New accusations of voting irregularities,inluding possible double voting, emerged Wednesday in Seminole County, as attorneys battling to throw out all 15,000 of the county`s absentee ballots began an investigation.
The new allegations, like the old, center on absentee ballots.
Gerald Richman, an attorney challenging presidential returns here, said it is possible some people voted twice -- once by absentee and a second time on Election Day.
A statistical analysis of returns from precinct 28 in Longwood were "grossly" abnormal, he said.
posted on November 24, 2000 10:12:00 AM
"Goard has admitted allowing two Republican operatives to add missing voter-identification numbers to 4,700 absentee ballot requests, forms she had earlier disallowed as incomplete. The requests were from mostly GOP voters."
Why does someone (allegedly) do this sort of thing? What could possibly motivate someone to so thoroughly subvert and corrupt the election process? Fear of the county/state Republican administration? Desire to curry favor with that same administration? Ambition of the most pathetic sort?
This is not some contest for homecoming queen where a teacher 'modifies' the vote to prevent the town bad girl from winning.
posted on November 24, 2000 10:30:04 AM
Florida law has an amazing (IMO) array of requirements for absentee ballots, the least of which actually is the postmark issue.
They have to be witnessed and dated, one person can only witness up to 5 ballots, the envelope has to be signed, and so on.
Republicans (including Bush) who are calling for the Gore team to join them in insisting that ALL absentee ballots be counted are being disingenous (surprise, surprise). The postmark restriction of the FL statute is overruled by Federal statute (not to mention common sense in the case of military ballots that can't be postmarked), I believe. Beyond that one issue, though, if they're asking for Democrats -- or the courts -- to overrule all the other requirements, they're asking for too much.
All of these absentee ballot restrictions were put into place specifically to prevent vote fraud, which is usually rampant on absentee ballots. The generous *help* given by Seminole County workers to their absentee voters just one example.
posted on November 24, 2000 10:46:58 AMThis is not some contest for homecoming queen where a teacher 'modifies' the vote to prevent the town bad girl from winning.
