Democrats sue over alleged GOP stacking of poll watchers

AP | 11/01/02 | KEN THOMAS

[kattracks]

MIAMI (AP) -- Democrats filed a lawsuit Thursday to prevent Republicans from stacking polling sites in Miami-Dade County with GOP-picked poll watchers.

A judge set an emergency hearing for Friday to consider whether Republicans and a political action committee called the Emergency Committee to Stop Bill McBride had an unfair advantage in assigning poll watchers for Tuesday's elections. McBride is the Democratic nominee for governor.

State law allows each party and candidate to have one watcher in each polling room during the election. Poll watchers can challenge the eligibility of voters.

The Democrats, led by former U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno and U.S. Rep. Carrie Meek, said in the complaint that GOP officials unfairly benefited from new rules the Democrats learned of only after it was too late to submit forms.

The new rules make it easier for parties and candidates to submit lists of names of poll watchers. As a result, the plaintiffs said, the Miami-Dade Elections office accepted hundreds of Republican poll watchers designated under less restrictive rules.

Lawyers for the plaintiffs said Democrats had signed about 145 poll watchers. The committee opposing McBride said on its web site Thursday that it had submitted 456 signed poll watcher forms.

The plaintiffs want the judge to either reject all the poll workers not submitted under the previous rules or allow Democrats to submit names under the same rules.

Also Thursday, some voters faced long lines during early voting in Broward and Miami-Dade. Many faced lines of nearly two hours in one early voting site in Broward.

But election officials said it was unfair to compare the early voting system at six sites with voting at more than 774 precincts on Election Day.

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On the Net:

Emergency Committee to Stop Bill McBride: http://www.stopmcbride.com/

Copyright 2002 Associated Press. All rights reserved.

[kattracks]

The Democrats, led by former U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno and U.S. Rep. Carrie Meek, said in the complaint that GOP officials unfairly benefited from new rules the Democrats learned of only after it was too late to submit forms.

The DemocRATS fail to keep abreast of the rules so now the rules should be disregarded?

Oh, I forgot, rules weren't meant for them.

[byteback]

These clowns can only sue so much before the public decides they've had enough. The Demmies will always have the undereducated to pander to but the average person only paying half attention to politics will start to see a pattern here.

[Timesink]

Just remember, every new lawsuit equals hundreds, if not thousands, of Americans who say to themselves "NO MORE!"

[JohnBovenmyer]

Still more precincts than poll watchers, but if the GOP is (finally) organized enough to line this up they should be organized enough to know where they are most needed. While the RATs are squeeling like stuck pigs the GOP already has them turning on the spit.

[timestax]

USA will have to build thousands of new law colleges to handle all the lawyers needed for the liberal DemoncRATS suing everybody in sight, or needing them to get them out of troubles!!

[Salvation]

I thought the dims were getting low on money.

What's with the law suits?

Crzy in my opinion.

[Mo1]

The Democrats, led by former U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno and U.S. Rep. Carrie Meek, said in the complaint that GOP officials unfairly benefited from new rules the Democrats learned of only after it was too late to submit forms.

Ummmm .. aren't the democrats the same people that are packing the polling sites with LAWYERS??

[tiki]

They can't read rules any better than they can vote. The only thing they know how to do is file lawsuits, abort babies, raise taxes and create welfare states.

[Robert_Paulson2]

"What is with all the lawsuits?" you ask?

Here's the 411.

Trial lawyers and legal professions who made their living off of clink and the sink, are almost completely out of power. Only the Senate remains. Of course they would like to have a foothold in some key states so they can stay in business. Florida would be nice, and would give them the added pleasure of sticking their fingers in President Bush's eye.

They will sue poll watchers for interfering with their intent to commit voter fraud. All for the children of course.

They are apparently willing to DONATE their time in phony 'pro bono' work for the dems at the polls. Eventually at taxpayer expense.

NEA, The Trial Lawyers, The Bureaucrats, Homos, Feminists and Minorities all LOVE the democrats. bill clinton is their own (blasphemously noted) "personal savior."

With so many of them, who is left to vote with us, and pay the bills for all THEIR social programs, massive governmental programs to control everything, and white liberal guilt fees?

Certainly not them.
They make me want to barf.

[Lancey Howard]

They can't read rules any better than they can vote. The only thing they know how to do is file lawsuits, abort babies, raise taxes and create welfare states.

And lie, and cheat, and turn somber funerals into hate-filled campaign parties, and teach elementary schoolers about "fisting", and jerk off into sinks, and.....

[Let's Roll]

They are low on money ... wait until the lawyers find out they ain't gettin' paid. hehehe

[TLBSHOW]

LMAO

and they are going to be sorry this year! I think the country isn't going to stand for anymore of the rats BS!

[DB]

Oh well... The Democrats simply missed another pesky little deadline laid out by law... Nothing the courts can't fix...

[Michael.SF.]

U.S. Rep. Carrie Meek, said in the complaint that GOP officials unfairly benefited from new rules the Democrats learned of only after it was too late to submit forms.

Can you not hear Homer Simpson here at the Dem HQ in Florida:

DOOH!.......... if I had only opened the mail.

[TaRaRaBoomDeAyGoreLostToday!]

[TaRaRaBoomDeAyGoreLostToday!]

[TaRaRaBoomDeAyGoreLostToday!]

[Freedom4US]

I was wondering when this would happen. Considering the number of trial lawyers and their incestuous relationship with you-know-who, it was entirely predictable. You can bet elections will be a fiasco from here on out, shame on anyone trying to ensure a *truly* fair and just electoral process. Geez.

[Roscoe]

new rules the Democrats learned of only after it was too late to submit forms.

Quick, change the law!

[Stultis]

The Demmies will always have the undereducated to pander to but the average person only paying half attention to politics will start to see a pattern here.

I'd like to believe that. In my more optimistic moments I do believe that. But how are those "average person[s] only paying half attention to politics" gonna see the pattern? You don't think Brokaw is going to tell them about this, do you?