Rick Anderson of the alternative newspaper begins with a wonderful quote from Ron Sims and then lists a bunch of elections that are now suspect, thanks to King County's failure to follow election laws (and common sense).
"It will never, ever again happen," King County Executive Ron Sims said of election snafus. Unfortunately, he said that in 2003, after technical glitches and human errors led to delays and uncounted ballots in 2002. Here we are again. The outcome of the gubernatorial election teeters on hundreds of votes lost and then found in King County's still-flawed counting process. If the supposedly improved system functions this poorly, how bad was it earlier? Is Sims really executive? Was Greg Nickels actually elected mayor? Are Judy Nicastro and Heidi Wills still Seattle City Council members? The new monorail was approved in 2002 by just 877 of 189,000 votes—or was it? In the primaries, especially, margins are often narrow. In their 17th District Democratic race this year, for example, Pat Campbell nudged Ilene Ferrell by a mere 88 votes. Or so tabulators say.
Agrees with whom? This poster, who suspects that the wrong person may have won the 2000 Gorton-Cantwell race, as well as those Anderson mentions. Curiously, Anderson does not mention the single worst practice uncovered — so far — the refusal of the elections office to even check some absentee ballots for signatures.
(This week's issue also has a column by Geov Parrish, who argues that rural land owners are not wrong when they oppose the "critical areas" ordinance. Common sense? Or just a recognition that people in rural areas vote, and that it is not wise to provoke them without reason?
Those who worry about the apparent shift toward rationality at the Seattle Weekly will be reassured by Knute Berger, who thinks a military coup against Bush and Rumsfeld might be a good idea.)
Posted by Jim Miller at December 22, 2004 01:44 PM | Email ThisThose who worry about the apparent shift toward rationality at the Seattle Weekly will be reassured by Knute Berger, who thinks a military coup against Bush and Rumsfeld might be a good idea.
The left remains as grounded in reality as ever.
Posted by: Matt J Kurlander on December 22, 2004 01:56 PMI'm looking forward to putting "Governer Select Greogoire" and "Re-defeat Gregoire!" bumber stickers on my pickup and driving around Bellevue.
Posted by: David on December 22, 2004 03:07 PMYou're engaged now and I don't have a problem with that, but in the past after the machine counts are done and the tallies show one candidate ahead of the other, everyone usually threw their hands up. Who really really cared about the absentees in the past?
No substitute for civic engagement.
Posted by: John on December 22, 2004 03:35 PMyeah, Sore LoserRossi!
Posted by: John on December 22, 2004 03:37 PMWhat Republicans need to do now is focus their passion and unity in making sure that we win the next election, and the next, and the next. We can start with Cantwell, and then recapture the State Senate, and four years down the road, we'll get Gregoire for sure. We won't do this by waving the bloody shirt. We'll do it by reminding voters of the reasons why they supported Dino in the first place: the Democratic establishment in this state is sclerotic, incompetent, and corrupt. We need a clean sweep. And, led by Dino Rossi and Rob McKenna and other young and smart conservative Republicans, we can do it.
Posted by: D.J. on December 22, 2004 04:01 PMRon Sims is an embarrassment to this county.
Posted by: jaybo on December 22, 2004 05:53 PMSims is the latest exhibit of why Democrats should never be allowed to run anything -- they always make things worse.
Posted by: MES on December 22, 2004 08:02 PMI clicked on the link to this, eager to read it and wanting to believe it. I didn't like the sound of this Knute Berger, but in his defense have also got to say that he didn't quite say that "a military coup against Bush...etc. might be a good idea". He spent ONE sentence on this (the way you write, it implies that the entire column advocates a military coup against Bush), and merely wonders if a US military coup against Bush would bring about a more moderate foreign policy. It is Berger's way of saying, "Perhaps even the MILITARY isn't as hawkish as the Rumsfeld DOD." And maybe he has a point. *I* consider myself to be conservative, yet *I* don't like that war and I ESPECIALLY don't like Rumsfeld's inability to acknowledge that if we are going to fight it then we should use adequate resources to win it.
Don't resort to the same sensationalism that the left does, Mr. Kurlander.
Posted by: Sabin on December 22, 2004 11:55 PM"Maybe a military coup isn't such a bad idea."
Remember that Knute Berger is not just a columnist, he's the boss over there, so he approved that subhead and probably wrote it himself.
There is a more general problem with Berger and company that this illustrates. If pressed, I think he would admit that he does not really think that "Maybe a military coup isn't such a bad idea.", even though he said so. But he has been willing for years to use such language against his opponents in the center and on the right. I don't think it is unfair to parphrase him accurately when he does that.
I don't pay much attention to his overall argument because of that habit of his. If Berger doesn't really believe what he writes, why should I take it seriously?
Removing him needs to be priority one if we are ever going to see confidence restored in King County's governance.
He is either corrupt or highly incompetent.
Posted by: Jaybo on January 1, 2005 08:45 AM