But would it be enough? Early returns on Election Day looked grim. Republicans swept five out of six statewide constitutional offices and won two-thirds majorities in both legislative chambers. The GOP also took the governor's office for the first time in eight years and won back the Senate seat vacated by Mr. Abourezk.
Things didn't look much better for Mr. Daschle. When the counting stopped in the wee small hours of Wednesday, Nov. 8, he trailed Mr. Thorsness by 42 votes. It looked like he would be swept away by the rising GOP tide.
Then, in a weird precursor to the presidential race of 2000, a locked box of absentee ballots was discovered in Minehaha County, home to the city of Sioux Falls - a discovery that kicked off weeks of canvasses, recounts, and court challenges. Precinct by precinct, both sides identified suspect ballot boxes, brought in lawyers, and argued over individual slips of paper.
Like the electoral equivalent of Chinese water torture, Mr. Thorsness watched his lead erode one vote at a time. A week after the election, his margin was cut to 16. The season's first blizzard buried the state in snow, and still the counting dragged on. Norman Rockwell died, San Francisco Mayor George Moscone was assassinated, Mickey Mouse turned 50, and the Rev. Jim Jones led the mass suicide of nearly 1,000 followers in the jungles of Guyana.
Thanksgiving came and went. Four days later, with the initial recount complete, Tom Daschle got his first good news: Out of 129,000 votes cast, he had won by 14. The secretary of state (who happened to be the mother of his old classmate, Lars Herseth) rushed to certify him as the winner.
But the Thorsness camp wasn't satisfied, and a district-wide recount got underway. When freshman orientation started in Washington, the outcome of the race was still so uncertain that both men showed up to get their introduction to the Congress. But even as he was learning his way around the Capitol, Mr. Thorsness was learning the bitter truth: Back in South Dakota, he was losing ground rather than gaining.
In January, when the final numbers at last came in, Tom Daschle had won by 139 votes. Still just 31 years old, he had already survived the toughest political race of his career. Uncertain how to pronounce his name, his fellow lawmakers dubbed him "Landslide." It was meant to be ironic. It turned out to be prophetic.
Shannon County - 2856 total votes - 92% voted for Johnson
Todd County - 2027 total votes - 81% voted for Johnson.
THIS CANNOT STAND!!!!!
I'm not sure a recount is going to change the results. It would most likely be just a recounting of the fraudelent votes.
As for fraud, the F.B.I. started an invesitgation of vote fraud on the Indian Reservations before the election, has already gathered substantial evidence and made at least one arrest, of a contractor hired by the Democrat Party. As for the recount, it will be down-and-dirty, and bloody.
Last stop is the Senate itself. It is the "sole judge of the ... election of its Members." It can do its own count, and can even reverse the "official" count that comes from S.D. (The House did that in 1984 (?), seating a Democrat when Indiana reported that the Republican had won.)
If Trent Lott has a spinal transplant, or the Republicans have a leadership transplant, Thune will be seated in January, 2003, and that's that.
Congressman Billybob
11/06/02 CENTRAL ELECTION REPORTING SYSTEM 09:25:50
ST05BTCH ELECTION TOTALS
------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL PERCENT PRECINCTS TOTAL
VOTES OF VOTE REPORTING PRECINCTS
U S SENATE
(L) EVANS KURT 3071 1 844 844
(D) JOHNSON TIM 167477 50 844 844
(R) THUNE JOHN 166949 49 844 844
U S HOUSE
(L) BEGAY TERRY 3117 1 844 844
(D) HERSETH STEPHANIE 153551 46 844 844
(R) JANKLOW WILLIAM 179948 53 844 844
GOVERNOR
(D) ABBOTT JIM 140256 42 844 844
(L) BARTON NATHAN 1984 1 844 844
(I) CARLSON JAMES 2393 1 844 844
(R) ROUNDS MIKE 189912 57 844 844
SECRETARY OF STATE
(D) LOOBY KATE 133885 41 844 844
(L) MARTIN ALEX 7874 2 844 844
(R) NELSON CHRIS 181562 56 844 844
ATTORNEY GENERAL
(R) LONG LARRY 174508 54 844 844
(L) NEWLAND BOB 12231 4 844 844
(D) VOLESKY RON 139442 43 844 844
STATE AUDITOR
(D) BUTLER DICK 150824 48 844 844
(R) SATTGAST RICH 161316 52 844 844
STATE TREASURER
(R) LARSON VERNON 181117 58 844 844
(D) MCGREGOR SCOTT 130095 42 844 844
COMM SCHL & PUB LANDS
(R) AKER ALAN 147686 47 844 844
(D) HEALY BRYCE 154923 50 844 844
(L) STONE WILLIAM 8314 3 844 844
PUBLIC UTILITIES 6 YEAR
(R) HANSON GARY 180681 57 844 844
(D) NELSON PAM 138141 43 844 844
etc......
AW: This is a 528 vote difference. In a recount, we should see what "quality control" existed on the reservation, etc.
Ref. http://www.state.sd.us/sos/results/statwide.shtml