Could Typo Rewrite Caucus History? (Santorum may regain win)

KCCI Des Moines ^

[mnehring]

Caucus Vote Counter Says Romney Mistakenly Given 20 Votes

(Video report at link)

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Caucus night was chaotic in many places, with hundreds of voters, candidates showing up and the throngs of media who followed. The world's eyes were on Iowa. But in the quiet town of Moulton, Appanoose County, a caucus of 50 people may just blow up the results.

Edward True, 28, of Moulton, said he helped count the votes and jotted the results down on a piece of paper to post to his Facebook page. He said when he checked to make sure the Republican Party of Iowa got the count right, he said he was shocked to find they hadn't.

"When Mitt Romney won Iowa by eight votes and I've got a 20-vote discrepancy here, that right there says Rick Santorum won Iowa," True said. "Not Mitt Romney."

[StAnDeliver]

But Santorum was classy in the way he handled the inquiry...

[Yorlik803]

I think Mitt should accept the fact he is about as popular as gas on a bus trip and drop out.
But as long as morons like McCain keep endorsing him and goofballs keep voting for him,he is staying in for the long run.

[Theodore R.]

It would be a huge PR victory going into the NH debate if this gentleman is correct on his tabulation, and if it were released to the public accurately.

[kindred]

Question is, how did this discrepency happen? I would guess that both the communist run left wing and the liberal rino right wing both have dirty hands in fixing the results of all elections. God knows the truth and may those engaged in unlawful and immoral fixing be caught and judged for the evil, yea, the blood they cause to be spilled.

[kindred]

[Team Romney is the MOST VICIOUS group of pseudoconservatives
that has ever existed.
They go after women, children, GOP candidates,
and all on the sly, like the DNC.]

This certainly appears the truth in this matter and is but one more reason that conservatives need to seperate from rino liberal democrats who support the liberal democrat Mitt Romney. Just another McCain.

[kindred]

[Santorum just said there was a 20 vote mistake fro him that was magically neutralized by a 21 vote mistake for Mitt.]

I wonder if the primaries in other precincts of Iowa might not also have been mistakes?

[kindred]

[It’s basically a trust system.]

Problem, trust systems are generally overun and controlled by those evil people who lust after power and its ally, money.

[fwdude]

Yes, it does matter. It shows that conservatism, if offered to the people, will win.

[bmwcyle]

It was a miss count on purpose.

[Personal Responsibility]

Sounded to me that he was more interested in ensuring the truth was told.

[CharlesWayneCT]

The only Apanoose precinct I can find where Romney is reported with 22 votes is Washington Wells, and they are reporting 79 precinct votes, not 53 (or 50).

Note 79 is also not 20 larger than 53, so it doesn’t look like they just accidentally typo’d 20 votes to Romney.

[Free Vulcan]

There is a well known activist from Story on my Facebook was there when that happened observing the count for Paul. The woman in charge misreported 21 extra votes for Santorum to the state and everyone called her on it and made her call the right number in. That’s why the change.

[Keith in Iowa]

>>>I hope that, if Paulites end up stealing Iowa’s delegates,

Not gonna happen. To be a National Convention delegate, you first have to go from being a delegate nominated from your precinct to county convention, then from your county to the congressional district convention, and then the state convention, and then finally be nominated and selected at the state convention. Lots of hoops. Few if any Paulistinians are going to go through all those hoops. Nominations of delegates to the national convention are usually long-time, known Republican activists in Iowa... not johnny-come-lately types supporting flash int he pan nutjobs like Ron Paul.

[a real Sheila]

True said at his 53-person caucus at the Garrett Memorial Library, Romney received two votes. According to the Iowa Republican Party’s website, True’s precinct cast 22 votes for Romney.

Santorum -21
ROmney-2
Gingrich-6
Total-29

Um, where are the other 24 votes?!!!

[a real Sheila]

True said at his 53-person caucus at the Garrett Memorial Library, Romney received two votes. According to the Iowa Republican Party’s website, True’s precinct cast 22 votes for Romney.

Santorum -21
ROmney-2
Gingrich-6
Total-29

Um, where are the other 24 votes?!!!

[jjotto]

I’d say someone besides one Paulistinian would have to verify that an error was made. In other cases, errors were caught immediately because votes are counted in front of everyone.

[reaganaut]

Yeah they really do that, and more. There is a lot of pressure to perform on LDS missions.

Here are some stories, many which reflect things I have been told by members in good standing about lying on missions.

http://www.exmormon.org/mormon/mormon120.htm

[AuH2ORepublican]

I hope you’re right. In Nevada in 2008, a lot of Romney and McCain delegates elected at the caucuses (or at county conventions—I forget) didn’t show up at the state convention and the Ron Paul delegates to the state convention attempted to have Paul receive all of the state’s delegates despite having been beaten soundly at the polls; state GOP Chairwoman Sue Lowden had to step in to prevent this from happening. My recommendation to Santorum (and Romney, Gingrich and Perry, for that matter) delegates is that they make sure to show up at the county and state conventions to ensure that delegates to the Republican National Convention are allocated in a fair manner.

[mnehring]

I have to agree. I was originally hesitant to post this because it was a Paultard that reported it. The other option that really hasn’t been discussed is this is a Paultard playing games to cast doubt on the voting process in general so when they go in to the precinct votes to choose delegates, it won’t be a big story how they stacked precinct seats to give Paul more than were relative to the votes he received.

[JohnBovenmyer]

What was reported from that precinct ("Appanoose - Washington Wells" in the Google fusion document) was:

Romney 22
Santorum 21
Paul 7
Gingrich 6
Perry 13
Bachmann 3
Huntsman 1
Roemer 6

for a total of 79 votes. At least that's the only 22 vote Romney precinct in reported in that county. How you get from 79 to 53 by just removing 20 Romney votes I don't know. Some reporter needs to track down the other vote checkers from that precinct.

As an aside I was surprised to see 6 Roemer votes in one precinct as he only scored 31 statewide. A quick check showed this tied, with one other precinct in the same county, for the best Roemer take in the state.

I'd missed Greta last night, but saw the clip of Santorum regarding these changes replayed on Fox this AM. Humble and classy. Voters may or may not like what he says, but it's hard not to like the way he says things and it's hard to believe he doesn't really mean what he says.

Free Vulcan's report above gives context, which I hadn't seen elsewhere, for the 21 vote swing towards Mitt that Rick references. My question regarding that is when was this correction reported? Before the 'final' tally was reported Wednesday early AM Rove had said there was a correction made in a (or maybe two) Story County precinct(s) resulting in a net swing towards Mitt. IF this was that it already was factored into the 8 vote 'win' for Romney and True's allegations could still turn the final winner. If this was another Story county correction, then they had a bad night in Ames (from where for awhile, caucus night, Fox and AP were reporting vote results were being delivered to state HQ via pickup truck, only to later say that report was incorrect. A fog of "political war" moment.