Greens, Libertarians Demand Ohio Recount
Minor Candidates Claim Impropriety
TallahasseeJoe
The Green and Libertarian parties are jointly demanding a recount of Ohio's presidential vote, claiming a number of irregularties.
According to a November 19 posting on the Ohio Green Party web site, "Attorneys for Green Party presidential candidate David Cobb and Libertarian Michael Badnarik have sent letters to each Ohio county election director asking them to begin preparations immediately for the recount of the presidential vote.
Although a demand for a recount is usually not made until after the vote has been certified, there are concerns that waiting that long would not allow enough time for the recount to be completed before the Ohio presidential electors meet on December 13 in Columbus.
The Ohio Secretary of State's office has told the press that certification of the vote would occur around December 6, allowing only a handful of days for a full recount prior to the December 13 meeting."
The posting links to an investigative report published on the political web site TomPaine.com claiming that Senator John Kerry was the legitimate winner in Ohio. A reversal of the Ohio outcome would give Mr. Kerry the presidency.
A statement on the web site of the Libertarian Party of Ohio, dated November 16, also notes the recount demand and suggests that Mr. Badnarik's campaign in particular was a target of impropriety, alleging that his name was inappropriately removed from the ballot in at least one Ohio precinct.
The statement acknowledges that the Libertarian Party does not expect to change the election result but hopes to draw attention to problems in Ohio election law.
Citing exit poll data that suggested a lead for Mr. Kerry, the TomPaine.com report attributes President George W. Bush's victory to "spoilage", the rejection of ballots by election officials - properly or improperly - on the basis of problems such as the "hanging" or "pregnant" chads that provoked controversy in the 2000 election. Spoilage routinely excludes about 3% of votes nationwide, according to the report.
Greg Palast, author of the report, suggests that Ohio election officials such as Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell, a Republican, may have used spoilage as a pretext for improperly excluding ballots cast for Mr. Kerry, thus pushing Mr. Bush to a narrow win.
The recount demand seems to have largely eluded the attention of mainstream newspapers. Searches of the online archives of The New York Times and The Washington Post for articles containing the word "Ohio" failed to reveal any headlines that mention the Green and Libertarian parties' claims.
TallahasseeJoe
The Green and Libertarian parties are jointly demanding a recount of Ohio's presidential vote, claiming a number of irregularties.
According to a November 19 posting on the Ohio Green Party web site, "Attorneys for Green Party presidential candidate David Cobb and Libertarian Michael Badnarik have sent letters to each Ohio county election director asking them to begin preparations immediately for the recount of the presidential vote.
Although a demand for a recount is usually not made until after the vote has been certified, there are concerns that waiting that long would not allow enough time for the recount to be completed before the Ohio presidential electors meet on December 13 in Columbus.
The Ohio Secretary of State's office has told the press that certification of the vote would occur around December 6, allowing only a handful of days for a full recount prior to the December 13 meeting."
The posting links to an investigative report published on the political web site TomPaine.com claiming that Senator John Kerry was the legitimate winner in Ohio. A reversal of the Ohio outcome would give Mr. Kerry the presidency.
A statement on the web site of the Libertarian Party of Ohio, dated November 16, also notes the recount demand and suggests that Mr. Badnarik's campaign in particular was a target of impropriety, alleging that his name was inappropriately removed from the ballot in at least one Ohio precinct.
The statement acknowledges that the Libertarian Party does not expect to change the election result but hopes to draw attention to problems in Ohio election law.
Citing exit poll data that suggested a lead for Mr. Kerry, the TomPaine.com report attributes President George W. Bush's victory to "spoilage", the rejection of ballots by election officials - properly or improperly - on the basis of problems such as the "hanging" or "pregnant" chads that provoked controversy in the 2000 election. Spoilage routinely excludes about 3% of votes nationwide, according to the report.
Greg Palast, author of the report, suggests that Ohio election officials such as Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell, a Republican, may have used spoilage as a pretext for improperly excluding ballots cast for Mr. Kerry, thus pushing Mr. Bush to a narrow win.
The recount demand seems to have largely eluded the attention of mainstream newspapers. Searches of the online archives of The New York Times and The Washington Post for articles containing the word "Ohio" failed to reveal any headlines that mention the Green and Libertarian parties' claims.
posted by TallahasseeJoe @ 5:04 PM
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