There was a rather heated mayoral primary in Cranston, a local city. A few unions pretty much set up a shill to knock the sitting Republican out of the primary. Basic idea - "Hey, let's disaffiliate from the Democrats a couple weeks before the primary, then go in and vote in the Republican party against the guy we don't want to win!" The firefighter's union was one of those
Anyway, here's a fun little excerpt from our local paper of what one firefighter at the polls (to "support" his candidate) did.
Cranston officials had braced for problems between sign-carrying protesters outside the polling places, but the tension played out inside. Both mayoral candidates sent two observers to each polling location to observe the voting process and to track voters. At many locations, the observers sat at the same table.
"You've got two people right next to each other who are very emotionally charged for long hours," McGunagle said.
About five or six arguments broke out, but McGunagle said the mere presence of police officers prevented them from escalating into anything serious.
"I'm not sorry we used them," he said about the officers.
The police presence also resulted in one arrest.
At Arlington Elementary School on Princess Avenue, a state trooper who went to use the restroom at 2:30 p.m. ended up arresting a Cranston firefighter who was a poll observer.
State Police Maj. Steven O'Donnell said the trooper smelled marijuana in the single-stall room and tracked down and confronted the firefighter.
The trooper arrested Lt. Bruce Torman, 42, and charged him with possession of marijuana.
School was in session, O'Donnell said, "which is probably the most disturbing part of this whole story."
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