Posted on 12/16/2004 11:59:33 AM PST by Publius
Chad Fairbanks in #100 is asking the good question. Why aren't we hearing more about the military absentee votes that haven't been counted BECAUSE of a mistake by the elections people, not themselves. The same logic applies to count these military ballots as Phillips is using to get his own ballot counted. What am I missing here? How many of these ballots are there in elections folks hands and why are we not hearing more about them? Unless Washington is different than elsewhere, military absentees' vote majority Republican. Hello?
The election itself has been certified. Period. The certification can be amended and changed, but the election has already been certified. Period. Rossi is the Governor-Elect, no matter how much you'd like to believe otherwise.
I'm not sure what you're talking about. Any absentee votes received at any time (before the election is certified) by county officials that were postmarked on or before Election Day are counted.
Good question. I wonder if Chris Vance and his people have looked at this angle. Disenfranchising the military would not sit well in this state except among the most radical of leftists.
If we played their game...
We'd take all those envelopes with military ballots, or "find" them, and put a black marker over the postmark. Oops, no way to tell if they weren't mailed before the deadline. Every vote must count, right, and how dare you disenfranchise those who are willing to die for our country?
Not true. State law allows for a machine recount and then a hand recount if requested and paid for. If the SoS wants to rush a certification before all the recounts mandated by law occur, they do not invalidate or cancel the other counts. The certification is of a total from a single count.
By Washington State law, which apparently I am more familiar with than yourself, December 2 is the last day for the Secretary of State to certify General Election returns.
Don't be silly. If it isn't postmarked before Election Day, it's not a valid ballot.
Which means, and I think the Washington State Supreme Court would agree with me, that up until December 2nd, counties can recanvass all they want, but after certification (which, by law much be by Dec. 2nd) they cannot add new votes to the totals. They can only recount those which were counted before December 2nd.
Ya with me so far?
Actually up to and including Election Day. However, when the county mails them out late, and people get them AFTER election day, then what? You still havn't answered.
Well, I'm not sure what I'm talking about either. I'm under the impression that there are returned military absentee ballots, in hand, that were received back late, as a result of being mailed out by elections people late, that haven't been counted for whatever reason. Does anyone know what the current status or number of these ballots
And if it's found weeks and weeks after Election Day... it's a valid ballot?
1. Best case: Republicans don't sue, 573 King County ballots get counted, Rossi wins.
2. Republicans sue, 573 King County ballots don't get counted, Rossi wins. (Republicans get blamed for possibly blocking legit votes, but Rossi's in the mansion. This is the "Gore shoulda won Florida" scenario.)
3. Republicans don't sue, 573 King County ballots get counted, Gregoire wins. (Dems get blame for running messy election and possible vote fraud -- "silver lining in dark cloud" scenario.)
4. Republicans sue, 573 King County ballots don't get counted, Gregoire wins. (Unlikely, considering the previous recount result.)
Nope. Re RCW 29A.64.070
Limitation.
After the original count, canvass, and certification of results, the votes cast in any single precinct may not be recounted and the results recertified more than twice.
Get that? RE-certified? Each count in a recount is separately certified.
Post-marked on or before election day. Is that a state or a federal requirement? What would a federal court say to state elections officials who, because of their own mistake, won't count returned absentee military votes?
Sorry, kids, gotta go. It's been fun, and I'll be back.
Go WHOEVER!! I'm just glad it's not Dixy...
Ahhh, but you can't add new votes (i.e. not previously counted) to a count when recounting a certified election, which is what is occurring.
Have you read the Supreme Court decision yet?
On Tuesday, Dec. 14, the state Supreme Court ruled that a recount is a re-tabulation of votes already counted. The Court ruled against the Democratic Party’s efforts to get previously uncounted ballots back into the recount.
Mistakes that favor Democrats must be corrected.
Mistakes that favor Republicans are "unfortunate" but nothing can be done about them.
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