rhodes, occupation: rodent exterminator, and signed a squiggle, accompanied by a paw print, for a signature. He gave Toby the birth date of July 4, 1977 - his age in "human years" (his real age is four years). He expected Toby's application to be rejected.

To his surprise, Mr Rhodes received a letter in the mail, addressed to Toby, saying he had been registered in the Otago electorate and was able to vote. read whole true story

The electoral enrolement centre manager, Mr Wicks, was not amused:

"It's a statutory declaration ... You have to tell the truth when enrolling."

Mr Wicks must be one of the few people left in the world who still believes in Santa in flawless fine upstanding politicians.

Isn't it great when other places make mistakes that everywhere else can learn from.

Update: Mr Wicks will not give details of what sort of enrolment checks are done because:

"once it gets out there, there'll be all sorts of people doing all sorts of things".

Oh. But how can other emergent democracies learn from the mistakes then, if nobody's going to say how it happened?