No date on this piece, but it was posted on 4/14/08:
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Election Coverage 2008

Non-citizens voting in elections

By: Mike Deeson
Tampa, Florida -- Voting is a precious American right and Hillsborough supervisor of elections Buddy Johnson has made a big push to register voters especially in the schools.

Michael Carracedo was in a classroom in his high school and he says, "They came in and said, 'How many of you guys are 18?' The majority of the class raised their hand, and I raised my hand"

Carracedo says he was eager to exercise his right to vote. He filled out the application, turned it and one week later he got his voter's card. It enabled Carracedo to vote in the gubernatorial election and he says he was thrilled until he came to the immigration office to apply for citizenship.

The immigration officer told Carracedo he could be deported for voting.

"I did not know that you have to be an American citizen to register to vote," Carracedo says.

Jennifer Marks of the Hillsborough Supervisor of Elections office says, "Over the past three years the office has elicited 12,000 registrations and this is the first I've of this happening through the school program."

While Marks can't recall any problem like this, under law it can't require anyone who wants to register to prove they are an American citizen. That's why the office readily admits if an illegal alien wants to register and vote, there's really nothing they can do about it.

"It's absolutely conceivable that could happen," Marks says.

Even though Carracedo did sign a form saying he was an American citizen, he says he didn't pay attention to the form.

"I barely looked at it," he says. "I filled out the information and signed at the bottom. Like at any other form, there was small print at the bottom and I didn't read it. Obviously it was my mistake not reading it."

Marks says, "Ultimately you have to trust the word of the person who signs the form and when they sign an oath, they have ultimate responsibility."

But that means someone who wanted to stack the system with illegal voters could influence a close race and no one would ever know.

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