Elections officials brace for flood of absentee ballots

If campaign 2012 were one of those late-night suspense thrillers, this would be the eerie calm before the inevitable storm down at the Clark County Election Department.

Democrats and Republicans continue their street fight to register voters with each intimating that the other guy doesn't play by the rules. Clark County Registrar Larry Lomax and his staff field plenty of complaints, but the fact is voter fraud is exceedingly rare (and often very difficult to prove).

Secretary of State Ross Miller's office also fields voter fraud complaints.

While rumors of a dramatic increase in absentee ballot applications persist, Assistant Director of Elections Donna Cardinelli says she has not yet seen anything out of the ordinary. An increase in requests is expected as groups attempt to squeeze every last vote before Nov. 6.

"With that said, several campaigns have already said they are going to do it," says Cardinelli, who has 28 years of experience. "Nobody has actually done it yet. There's no onslaught yet, but I do anticipate it coming down the road."

At last count, Democrats had registered 60,000 more Nevada voters than Republicans.

COCKTAIL FLAIR: Never let it be said that Las Vegas doesn't produce its share of athletes capable of competing at the international level.

Flair bartending is a sport, isn't it?

If not, maybe it should be.

At the Golden Gate, razzle-dazzle barkeep Eric Parker wows the cocktail nation with his bottle-juggling sleight of hand. Now Parker is taking his show on the road.

Make that the long road, to China no less.

Parker is scheduled to compete in the International Bar Association Flairtending Challenge starting Oct. 4 in Beijing.

All right, so it's not exactly Michael Phelps in the 100-meter butterfly, but still: Who knew the Chinese allowed flairtending?

In all, 52 countries are set to compete, and surely Parker will make downtown's drinking denizens proud.

Although President Barack Obama is due to visit the valley in preparation for next week's debate against Mitt Romney, I'm not sure the commander in chief plans to invite Parker to the White House should he bring home the gold from Beijing.

But the president is known to brew his own beer.

SOUP'S ON: If you want to know part of what's right with the heart of downtown, take a seat at the diminutive deli counter inside Binion's gambling hall.

You are likely to meet Florencio Oropeza and co-worker Anthony Serino. The dynamic deli duo spend many evenings serving great soups and stacking deli sandwiches for locals and visitors in a space not much larger than a dice table. For my money, they're deli kings.

Florencio and Anthony are genuinely friendly whether they're dealing deli food to big customers or low rollers. The best part, their longevity: Florencio has been working in the same location 32 years. Anthony is the junior partner with 21 years of service.

ON THE BOULEVARD: The amazing Las Vegas Miracle League starts its fall season Saturday morning with a slate of baseball games at a field that's specially designed to accommodate players with special needs. It's at 101 S. Rancho Road and well worth attending. ... Ray Chenoweth's Nellis Cab celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. But Ray knows the best deal he ever made was when he married wife Elaine the same year he opened the cab company. After 50 years, their meter's still running.

BOULEVARD II: Following Tuesday night's premiere of "Vegas," the CBS cowboys-vs.-gangsters drama loosely based on the career of Ralph Lamb, increasing numbers of the sheriff's old friends are wondering aloud where they were when all that gun-toting in the casinos took place.

Around these parts, poetic license trumps reality whenever Hollywood deals the cards.

Have an item for Bard of the Boulevard? Email comments and contributions to Smith
@reviewjournal.com or call 702-383-0295. He also blogs at lvrj.com/blogs/Smith.