Officers -- Violations generally.We know that King County election workers failed to create records and/or falsified records required by WAC 434-240-270 ("Maintenance of an audit trail on absentee ballots"). This led to the appearance that a net 875 absentee ballots were tabulated in excess of the number of absentee voters, and that at least 96 valid absentee ballots were not tabulated. We also know that King County election workers failed to complete and present their pollsite ballot reconciliation to the canvassing board as required by WAC 434-253-204 and the canvassing board certified the election three times, without once examining the required reconciliation.
Every person charged with the performance of any duty under the provisions of any law of this state relating to elections ... who willfully neglects or refuses to perform such duty, or who, in the performance of such duty, or in his or her official capacity, knowingly or fraudulently violates any of the provisions of law relating to such duty, is guilty of a class C felony punishable under RCW 9A.20.021 and shall forfeit his or her office.
So. It's time for a criminal investigation. Even though it won't affect the outcome of the governor's contest, holding the officials accountable for violating the law is essential for cleaning up the system and restoring public confidence. Indeed, even if all the as yet unexplained discrepancies were simply a result of, say, clerical errors, election officials still should have completed and presented a thorough reconciliation. It was the lack of reconciliation that led to the contest. Had King County officials actually fulfilled their statutory duty and closed the loop with documentary evidence that the election was conducted properly, with all discrepancies corrected and/or disclosed, the election contest never would have happened. The only significant justification for the contest was the unlawfully incomplete records that indicated ballot/voter discrepancies, some of which were since proven to be caused by illegal or uncounted ballots, others which are as yet unexplained. If the records were complete, the election could have been settled one way or another months ago. The legitimate questions raised by the incomplete records could only be settled through the contest, an expensive and time-consuming process that cost the litigants millions of dollars, undermined confidence in the elections system for years to come, distracted the state and county legislatures and imposed huge burdens on state and county election officials. All of this could have been avoided had the King County canvassing board and top election managers actually done their jobs as required by law: Dean Logan, Bill Huennekens, Garth Fell, Dwight Pelz, Dan Satterberg and counsel to the canvassing board Janine Joly. At least some of these comedians need to be held responsible for the vast damage they caused the public.
Posted by Stefan Sharkansky at June 07, 2005 04:13 PM | Email ThisBTW, I think you are dead-on right, but hey, let's take a breather and turn to the next one. I know, it bugs the heck out of me, too, but the inertia is gone.
No way will the prosecutor go after these felons. And how do you get the big fish, Sims and Gregoire?
Posted by: swatter on June 7, 2005 04:31 PM"Good luck with your Dean Logan harassment campaign. I hope he puts a restraining order out against you psychos."
What a venomous attack of anyone, who disagrees with you. It really shows how willing you are to accept dissenting opinions. Not that I expect anything else from people like you. Of course, I know that you are just more enlightened than I, NOT.
Posted by: Mike P on June 7, 2005 04:33 PMA short while ago, I think Andy made a thread about what new statutes or laws could be enacted to ensure a fairer resolution to these election contests. One comment was made that I want to paraphrase and elaborate on here: Enact a new statute that would make a re-vote mandatory if the number of illegal votes discovered and determined in an election contest is greater than, even by one vote, the margin of victory. Illegal votes would be classified as (1) votes that are not cast in accordance with existing WACs and RCWs regarding elections, and (2) votes that are not tabulated, or fail to meet the requirements of, the existing RCWs and WACs.
The chance of elections being this close are so small (one in every 200+ years), that it's not likely it would be abused in every election, but it would be there as a remedy in these rare circumstances. If we don't acknowledge and deal with this special and unusual set of circumstances now as it is upon us, then we will have failed future generations by not making provisions in our laws to deal with this problem when it arises again.
Posted by: JRR on June 7, 2005 04:34 PMI can't think of anything that would help the GOP become a majority party more than such a witch hunt. I look forward to seeing you organize protest and write in campaigns to the AGs and prosecutor's office.
However, like most everything on this site, I assume that this is just PR, and you know you have no chance, and won't actually do anything about it.
Once again, so much sound and furry, signifying nothing.
Posted by: JDB on June 7, 2005 04:42 PMThey did after all "produce" a document purpoting to be a reconcilliation. Unless the RCW says they must produce it, and in a specific way diferent that the way they did, they are only bound by the WAC, which doesn't appear to have any punishment.
If I'm wrong please correct me.
Posted by: Deadwood on June 7, 2005 04:47 PMWe need to show the independent voters of this State the truth about King County Politics.
It is apparent that illegally enhancing 50,000 ballots is not an issue that the Secretary of State wants to investigate further. Also Norm Malileg is too interested in maintaining his political career to buck the machine and the MSM who backs them.
Let’s show the swing and independent voters of this State just how brazen and bold they have become. That all of this has occurred within the King Co elections Dept with no consequences is unbelievable.
No….believe it!!
I pray the Feds will come save us. This is just lawlessness.
The King County canvassing board was ultimately responsible for many of the questionable ballots being allowed into the count. I've listened to the KC canvassing board tapes....Everyone should have the opportunity!
Everyone focuses on a few thousand illegal ballots - processed by *various* counties in the State - as if they were the only ballots that could have thrown the election to Gregoire. I still have a problem with the 10,000+ ballots that King County claimed it found just before the first vote count ceritification...I don't remember receiving a satisfactory explanation for their sudden discovery..
I still have a problem with those 55,000 enhanced ballots.. Were they absentee? Poll Ballots? Were they credited twice? How was it determined that they required enhancement? How did that huge number compare with the other counties enhanced ballots? What was the path of those ballots from beginning to end?
I got this from the KC website:
Ballot duplications and enhancements are conducted by at least two people in the presence of political party observers.
A log is maintained of all duplications and enhancements to ensure full accountability of all ballot handling.
Ballot enhancement only occurs when the original marks on the ballot can be maintained. If enhancement would permanently obscure a ballot, the ballot is duplicated rather than enhanced.
In the 2004 General Election, 4,902 ballots were duplicated and 55,177 ballots were enhanced out of nearly 900,000 ballots cast.
The King County Canvassing Board reviewed more than 1,600 ballots to determine voter intent. The vast majority of these decisions were unanimous.
If the canvassing board only received 1,600 of those 55,000 ballots to determine voter intent - how were the remaining 53,400 enhanced and by whom? It's been stated by the Dems that many people chose not to vote this year for the Governor.... How do they know this? What are the statistics? Would those ballots be placed in the stack of 55,000 to be enhanced because they were flagged as having unreadable ovals in the Governors race? Who would have custody of those and what measures were in place to insure no one added a vote where no vote was intended? I mean - we ARE talking about 55,000 ballots here!
I just do not believe King County only mustered a few thousand votes to throw this election... I believe it was tens of thousands! Gregoire was not a popular candidate. People were questioning her huge and expenseive blunders while in the AG's office. People were asking where the Tobacco settlement money went... Rossi appealed to the business community and offered the state a fresh start...
I think we were missing the forrest of illegal votes by focusing on a few trees...
This was a lot bigger than we thought and it's going to happen again...
Posted by: Deborah on June 7, 2005 04:52 PMHe must be referring to the famed Ms. Palm and her five finger sisters. They're well acquainted, I'm sure.
Damn these socialist dweebs can't spell. All the money they demanded for public education seems to have been wasted.
Posted by: On the Far Right Side of the State on June 7, 2005 04:54 PMI agree with you that Ron Sims should be the next political opponent and he is at the top of the list of people to go. With his departure Dean logan and the rest under him will also fall. It is the best possible way to clean up this King County elections department since the legislature and the courts will obviously not do it. Bridges did say it was up to the people to demand it, and demand it we will.
Posted by: GS on June 7, 2005 05:00 PMForget having the lying, cheating, taxing Liberals do anything rational. Rule by initiative until Conservatives take over. Liberals hate the initiative process but it is easier than making the people understand that liberals are the problem.
Lock and load!
Whatever.
Posted by: ScottM on June 7, 2005 05:07 PMBurn the witch!!!
Posted by: JDB on June 7, 2005 05:18 PMYour contempt for the law and for the voters is palpable, did you realize that?
Such is the Democratic party these days. Oh, I know Democrats who would disagree with you and who would prefer the law to be followed, but those people (like me) are leaving the party, leaving behind only the angry nuts like you.
I voted for Mondale, the guy who ran against Bush Sr, Clinton, Clinton, and Gore.
NEVER AGAIN.
Posted by: Bostonian on June 7, 2005 05:42 PMNo, the bong hits turned me into an inguana. Sheesh, do I have to explain everything to you?
And what's your excuse for being in lockstep with the right wing mainstream media? You molest collies for a living? You always thought it was a shame when Scrooge changed in the end? You just like tight leather uniforms? Or just a shere lack of education?
Posted by: JDB on June 7, 2005 05:45 PMYou act like a rabid dog.
Posted by: Northern Coho on June 7, 2005 06:05 PMSpecifically, what crimes did Bush commit at all -- much less what he could be impeached for?
As for Rush Limbaugh, what was his "crime?" He was accused of “Physician shopping” to obtain a prescription under false pretenses. The idea behind such a law is to keep someone from getting a prescription from a doctor in Everett, then seeing a doctor in Seattle for the same prescription, another doctor in Tacoma, another in Olympia, etc. What physician did Limbaugh "shop?" His doctor's partner, because Limbaugh's primary physician was out of town. That doctor, of course, had full access to Limbaugh’s records and knew what prescriptions had been written. Some "shopping.” Nothing was ever established regarding the story from Limbaugh’s housekeeper – that’s why the prosecutor came up with the “physician shopping” investigation.
Closer to the point: Judge Bridges ruled the way he did because the Republicans did not specifically show for whom illegal votes were cast -- he did NOT say illegal votes were NOT cast. It would almost be like requiring a victim's testimony for a murder conviction -- it ain't gonna happen.
It was also established that official documents were falsified by King County officials in order to certify the election with Gregoire as the winner.
I think it is curious that all the counties that supposedly had problems during the last two Presidential elections were all under Democratic control. What did they want to do? Recount and recount until they could “find” enough votes to give their candidate the win. Sounds like King County.
meet Mr. Iconoclast, he's one of yours:
"Ahh, making fun of spelling. Truly the last resort of the philosophically incoherent and fatuous.
Iconoclast--NRA lifetime member"
Assuming you are telling the truth, we could probably have a very nice dinner together discussing real issues. But this blog has nothing to do with turth, justice or the American way. This blog stinks of hatred, narrow mindedness, and a desire to win at any cost, and damn the weak that you roll over on your way. Those are ideals that once both parties deplored, and it sickens and saddens me that this is what the GOP has sunk to.
I came here searching for truth, and find that I get damned. When I first showed up, I simply posted contrarian points of view. For that, I was insulted and sworn at. I came here searching for truth, and find that I get damned. From that, I also learned that no one here cared about logic or facts, just about being right, and that the other side was evil.
You might note, I don't swear, I don't insult unless insulted. Sure, I make fun of the illogic and mean spiritness of this cite, so forgive me if I like a good laugh and feed the trolls who hide from the world here. If I am approached intelligently, I give back the same. If I am insulted, well, the insults here tend to be pretty juvenile, and I can give better than 99% here, so I prod the condemned who have been sent to this little ring of the Inferno.
It does amaze me how few people here ever want to even try to debate. I amazes me more that this entire kindom is nothing but a tissue of lies.
I love the law. I would take my love for the law and put it up against any on this board. That is why the twisting of the law for sole political gain sickens me. My love of the law makes me cry BS when I see people call for prosecutions they know will never happen because they know no laws were broken. This is propaganda, and this is urinating on the law.
That is why I will mock every ridiculous, mindless theory here, and point out every lie. That is why I will demand proof and evidence. I am the Diogenes of this board, and still hold hope that I might find my honest man. To this date, with maybe three exceptions, I am very disapointed.
RadioMattM:
Boy oh boy, and what are your sources on how Mr. Limbaugh is such a choirboy? You might want to be just a little more cynical. Sure, Rush had enough oxycontin, that's hillbilly heroin to you and Mr. Limbaugh, to kill a large horse. Sure, one of the signs of oxycontin abuse is nerological damage in the ear. Sure, he went into rehab. Sure, everything he did was legal. Note, by the standards you are holding the election too, you would be sentencing poor Mr. Limbaugh to death.
Also, if Bush deliberatly lied to the American Public to launch a war against Iraq, which there is more evidence of than there was of fraud in this trial (see: The Downing Street Memo), that is clearly a higher crime and misdemenor than getting a hummer from an intern. I am not sure Bush deliberatley lied (I think he just avoids any contrary opinion), but again, using your standards, if you believe there was fraud in this election, I assume you are also calling for the impeachment of the President? Brave ofyou on this board.
Strange, isn't it, that there are Republican Secreatry of States in all those states with election fraud claims? Strange that the only one to be investigated and disproved is the State of Washington? If only Sam Reed was not an honest man and shut down the election and declared Rossi the winner before the votes were counted. Sound familiar to you?
We enjoyed Christmas with a candidate who owned a mandate and had a strong majority of the state believeing he was the real victor, regardless of what games were played by the King County elections office.
It took months and millions and a few points off our standing in the polls to finally realize that contesting this one in the courts is a loser.
Rossi was perfectly poised in December to ride out ungovernor gregoire's term as the ultimate spoiler, the true victor who could bring a bigger mandate of public opinion to Olympia than ungovernor Gregoire.
You don't need an elected office to be a leading policy maker in this state - just take a look at Tim Eyman. Rossi could have cherry picked the easy issues, those with clear distinction between his choice and hers and laid out a public agenda that would compete every bit as strongly in Olympia as that of the ungovernor gregoire.
By taking up the fight "for the important ideas, and not the vanity of office" Rossi could likely push through major changes in election reform and more.
Now he's exhausted a great deal of his support in the mainstream and made the Republican party look like a bunch of sore losers - whiners who got mad when we could have gotten smart and gotten even.
Beyond that, he's likely exhausted some of his own personal drive - an expense that should not be underestimated.
He deserves credit for finally seeing the light on this ridiculous election contest - it is not about being right, or getting more votes -- Rossi and his advisors are all grown ups who know better than to expect institutions like King County to play by all the rules.
But shame on the political professionals who prodded him to engage in this losing battle in the first place, and damn those political George Custers who would have had him continue to the State Supreme Court.
If we did it right, the ungovernor would have had a guaranteed spot on the unemployment line in 2009. What's four more years to wait and get the job done right when we haven't had a Republican Governor since the Gipper's FIRST TERM in the White House?
Its time for our party to get some perspective, and get over it - let's stop getting mad and start getting even.
Baloney. Look at the polls. ~70% think that the decision was wrong.
Posted by: Dogbert on June 7, 2005 09:01 PMI go on my rant on being Diogenes, and you post one of the few sane, conservative analysis this board has ever seen. I guess I have to make it four.
Dogbert:
Thanks for returning the board to its mean. You are citing an internet poll. I can cite internet polls that say 80% of the people think GWB is a space alien.
Terry Clark C:
Yes, lets burn the witches!!!
Posted by: jdb on June 7, 2005 09:29 PMYou might note, I don't swear, I don't insult unless insulted. Sure, I make fun of the illogic and mean spiritness of this cite, so forgive me if I like a good laugh and feed the trolls who hide from the world here. If I am approached intelligently, I give back the same. If I am insulted, well, the insults here tend to be pretty juvenile, and I can give better than 99% here, so I prod the condemned who have been sent to this little ring of the Inferno.
I was not here from the beginning of this particular election contest, so I canot validate your claim that you originally came here to debate the facts fairly. I would not be surprised if you were villified by some posters on this board as any free and open forum is going to have its share of the uncouth.
What I can speak to is your behavior over the last couple of weeks. And I think you have clearly lost any basis for taking the high ground. I have seen you taunt and ridicule and use inflammatory rhetoric. I have almost never seen you use logic and reason. If you are in "enemy territory" and lob incendiary(sp?) devices, you can expect some rather pointed replies from the "home boys".
If you want to debate topics then stick to debate points, even in the face of unfair opposition. Only THEN can you claim any high ground. Instead, you have stooped to the level you decry, and then have the temerity to try and take others to task for the same thing.
JDB also said:That is why I will mock every ridiculous, mindless theory here, and point out every lie. That is why I will demand proof and evidence. I am the Diogenes of this board, and still hold hope that I might find my honest man. To this date, with maybe three exceptions, I am very disapointed.
Mocking others is a sure way to have them turn on you. To mock someone and then cry foul when they retaliate is the height of stupidity. It's like teasing a pit bull and then being angry that it bit you. You show contempt for the ideals and positions of people who post here, and then you wonder at why they do not respect you and YOUR opinions. Expect to be "disappointed" every time.
You aren't looking for an "honest" man because you seem to have already determined the truth and you only want everyone to acknowledge your superior wisdom.
If you want to debate a topic, and I mean really debate it, then you will find takers who will treat you with respect. Ignore the rest and do not make the mistake of assuming that one poster who is unfair means that the entire site is unfair. If you cannot discern the difference, then you probably should get out of the business of "missionary" work in the "conservative backwoods" and stick to posting on liberal blogs where you can find a plethora of like minded people to agree with you.
Posted by: Eyago on June 7, 2005 09:33 PM"Strange, isn't it, that there are Republican Secreatry of States in all those states with election fraud claims?"
The fact is in all three elections cited, it was the problems in Democrat controlled counties that put the election in doubt; i.e. King County in WA, Broward County in FL and Cuyahoga County in OH. All of these counties consistantly vote for Democrats by over 60% by population. All of them had higher than normal error rates. And All of them kept trying to count ballots that had no verifiable voter.
Of course, like a good Democrat, the facts do not matter when they do not support your position.
Posted by: Mike P on June 7, 2005 09:36 PMPosted by swatter at June 7, 2005 04:31 PM
I hear the dirt that muddies our little Chrissys skirts can be found back when she was at the Dept of Ecology...
...don't know if true, don't know how to find it, not sure I'd recognize it if I DID find it but there you are ... info I got from someone closer to it than I... possible EFF investigation maybe?
As a citizen of King County, I demand that the US Attorney's Office in Seattle, specifically the Local Government Corruption Unit, investigate the November election and hold every individual accountable for the casting and counting of those 1,678 illegal votes. And when they're finished with those, then they can investigate how so many more ballots than voters found their way into accuvote machines and were counted.
No election system can survive when one party pursues the counting of every ballot knowing that in a secret ballot there is no way to remove illegal and invalid ballots once allowed to be comingled.
Only through such an investigation and imposition of the serious consequences for illegal and improper acts by illegal voters and wrongdoing by election officials and workers, will confidence in our most fundamental right to vote be restored.
For all the partisans gloating at the Chelan ruling yesterday, let me state that I couldn't care less what you think. Democrats have made it abundantly clear that there is nothing sacred when it stands in the way of achieving power. You have sided for partisan reasons with forces that have destroyed our democratic process in King County, and for that I have no tolerance for your childish and immature comments. If you can't see how damaging your support for these acts is, then you are worthy of nothing more than pity, but certainly no serious consideration.
Posted by: Mike on June 7, 2005 10:29 PMYou lefties had better take a hard look at the Mainstreamers- they are coming off the sidelines in droves and are going to be on every street corner and writing tons of checks in the next election cycle.
The legislature running itself off a cliff isn't exactly helping your position either. The danger here is that you will find yourself with the pendulum swinging too far in the other direction. I'm not a fan of that option either- rather a good mix keeps both sides honest.
What could happen with a complete and total role reversal? Well instead of forcing functions for cost saving efficiencies (like audits that have teeth, a paperless gov - license tabs renewed every 2 years instead of one etc etc)- a lazy right could just start hacking programs- just as a lazy left jacked taxes to put inefficient programs in place. What they did this session was EXTREMELY IRRESPONSIBLE.
Posted by: Andy on June 8, 2005 01:32 AMThe legal point you make, which the trolls pretend does not exist, is valid and important.
Every person charged with the performance of any duty under the provisions of any law of this state relating to elections ... who willfully neglects or refuses to perform such duty, or who, in the performance of such duty, or in his or her official capacity, knowingly or fraudulently violates any of the provisions of law relating to such duty, is guilty of a class C felony punishable under RCW 9A.20.021 and shall forfeit his or her office.
Bridges ruled that there were 1600+ illegal ballots, that is 1600 acts of vote fraud. Certifying the election with out due investigation and reporting was a criminal act under the law, a class C felony,
It needs to be addressed, probably by the feds.
Posted by: tomasm on June 8, 2005 02:47 AMToday, I read that Berendt wants to go after Rossi. He doesn't seem to want to let it be.
Ain't politics wonderful? No wonder the people have no respect for politicians.
To counter the Democrats attacks, the Rs will have to attack. Can't anyone just settle down? (Ed. note: It does make fun reading, though)
Posted by: swatter on June 8, 2005 06:06 AMIf you love the law so much, why do you not want the law that states the precints need to be reconciled? If they cannot be reconciled an explaination needs to be supplied along with the efforts taken to reconcile. This was not done.
Posted by: fred on June 8, 2005 09:14 AMAs long as there if funding for it, I am in favor of it. I would also be highly in favor of moving the primary back so that there is more time for the elections office to get things done, get their ballots out to all voters, and do their reconciliation.
I have not problems with sensible changes to the election laws that do not disenfranchise voters. As has been pointed out in many other threads, the changes already proposed will take care of close to 90% of the problems in this election.
Posted by: JDB on June 8, 2005 02:28 PM