Posted on 05/24/2005 12:21:47 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
WENATCHEE, Wash. - The judge hearing a challenge to Washington state's 2004 gubernatorial election agreed Tuesday to let Republicans introduce evidence that Democratic-leaning King County recorded several hundred more votes than it could account for.
Republicans allege errors and possible fraud in the county, which includes Seattle, helped Democrats steal the election for Christine Gregoire, who beat Republican Dino Rossi by 129 votes out of 2.9 million cast.
"The evidence is overwhelming that there was unbelievable neglect in King County and, we believe, outright fraud by high-ranking King County officials," GOP attorney Dale Foreman said Monday.
Democrats had tried to block the GOP evidence, saying Republicans had brought up the issue too late and with no evidence to back up its claims.
Chelan County Superior Court Judge John E. Bridges said Tuesday he didn't believe the GOP claim was new. However, the judge added: "The court is not in a position at this time to determine that these are illegal votes."
Election officials say it's normal for the number of ballots cast in an election to be greater than the number of people credited with voting. Among other reasons, some voters forget to sign in when they cast their ballots, and under federal rules, some military ballots can be cast by voters not registered in the county.
Before Monday's opening arguments, Republicans had largely complained of bungling rather than outright fraud on the part of election officials.
Among the evidence of alleged fraud cited by the GOP is sworn testimony from a King County elections worker who said she and the assistant election superintendent agreed to a report that falsely showed that all absentee ballots had been accounted for.
In his deposition, the superintendent said the county's election superintendent, Bill Huennekens, knew about the flaws in the report before the county canvassing board certified the results.
"He allowed this fraud on the citizens to go forward," Foreman alleged in his opening statement.
Democrats and their lawyers scoffed at the GOP's fraud allegations.
"There is no question who won this election," Democratic attorney Kevin Hamilton said in his opening statement, standing by a poster-sized copy of the certification of Gregoire's election. Instead of fraud, Hamilton said, the GOP is presenting "a loose collection of administrative errors."
Rossi filed the election challenge after winning the first two counts, only to lose a final, hand recount by 129 votes to Gregoire. On Monday, Gregoire's office said she was too busy to follow the trial. Rossi's campaign office said he watched it on television. Neither plans to attend the trial.
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On the Net:
Video of the trial: http://www.tvw.org
Judge Bridges knows this case will go directly to the state Supreme Court and wants the record to be as complete as possible. The Supreme Court is free to decide which facts are relevant and which aren't. It's also one of the most liberal state supreme courts in the country.
I was listening to Kirby Wilbur on the way in this AM, and he was talking to a political reporter from the Tacoma News Tribune.
Wilbur posited the interesting theory that the reason why Bridges is being so thorough is that the Supreme Court has so many judges on that either worked for Gregoire, donated to her campaign, or donated to Rossi's campaign, that whatever Bridges decides - they will likely let it stand than take on the political powder keg.
The reporter then posited something interesting - a constitutional crisis in which Bridges rules, the Supremes let it stands, and the legislature, whose power to make a call on this is higher than the Supremes - they cancel Gregoire's certificate of election and simply vote to reissue a brand new one in its place.
Apparently, this is possible here.
The arrogance in Olympia makes this seem likely. It kinda spooks me, because there is only so far they can push before it turns brutally nasty.
They are very close to removing peaceful recourse, or the perception of, at the ballot box. That is bad for both us and them.
They wouldn't do something that stupid... would they?
What would you put past a liberal? These are people who think that abortion and euthanasia are forms of compassion.
From there, what is too extreme to countenance?
I've lived here for 14 of the last 20 years and still feel like a stranger. Pacific Northwesterners, while independent, seem mild-mannered on the whole. But for many of them near the cities, the irenic demeanor forms a facade for all sorts of violent ideas - in the name of the environment, in the name of anty-corporateism, in the name of the advancement of mankind, you name it. One guy I worked with even thought Bush was privately having dissenters shot!
Note to self: Spell checkers are good.
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