Posted on 10/13/2006 11:33:26 PM PDT by JoeSixPack1
The Florida Democratic Party filed a lawsuit Friday in hopes of keeping notices out of polling places that would inform voters that ballots cast for former U.S. Rep. Mark Foley will count for fellow Republican Joe Negron.
The eight county elections supervisors who will record the outcome in the 16th Congressional District agreed this week to print a notice that would be posted at registration tables and handed to voters who had questions about the race.
Foley resigned Sept. 29 - too late to print new ballots - and was replaced as the Republican candidate by Negron, a state lawmaker from Stuart. Negron will receive any votes cast for Foley, according to state law.
When Negron was picked as Foley's replacement, Florida Division of Elections Director Dawn Roberts asked the supervisors to mail a notice about the change with absentee ballots and to post the notice inside individual voting booths. Supervisors decided against her recommendation but agreed this week to make a notice available in case of voter confusion.
The attorney for the Florida State Supervisors of Elections gave local supervisors recommended language for the notice, which also would tell voters that votes cast for Democrat Tim Mahoney will count for Mahoney and votes cast for Emmie Ross, who has no party affiliation, will count for Ross.
But Democrats said giving voters this information at the polling place is illegal. Democratic attorneys cite a Florida statute that states: "No precinct officer may favor any political party, candidate or issue."
"This plain English statute specifically prohibits any (election supervisor) from passing out at a polling location any information whatsoever that identifies Negron replacing Foley," the complaint states. "That would clearly and prejudicially constitute favoritism for both the Republican Party and Negron."
The eight county supervisors - including Arthur Anderson in Palm Beach, Vicki Davis in Martin and Gertrude Walker in St. Lucie - and Secretary of State Sue Cobb were named as defendants in the lawsuit, which was filed in the Second Judicial Circuit Court in Leon County. Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Karen Thurman is the plaintiff.
Ron Labasky, attorney for the elections supervisors, said he was willing to argue the case in court before voting begins. Early voting begins Oct. 23.
"The superintendents feel comfortable with the decision they made," Labasky said. "They feel that under the circumstances, that it was the appropriate thing to do. This was merely to provide voters with a potential response to questions."
Republicans charged that Democrats were trying to "disenfranchise voters and keep them in the dark."
"Democrats know Tim Mahoney is out of touch with the 16th Congressional District, and he has absolutely no chance in this race if the race is between him and Joe Negron," Florida Republican Party spokesman Jeff Sadowsky said.
Mahoney has not said whether he prefers notices.
"It's really not my fight," he said. "I'll let the legal experts decide what the best thing to do is."
The state party can send people to every voting station and put out signs telling people what to do. They can run ads, go door to door and deliver flyers and a whole host of other things to get the word out.
How bad do they want to keep this seat?
just another flori-duh.
Were people in general even moderately informed, the Democrats would never get more than 25% of the vote. (The 'retard vote' according to Kyle from South Park.)
Riiiiiight.
Dems will do everything short of guiding the collective hand of their bused-in voter base to punch the correct hole on the ballot for their candidate, but giving LEGIT information to the public about a confusing statute involving candidate shifts in the actual vote is somehow unfair to the process. ::huge mega rolleyes::
I think that, if anything, this move shows that the race in Foley's district is still very much up in the air, and that having this information for all to see in the public eye spells trouble in paradise.
She's a good candidate otherwise, a city council member and medical doctor, but the party's likely to lose the seat because the eliteocrats who anointed her couldn't imagine how a bizarre and complicated name affects write-in voters, and because she went with the 1970s feminist fad (which is already looking as dated as a Chrysler Cordoba) of hyphenated names.
d.o.l.
Criminal Number 18F
The Dems are gonna sue because the state is going to explain the truth to the voters ?
Who'd a thunk it ?
That is really low, but a typical democrat reaction as they are so desperate to win. This is the stuff that just makes me even more enthusiastic to help the republicans fire up our base. Watch out loser dems!
"This plain English statute specifically prohibits any (election supervisor) from passing out at a polling location any information whatsoever that identifies Negron replacing Foley," the complaint states. "That would clearly and prejudicially constitute favoritism for both the Republican Party and Negron."..."
Pure dimocRAT bullshit! 'Identification' does not constitute 'prejudice', no matter how much the dims wail about it!
But given our FSSC, we may have to attack Tallahassee again! I'm drivin'!..............FRegards
I thought the decision to pass over on David Wallace Sekula-Gibbs was bizarre. David Wallace is an easy name to remember and spell, for write-in purposes.
Heck, Sekula-Gibbs could have even dropped Sekula and just ran as Shelly Gibbs. Why she did not do so is anyone's guess.
Lord, God, please put the evil doers emphatically in their places.
The simplest answer here is to have a BIG 350 lb guy standing in the voting area...with a T-shirt explaining the whole deal...which will be obvious to everyone entering. Just let "Bubba" stand there all day...they can't push the dude out. And if anyone wants to cry foul...let them mess with a "upset" 350-lb Bubba. Most democrats that I know....won't say a word. Life is simple...if you just make it that way.
Man I think you are more right than you know. I had mentaly written this seat off. Joe Negron has had what, a week and a half to campaign? How in the world can this still be a competative seat? This smacks of desperation.
Gee, I thought it was the DEMOCRATIC party. Maybe they should look that word up and see what it really means. They've fought tooth and nail to keep DeLay on the ballot for a race he's dropped out of and now this.
Stupid hypocrites.
Can you say liberal Clinton appointed judge shopping?
Well, I live in this district, and as far as most voters that I know in this district go, we would rather elect a cat than a Democrat.
Negron is the next Representative.
I might add that all of this flurry of pontificating nonsense by the Dems simply raises the public knowledge of the race.
There might be a few cats and dogs around who don't know what is going on, but they are voting Democrat anyway
Are people in DeLay's district dumb enough to elect a liberal Democrat because they cant spell the name of the write in candidate? Hard to believe. Bush carried this district by 2-1 I thought. If voters there don't want to take the time to write in the candidate's name correctly then they shouldn't complain when the Democrat controlled Congress drags America down and weakens our defenses even more.
I am confident if the Dem wins on a fluke in this district, as will happen with so many other GOP leaning districts around the country, that the victory will be short lived. People will come to their senses and Republicans can regain these seats, and hopefully control of the House, in 2008.
Yet this is the same party that wants ballots in different languages
Seems though like a lot of *Republicans* aren't willing to make the effort either. If they are the majority in that district then they ought to vote like that.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.