Panels approve bills that respond to San Diego mayoral race

AP ^ | 4/6/5

[SmithL]

SACRAMENTO - Legislative committees Wednesday approved two bills introduced in response to the controversial outcome of San Diego's mayoral election.

San Diego County election officials ruled that Mayor Dick Murphy was re-elected last November by 2,108 votes, but they didn't count 5,551 write-in votes for runner-up Donna Frye.

On those ballots, voters wrote in Frye but didn't darken the bubble on the ballot next to her name. Current law requires that voters take both steps for a write-in vote to count.

Frye's supporters are challenging the election outcome in court.

A bill by Sen. Debra Bowen, D-Redondo Beach, would allow election officials to count write-in votes when voters fail to fill in the bubble if the intent of the voter can be determined.

That measure was approved by the Senate Elections, Reapportionment and Constitutional Amendments Committee, 4-2, sending it to the full Senate.

Meanwhile, the Assembly Appropriations Committee approved a similar bill by Assemblyman Juan Vargas, D-San Diego, that would require election officials to interpret liberally the intent of write-in voters when there is a recount.

It moves to the Assembly floor.

[SmithL]

It was a RUN-OFF and she wasn't one of the two highest vote-getters from the original election. Nevertheless, the asembly's intent is clear:

would require election officials to interpret liberally the intent of write-in voters

[John Jorsett]

There's a crystal-clear means for the voter to indicate intent: marking the ballot properly. But that's way too simple for the great minds of Sacramento. No, they want registrars to divine intent thru mind-reading, tea leaves, or ESP. Anything BUT assessing whether the voter followed instructions. Letting the registrars wing it is the kind of nonsense that led to the Florida fiasco.