Over 7,000 ballots - out of just under 70,000 cast - in the 6th Legislative District were "remade" by election workers so they could be read by counting machines. The Spokane County canvassing board is reviewing a sample of those remade ballots today for accuracy.
House Republicans would like to see more ballots than that to confirm the accuracy of the process. Evidently, there are questions about the statistical validity of the sample of 200 the canvassing board will review, and the county prosecutor's rep on the board dissented on the validity of that sample.
Stay tuned...
Posted by Eric Earling at November 18, 2008 07:30 AM | Email ThisSeriously, if a person were concerned about their vote being counted, they would take care to mark the ballot properly.
If a person couldn't be bothered to mark a ballot properly, dare we even think about how much time was spent researching the candidates and issues? But I digress.
Improperly marked ballots should not be counted, period. People who think they should be are the ones you knew in school who thought it was unfair if spelling counted on a history paper.
If "zero" improperly marked ballots are counted, it's fair to everyone.
Posted by: Paula on November 18, 2008 09:19 AM7000 ballots out of 70,000 is way too many "remade" ballots. And our tax money is paying for them to do all of this extra work! The instructions on the ballot are very clear and any 2nd grader could follow them. If I don't fill out my ballot correctly, it should be thrown out. Same thing goes for failure to sign the ballot. There are only like 3 or maybe 4 instructions in large print on how to mark & send your ballot. They clearly state along with an illustration that you "must" mark your votes a certain way and with specific writing instruments to be counted. So I'm assuming now that ballot statement is an out & out lie. Do standardized testing companies go through all of our children's test cards looking for "intent"? No, if you can't mark the oval, correctly it does not count.
On the other hand, if it is not the voter's fault that the ballot cannot be read, like say the post office or the election workers messed up the ballot. Then the voter should be given another chance to cast their ballot but not a chance for poll workers to vote for them. No. This is WRONG!
Step 1: see the box.
Step 2: see the name next to the box.
Step 3: fill in the oval next to box you prefer.
Just like the GOP / Republican issue ... why do we cater to the politically retarded.
Posted by: JinSpo on November 18, 2008 06:35 PM