OHIO Provisional Vote Count Update

OhVoteSuppression.com ^ | 11/27/2004 | Hypospeak

[Tennessean4Bush]

Summary of provisional ballots count - UPDATED 11/27/04

Note: 65 of 88 counties have reported.

Current % of provisionals being counted: 77%

Current "additional" vote count:
Bush +36,050
Kerry +32,490
Please note, some of the largest counties have still not reported.

Adams Co:

• According to elections officials, 192 provisional ballots were okayed out of 258 cast. The results are Bush +173, Kerry +91
  

Allen Co:

• Allen County has the region’s most provisional ballots, more than 1,300, and won’t certify its ballot until Dec. 1, the state-set deadline to do so.
  

Ashland Co:

• According to elections officials, 522 provisional ballots were okayed out of 631 cast. The results are Bush +345, Kerry +210

Ashtabula Co:

• "Voters with questionable addresses helped bring Ashtabula County’s provisional ballot count to an early halt Wednesday morning, Board of Election directors said. Acting on the advice of attorneys, including County Prosecutor Thomas Sartini, the board postponed the count to Nov. 29, said Richard Hornstein, director[. . . ]
  
  At issue are questions surrounding the addresses of some people who voted with a provisional ballot. [. . .]
  
  Upon receiving a provisional ballot, which contains the address of the voter, the election board sends a post card to the address to double-check residency. Since the election, more than 20 of the board’s post cards have been returned as undeliverable, Hornstein said. The board wants to know why the voters aren’t receiving mail at the addresses they put on their provisional ballots. “We’ve got to verify (residency),” said Art Vensel, election board deputy director.[. . .]
  
  Originally, officials said 1,142 provisional ballots were received at the board office. Employees will recommend the board disallow 204 of those ballots for a lack of voter registration, vote signature or incorrect precinct, Hornstein said.
  
  Brobst said he retain private counsel from Columbus to “make sure every vote is counted.” (Star Beacon)
  

Auglaize Co:

• According to elections officials, 573 provisional ballots were okayed out of 650 cast. The results are Bush +575, Kerry +171

Belmont Co:

• According to elections officials, 617 provisional ballots were okayed out of 1,067 cast. The results are Bush +314, Kerry +318
  

Brown Co:

• Comparing information posted 11/16/04 at the Brown Co. Board of Elections and the Ohio SOS website, the provisionals/late absentee changes are Bush +167, Kerry +82. According to elections officials, 247 provisional ballots were okayed out of 326 cast.

Butler Co:

• On 11/16/04, Butler County started its review of 6,431 provisional ballots and 33 "overseas" absentee ballots. (Journal-News, 11/17/04)
  

• According to elections officials, 4,760 provisional ballots were okayed out of 6,434 cast. The results are Bush +3,131, Kerry +2,049
  
  
• Belmont County had an alarmingly high rejection rate - 42% - by far, the highest of all of the reported counties and nearly twice the average of other counties. The next closest county is apparently Lorain County with a rejection rate of 32%. The average of reported counties is a 22% rejection rate.
  
  This ultra-high rejection rate deserves more investigation if for no other reason than it being such an an exception to the norm.
  

Carroll Co:

• According to elections officials, 240 provisional ballots were okayed out of 301 cast. The results are Bush +164, Kerry +108

Champaign Co:

• "The Champaign County Board of Elections said 514 provisional ballots were counted. . .
  There were 41 provisional ballots not counted. . . " (Springfield News-Sun). Election officials report that the results were Bush +286, Kerry +215.
  

Clark Co:

• Election officials reported that out of 1564 provisional, 405 were rejected. This number, however, conflicts with 1279 provisionals reported at the SOS website. The results are Bush +481, Kerry +679.
  

Clinton Co:

• Comparing information posted 11/16/04 at the Clinton Co. Board of Elections to the Ohio SOS website, the provisionals/late absentee changes are Bush +313, Kerry +173. According to elections officials, 344 provisional ballots were okayed out of 375 cast.

Coshocton Co:

• According to elections officials, 254 out of 269 provisional ballots were accepted. The results are Bush +156, Kerry + 115
  

Crawford Co:

• According to elections officials, 380 out of 425 provisional ballots were accepted. The results are Bush + 218, Kerry + 147
  

Cuyahoga Co:

• "So far, about two-thirds of those votes have been deemed legitimate, but those numbers could change." (Plain Dealer)
  
  
• "Cuyahoga County, where Cleveland is located, has processed 40 percent, or 9,719 votes, of its 24,788 provisional ballots and rejected a third, according to a board tally. Most are being rejected because the voters were not registered." (AP)
  
  
• The Plain Dealer reported 11/23 that approximately 1/3 of the provisional ballots are being rejected.
  

Defiance Co:

• According to elections officials, 542 provisional ballots were okayed out of 672 cast. The results are Bush +385, Kerry +292

Delaware Co:

• According to elections officials, 1,463 out of 1,879 provisional ballots were accepted. The results are Bush +905, Kerry + 551

Erie Co:

• According to elections officials, 838 provisional ballots were okayed out of 972 cast. The results are Bush +583, Kerry +756

Fairfield Co:

• According to elections officials, 1,117 provisional ballots were okayed out of 1,542 cast. The results are Bush +640, Kerry +453

Fayette Co:

• According to elections officials, 249 provisional ballots were okayed out of 295 cast. The results are Bush +154, Kerry +90

Fulton Co:

• According to elections officials, 324 provisional ballots were okayed out of 388 cast. The results are Bush +196, Kerry +126

Gallia Co:

• According to elections officials, 376 provisional ballots were okayed out of 452 cast. The results are Bush +257, Kerry +176

Geauga Co:

• ". . . elections officials determined Tuesday that 77 of the 669 provisional ballots were not valid." (Plain Dealer, 11/17/04)
  
  
• According to elections officials, 597 provisional ballots were okayed out of 669 cast. The results are Bush +401, Kerry +269

Greene Co:

• According to elections officials, 1,766 out of 2,127 provisional ballots were accepted. The results are Bush +1,536, Kerry + 1,181

Guernsey Co:

• According to elections officials, 511 provisional ballots were okayed out of 558 cast. The results are Bush +866, Kerry +696

Hamilton Co:

• "Hamilton County has sorted through almost 13,000 of its [13,976] provisional ballots, Williams said. He hasn't totaled those rejected but said he expects 20 percent to 30 percent to ultimately be found invalid.
  
  The elections staff expects to finish checking provisional ballots by Friday. Starting Monday, bipartisan teams will inspect each ballot for "pregnant'' and "hanging chads'' as well as torn ballots and other irregularities. Tuesday evening or Wednesday, the regular and provisional ballots will be fed through the punch-card-counting machine for the official count. The elections board will meet after Thanksgiving weekend to officially certify the ballot." (Enquirer, 11/17/04)
  
  
• Based on stories in the Enquirer and Post, Hamilton County unofficially rejected about 3,000 of its 13,976 provisional ballots. The results are reportedly to be Bush +6,765, Kerry +8,543
  

Hancock Co:

• "Elections workers received 848 provisional ballots - formerly called 'walk-in ballots' - but only officially counted 809, as 39 provisional voters who claimed to be registered were not . . . President Bush received a total of 756 more votes - both provisional and corrected 'overvotes' - pushing his vote total in Hancock County to 25,101 votes. Kerry received 413 more . . ." (Findlay Courier)
  

Harrison Co:

• According to elections officials, 86 provisional ballots were okayed out of 89 cast. However, elections officials also say they had a problem with their Nov. 2 tally with an overcount of absentee ballots in at least one precinct. We know of no newspaper coverage of this problem. Therefore, even with the addition of the provisional ballots, Harrison County's numbers are less than its Nov. 2 numbers. The results are Bush -45, Kerry -45
  

Henry Co:

• According to elections officials, 213 provisional ballots were okayed out of 249 cast. The results are Bush +131, Kerry +83

Highland Co:

• According to elections officials, 404 provisional ballots were okayed out of 466 cast. The results are Bush +341, Kerry +182

Hocking Co:

• According to elections officials, 216 provisional ballots were okayed out of 248 cast. The results are Bush +124, Kerry +108

Holmes Co:

• According to elections officials, 165 provisional ballots were okayed out of 173 cast. The results are Bush +167, Kerry +73

Huron Co:

• According to elections officials, 556 provisional ballots were okayed out of 670 cast. The results are Bush +281, Kerry +229

Jackson Co:

• According to elections officials, 397 provisional ballots were okayed out of 447 cast. The results are Bush +203, Kerry +180

Jefferson Co:

• According to elections officials, 618 provisional ballots were okayed out of 650 cast. The results are Bush +297, Kerry 345

Knox Co:

• According to elections officials, information on how many provisional ballots were counted won't be available until 11/29 due to the BOE director's absence. The results, however, after counting the provisionals are Bush +404, Kerry +215

Lake Co:

• According to elections officials, 1,813 provisional ballots were okayed out of 2,014 cast. The results are Bush +1578, Kerry +1,578. Elections officials were asked about the totals changing by the same amount for each candidate, but they stood by those numbers.
  

Lawrence Co:

• According to elections officials, 517 provisional ballots were okayed out of 601 cast. The results are Bush +279, Kerry 237

Licking Co:

• According to elections officials, 1.321 provisional ballots were okayed out of 1,541 cast. The results are Bush +922, Kerry +701

Logan Co:

• According to elections officials, 575 provisional ballots were okayed out of 651 cast. The results are Bush +387, Kerry +181
  

Lorain Co:

• The Elyria Chronicle Telegram on 11/23 reported that, "About 1,264 of the 4,000 provisional and absentee ballots from the Nov. 2 election were rejected by the Lorain County Board of Elections on Monday. " Actually, the SOS website reports that Lorain County had 4,134 provisional ballots. That means the county had a fairly high rejection rate - 68%.
  
  The reasons for rejecting the provisionals suggest further investigation should be conducted. For example, the story reports:
  

  Of the 1,264 ballots rejected, 702 provisional ballots were thrown out for improper registration. That number also included those voters who had not cast a ballot since the 1992 presidential election.
  
  The board also accepted a number of questionable absentee ballots, such as those in which voters made simple errors. Two absentee voters were provided military envelopes in error, for instance, while another voter made his selections on the voting booklet rather than the ballot.
  
  Jacobcik said that a Democrat-Republican team would evaluate cases in which the board thought voter intent could be determined.
  
  Other significant provisional and absentee ballots that the board rejected included:
  • 160 voted in the wrong precinct
  • 14 did not provide a new address
  • 190 did not provide an old address
  • 11 had cards returned by the post office
  • 93 failed to sign ID envelopes
  • 8 did not return ID cards
  • 16 returned ballot cards without stubs

  Clearly, a major portion of the referenced "702" is a little mysterious. Although it is stated that some of these are ballots cast by "inactive voters", that would be an extraordinarily high percentage. In nearly all other counties, the largest percentage of rejected provisionals is due to ballots cast in the wrong precinct. Here, however, these amount to 160 and are apparently not part of the 702. Further, some of the reasons for rejection seem flimsy and other counties, e.g., Madison, have gone to special lengths to county every possible provisional ballot. If nothing else, this again raises the issue of the lack of specific, uniform and enforceable guidelines for the county BOEs to use to evaluate the provisionals.
  

Lucas Co:

• "Of the 6,435 provisional ballots cast in Lucas County on Election Day, less than half - 3,124 - have been determined by elections officials to be valid." (Toledo Blade)

Madison Co:

• Although elections officials have posted updated elections numbers, there still remains some problems with the count including at least one case where an elderly couple voted twice.
  
  
• According to elections officials, 334 provisional ballots were okayed out of 392 cast. The results are Bush +189, Kerry +120

Mahoning Co:

• According to elections officials, 2,351 provisional ballots were okayed out of an estimated 2,700 cast. The results are Bush +744, Kerry +1,569

Meigs Co:

• According to elections officials, 225 out of 243 provisional ballots were accepted. The results are Bush +117, Kerry + 103

Mercer Co:

• According to elections officials, 852 provisional ballots were okayed out of 931 cast. The results are Bush +624, Kerry +191

Montgomery Co:

• "In Montgomery County, 6,125 of the 8,000 provisional ballots processed so far are valid. Of the 1,875 invalid ballots, more than 1,000 were rejected because the people were not registered and 685 were rejected because voters went to the wrong precinct, according to the board. The board still has to count 1,227 ballots." (AP)
  
  
• According to elections officials, 7,375 out of 9,257 provisional ballots were accepted. The results are Bush +3,645, Kerry + 4,715

Monroe Co:

• According to elections officials, 130 provisional ballots were okayed out of 132 cast. The results are Bush +54, Kerry +77

Morgan Co:

• According to elections officials, 130 provisional ballots were okayed out of 169 cast. The results are Bush +62, Kerry +63
  

Morrow Co:

• According to elections officials, 284 provisional ballots were okayed out of 309 cast. The results are Bush +162, Kerry +124
  

Muskingum Co:

• According to elections officials, 874 provisional ballots were okayed out of 874 cast. The results are Bush +350, Kerry +371
  

Noble Co:

• According to elections officials, all of Noble Co.'s provisionals were counted Nov. 2 so there is no change to their numbers. Of the 75 provisionals in the county, 73 were deemed okay for voting.
  

Ottowa Co:

• According to elections officials, 413 provisional ballots were okayed out of 472 cast. The results are Bush +255, Kerry +199

Paulding Co:

• According to elections officials, 204 provisional ballots were okayed out of 234 cast. The results are Bush +131, Kerry +66

Perry Co:

• According to elections officials, there were problems with the initial count reported to t he SOS office was in error because one precinct was counted twice. Officials say they later noticed that the precinct had a 127% turnout. So, even though the BOE counted 356 out of 431 provisional ballots, the results are only Bush +88, Kerry +52
  
  
• The provisional ballot outcome deserves some further investigation given the other problems with this county's count. While Kerry gained 48% of the vote in the regular election, he only gained 37% of the provisional ballots. This 11% difference is by far the greatest shift and, although not impossible, it is highly improbable.
  

Pickaway Co:

• Comparing information posted 11/18/04 at the Pickaway Co. Board of Election and the Ohio SOS website, the provisionals/late absentee changes are Bush +296, Kerry +190

Preble Co:

• Comparing information posted 11/17/04 at the Preble Co. Board of Election and the Ohio SOS website, the provisionals/late absentee changes are Bush +221, Kerry +109

Putnam Co:

• In Putnam County, the board has been verifying its 246 provisional ballots, will count them Monday and Tuesday [Nov. 15 & 16] and certify. (Lima News, 11/16/04
  
  
• According to elections officials, 218 provisional ballots were okayed out of 246 cast. The results are Bush +174, Kerry +44
  

Richland Co:

• "Tuesday, the board tallied 1,212 validated provisional ballots. On election day, 1,357 were cast, but 145 were ruled invalid when they were reviewed by the board last week. Of those, 28 were from voters registered in Richland County but casting votes in the wrong precinct, 92 were not registered in Richland County and 25 were not registered in another county as they claimed. The presidential vote on those provisional ballots reflected almost exactly the percentages of the general vote, with 610 favoring President Bush and 578 going for Sen. John Kerry. (News-Journal, 11/17/04)
  

Sandusky Co:

• According to elections officials, 541 provisional ballots were okayed out of 627 cast. Sandusky County, however, had a problem with duplicate vote counts such that their Nov. 2 numbers were in excess of the real numbers. After correcting this error and adding the provisional ballots, the final numbers actually decline. The results are Bush -1,629, Kerry -1,256
  

Scioto Co:

• According to elections officials, 723 provisional ballots were okayed out of 887 cast. The results are Bush +319, Kerry +385

Seneca Co:

• According to elections officials, 435 out of 494 provisional ballots were accepted. The results are Bush +261, Kerry + 188

Shelby Co:

• According to elections officials, 577 provisional ballots were okayed out of 791 cast. The results are Bush +379, Kerry +197

Summit Co:

• "Director Bryan Williams said his staff has found that about 10 percent of the 5,932 provisional ballots in the county are invalid." (Plain Dealer)
  
  
• "'It's still safe to say 90 percent or more of the provisionals cast will qualify for counting. Ten percent or less, based on what we're seeing, will be disqualified for one reason or another,' he said" (Beacon Journal)
  
  
• "About 1,200 provisional ballots were rejected Tuesday by the Summit County Board of Elections, where much of a morning meeting was devoted to a separate debate about dimples and piercings." (Plain Dealer, 11/17/04)
  
  
• Officials from the Summit County Board of Elections say it will be at least another day before they have a final tally of how many provisional ballots cast in the Nov. 2 election can be verified . . . Initial estimates are that about 20 percent -- roughly 1,200 votes -- won't be verified, mainly because they were cast by people who were not registered to vote. (Beacon Journal, 11/18/04)
  

Tuscarawas Co:

• According to elections officials, 854 provisional ballots were okayed out of 987 cast. The results are Bush +466, Kerry +394

Union Co:

• According to elections officials, 396 provisional ballots were okayed out of 440 cast. The results are Bush +276, Kerry +119

Vinton Co:

• According to elections officials, 97 out of 129 provisional ballots were accepted. The results are Bush +55, Kerry + 39

Warren Co:

• 2,200 (87%) of the 2527 provisional/absentee ballots were counted. County officials said 600 absentee ballots were late in arriving. 271 provisionals were excluded because the voters weren't registered and 56 weren't permitted because they were case in the wrong precinct. (Enquirer)
  
  
• Comparing information posted 11/15/04 at the Warren Co. Board of Elections and the Ohio SOS website, the provisionals/late absentee changes are Bush +1,512, Kerry +644
  

Washington Co:

• According to elections officials, 556 provisional ballots were okayed out of 643 cast. The results are Bush +451, Kerry +338

Wayne Co:

• Comparing information posted 11/23/04 at the Wayne Co. Board of Elections and the Ohio SOS website, the provisionals/late absentee changes are Bush +446, Kerry +331. According to elections officials, 785 provisional ballots were okayed out of 889 cast.

Williams Co:

• According to elections officials, 643 out of 697 provisional ballots were accepted. The results are Bush +407, Kerry + 250

Wyandot Co:

• According to elections officials, 107 out of 138 provisional ballots were accepted. The results are Bush +300, Kerry + 153

Miscellaneous:

• "Of the 11 counties [includes Belmont - see above] that have completed checking ballots, 81 percent, or 4,277 out of 5,310 ballots, are valid . . . Most of the counties are in rural areas." (AP)
  
  
• The Sect. of State's list of provisional ballots, by county, is located here, but has not been updated from Nov. 3.
  

[Tennessean4Bush]

This just gets funnier and funnier. They have counted about 68,500 thus far, and they probably have about 32,000 - 42,000 more to count. Status? Bush has gained votes on Kerry. At this point, I suspect Bush will end this count with a 120,000 to 140,000 vote lead.

[Tennessean4Bush]

Oops! The link should be http://ohvotesuppression.blogspot.com/#110054639412322647. Sorry.

[SamAdams76]

I am keeping my fingers crossed that Bush can still pull this one out. I don't think I could stand 4-8 years of Kerry/Edwards.

When will we know for sure?

[Parley Baer]

I hear the fat lady singing. Bwahahahahahahahaha. Parley

[Tennessean4Bush]

When will we know for sure?

You are too funny!

[gswilder]

The dems at DU are still in delusional mode. Even with the actual vote. 77% of the provisionals counted, etc. They still think Kerry is going to win Ohio and get 90% of the remaining votes. It's one thing to be passionate about your candidate or cause. But for so many people to just be totally out of touch, is kind of scary. And the folks at DU think the MSM is not reporting all this fraud because they are "in bed" with the republicans. HA HA HA! Get real folks.

[Tennessean4Bush]

I am sure he is joking.

[Tennessean4Bush]

They still think Kerry is going to win Ohio and get 90% of the remaining votes.

90% won't happen and even if it did it would not cut it. He needs 132,000 and he only has at most about 40,000 remaining provisional ballots.

[brad76]

You have got to be kidding me,Bush won the election,It's over.

[Tennessean4Bush]

And the folks at DU think the MSM is not reporting all this fraud because they are "in bed" with the republicans.

90% of reporters in the media vote Democrat. As Einstein said "Must we light a candle to see the sun?"

[AndrewC]

Athens county is missing!!! It's a conspiracy!! </loony mode>

[Once-Ler]

I don't think CNN or CBS ever called it for Bush. I think SamAdams76 is actually being guardedly optimistic. I wish I could be so certain.

[Timedrifter]

I hope this will all be finished by the middle of next week. It will be fun seeing the tin foil hat brigade suffering the Kerry defeat all over again.

[God luvs America]

great work...thanks!

[gop_gene]

The dems at DU are still in delusional mode.

Obviously. That is self-evident in how they could "want" Kerry so much (even keeping in mind their fervent anti-Bush hatred)--boring, uncharismatic, unlikable, crappy legislative record and ghastly-looking to boot (unless you happen to have a thing for Frankenstein, Herman Munster, Lurch or Mr. Ed).

[Just Lori]

Ok, this is pretty funny, but the Gov. race in this state is NOT funny at all. The dems have pulled out all the stops. It stinks to high heaven. WA state is either a laughing stock or a proving ground.

Any other states unsure of their GOV. race?

[TedReed]

I live in Sandusky County in Ohio they are all screwed up dont you think. Go BUSH.

[luvie]

Ahhhhh! Just keep them votes rolling in! Bush is gonna win big if the Dums keep it up. The more they look for votes for Kerry, the more they find for Bush!! hee-hee!

[shield]

bmp

[luvie]

We are all praying for you guys that your GOP candidate will pull it out in the end. They sure are trying hard to find votes for the DUM-o-cRAT, aren't they!