WA Gov. Race: "...seeks an order setting the election aside..." [State GOP Press Release]

Washington State Republican Party ^ | 7 January 2005 | Chris Vance

[Publius]

Rossi and GOP to contest the election.
Lawsuit filed today.

Today Dino Rossi announced that we will challenge the election in court. Attached is a copy of the details regarding our legal challenge to brief you on the current situation. We have filed our election contest petition with the Chelan County Superior Court. Under the law, the initial hearing will be 10-20 days from now, followed by a trial. Ultimately we expect this case to be decided by the State Supreme Court.

Also today, King County completed their reconciliation process and admits that 348 provisional ballots were illegally cast at polling places. There are an additional 1,217 votes for which they cannot find a voter. Similarly, Pierce County now reports that 77 provisional ballots were illegally cast and reports a total of 135 more ballots than voters.

We will continue to keep you informed of any changes or developments.

Basis for Contest of 2004 Washington Gubernatorial Election and Call For New Election

“[T]he right of suffrage can be denied by a debasement or dilution of the weight of a citizen’s vote just as effectively as by wholly prohibiting the free exercise of the franchise.” Gold Bar Citizens for Good Government v. Whalen, 99 Wn.2d 724, 730 (1983).

"Where appropriate, [the court’s powers] include the power to order a new election where no other remedy would adequately correct distortions in election results caused by fraud or neglect.” Foulkes v. Hays, 85 Wn.2d 629, 633 (1975).

The Election Contest Petition sets forth a series of errors, omissions, mistakes, neglect, and other wrongful acts by election officials that make it impossible to determine with certainty who won the 2004 election for Governor of Washington. The specific claims include:

• In many counties, more ballots were counted than there are registered voters identified as voting.
• In at least one county, many provisional ballots were placed directly into counting machines on election day rather than being reviewed and validated to ensure that they were cast by eligible voters who did not cast another ballot.
• Illegitimate votes were cast by convicted felons whose civil rights were not restored, deceased persons, and persons other than the registered voter whose ballot was voted.
• Ballots were “enhanced” in a manner that permanently obscures the original mark of the voter, in violation of state law.
• Counties treated voters inconsistently in their decisions whether to count ballots that were incorrectly rejected.
• Inconsistent and changing standards were employed in determining when a ballot was an overvote or and undervote.
• Military and absentee ballots were mailed too late to be received by election day.
• Private information about provisional ballot voters was released, and third parties were allowed to use that private information to procure documents seeking to validate the ballots.

The Contest Petition seeks an order setting the election aside; declaring that any certification of the results of the election and any certificate of election issued as a result of the election are void; and directing that a new election be conducted as soon as practicable.

And if you can make it, don’t forget the Re-Vote! Rally next week.

Date: Tuesday, January 11
Time: 10:30 A.M.
Place: State Capitol, Olympia

Check with your county party to see if group transportation is available. http://www.wsrp.org/state_committee.htm

[Bommer]

GO-GO-DINO!

[DixieOklahoma]

Rossi ! A republican with a SPINE!

You sir have earned my respect.

[DixieOklahoma]

If the biased supreme court of WA STATE does not give us a NEW, fraud free election, we APPEAL to the SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES!

[schu]

Chelan was picked for specific reasons, listen to the Rossi lawyer. They did not want to challenge the results in the 3-4 counties where most of the issues took place, Chelan is not one. Also, evidence has to be presented under the rule of law, apparently this needs to be done at a lower court prior to the WA State SC hearing the case. And lastly, they certainly have to think that Chelan willl give them a fairer hearing.

[capitan_refugio]

I think this is the wrong direction to take, if it is the only initiative. I believe that contesting the validity and methodology of the hand recount would be a more effective route.

[SunkenCiv]

"[T]he right of suffrage can be denied by a debasement or dilution of the weight of a citizen’s vote just as effectively as by wholly prohibiting the free exercise of the franchise."

And since the prohibition of the free exercise of the franchise is just about entirely fictional...

[cgbg]

I see no problem with Gregoire being inaugurated and the media giving her media coverage.

Because if Rossi's challenge has enough merit (and I believe it does) and the Washington State Republicans do their job in the publicity area, then the "man in the street" will be laughing at Gregoire every time they see her face on the tube or in the newspaper.

Rossi and his supporters are yelling: "The emperor has no clothes". If they say it loud enough and long enough and present a strong enough case in court they can prevail.

They should be able to win in the first court. Then I would expect that decision to be overturned when the case reaches the Washington Supreme Court.

At that point we could have a historic U.S. Supreme Court case.

It could be a very very bad year for the naked emperor of Washington State.

[Gondring]

Rossi ! A republican with a SPINE!

You sir have earned my respect.

Agreed! Some have said that he has no national aspirations, but by fighting like this, he sure is getting some respect from those of us who aren't in Washington!

[Political Junkie Too]

The problem is with the old saying that possession is 9/10ths of the law. By the time that Rossi gets his vindication, there will be strong motivation to keep Gregoire in her office. It is better to suspend the office until the matter is resolved.

The bottom line is, do you want vindication or do you want the office? If you let the Democrats take the office, tainted or otherwise, they will not let go of it, no matter what.

-PJ

[chimera]

If you let the Democrats take the office, tainted or otherwise, they will not let go of it, no matter what.

You sure said it. One thing about a 'Rat, when they get entrenched, it's awfully hard to dig them out.

People have cited as precedent the governor's race in Minnesota back in the early 1960's, where the Republican apparently won, was sworn in and held office for a few weeks (or months), while a court reviewed the election. The court eventually ruled that the 'Rat had won. So the Republican guy left office and allowed the 'Rat to be sworn in.

The key difference, of course, is that with the Minnesota case, the Republican was in office and the 'Rat was the challenger. When the court ruled against him, the Republican did the right thing, left office, and allowed the person who won (legitimately, evidently in the eyes of the court) to assume office. Doing the right and honorable thing is generally in the nature of Republicans. For 'Rats, however, doing the right thing is a totally foreign concept. I predict if the courts made similar rulings in the WA case, they'd have to drag Gregoire out of the Governor's Mansion kicking and screaming.