Wash. governor race goes to Supreme Court

Bakersfield Californian ^ | 12/21/04 | Rebecca Cook - AP

[NormsRevenge]

OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) - A busy day beckons in Washington state Wednesday, with the state Supreme Court hearing arguments on the extremely close governor's race and officials in a key county expected to finish their hand recount.

But whatever happens, the drama will probably not be the end of the epic 2004 governor's election - just the beginning of a new chapter.

If Republican Dino Rossi loses the third count - after winning the first two - he may challenge the election in court. Republicans are already preparing for a possible legal challenge.

Democrat Christine Gregoire has promised to concede if she loses the recount. But on Tuesday her spokesman said if the Democrats lose the state Supreme Court case she may appeal to the state Legislature or challenge the election under state law.

"If we're in that situation we'll talk about it," Gregoire spokesman Morton Brilliant said. "Throwing out ballots until you win is not the way to become governor."

The question before the state Supreme Court is whether King County should be allowed to add to the recount 700-plus ballots that weren't counted originally because of mistakes made by county election workers.

Rossi won the election by 261 votes, and won a machine recount by 42 votes out of 2.9 million ballots cast. Democrats paid for a hand recount, which currently has Rossi 49 votes ahead of Gregoire.

King County's recount of 900,000 ballots could flip the results, even without the extra 723 newly discovered ballots - potentially making the state Supreme Court case moot.

But if Rossi is ahead after King County reports on Wednesday, the Supreme Court's decision will be very important. Though the 723 ballots haven't been counted, it's believed they would give Gregoire a boost larger than the current 49-vote margin.

A Pierce County judge on Friday granted the state Republican Party's motion for a temporary restraining order to stop King County from counting those newly discovered ballots. King County, the state Democratic Party and the Secretary of State appealed the case to the state Supreme Court.

Seven justices will hear the case. Three of the regular nine justices are out of town on previously scheduled trips, and one temporary judge will join the court.

About 350 people gathered Tuesday in front of the Supreme Court to show support for Rossi at a rally sponsored by KVI-AM, a conservative talk-radio station.

The crowd chanted "No new votes!" and "No more fraud!" They held signs saying "Welcome to Ukraine" and wore orange, a tribute to the signature color of demonstrators in Ukraine who protested a fraud-marred election there.

[NormsRevenge]

AP Photo/ELAINE THOMPSON

Richard "Rico" Eastey Jr. removes a flag from a wall as he helps with clean up after election workers had finished hand counting ballots, while others finish entering data on computers nearby, Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2004, at a ballot counting center in Tukwila, Wash., in King County. Republicans and Democrats are preparing for the Wednesday Supreme Court hearing that could determine the outcome of the governor's race, while King County gets ready to announce the results of its hand recount. After weeks ofwaiting, the closest statewide election in Washington history will depend on the recount of 900,000 votes in the state's largest county--and nine votes on the Supreme Court.

[ScottFromSpokane]

http://www.komotv.com/stories/34500.htm

Democrats' Leader Says Gregoire Wins Recount By 8 Votes

December 21, 2004

By KOMO Staff & News Services


OLYMPIA - Democratic State Party Chairman Paul Berendt says recount results from King County give Democrat Christine Gregoire an eight-vote victory over Republican Dino Rossi in Washington's extremely close governor's race.

King County, which includes Seattle, isn't expected to formally release its results until tomorrow from the state's hand recount of ballots from the November 2nd election.

But the political parties have access to the daily tallies, and Berendt says his party's number crunchers came up with an eight-vote victory for Gregoire, statewide.

Rossi had been leading by a slim margin throughout the recount, but King County, the state's most populous county, is a Gregoire stronghold. All of the state's 38 other counties reported their tallies earlier.

[rawcatslyentist]

Well now the Greens/GOP should go canvassing for more votes, just like the dims have done.
It should be legal, I mean it was legal for the dims to do this to WIN enough votes to change the outcome of an election governed by law.</sarcasm>

Shut down the Alphabet Channels (ABJazerra & Her Sister Stations)!
Vote with your Remote!

Christmas Heart
But, I Have A Plan
Zippo Hero
Seven Dead Monkeys Page O Tunes

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

All of the state's 38 other counties reported their tallies earlier.

Same ole trick....

[technomage]

All of the state's 38 other counties reported their tallies earlier.

Predictable. After all, they would need to know exactly how many votes they need to produce to win.

[swilhelm73]

But the political parties have access to the daily tallies, and Berendt says his party's number crunchers came up with an eight-vote victory for Gregoire, statewide.

Well, I guess the third time is the charm, the Democrats finally "interpreted" enough ballots to give the "win" to their candidate.

[Brian328i]

Gregoire spokesman Morton Brilliant said. "Throwing out Adding in ballots until you win is not the way to become governor."

That's more like it.

[concentric circles]

...700-plus ballots that weren't counted originally because of mistakes made by county election workers...

This thread details the provenance of the 723 ballots and exactly who made "mistakes." WA Gov. Race: The Truth About King County's Magic Ballots

[ScottFromSpokane]

There are more than three times as many registered voters in King County as in the next-three-largest counties combined.

There are plenty of things to be suspicious about here. The fact that King County takes longer to count is not one of them.

[Baraonda]

So, it's not over yet?

Waiting for the Kings County recount?

Am I right on this?

[ScottFromSpokane]

No, King is done counting, though they have not officially released their results yet (and the Dems could be mistaken or lying, of course).

[Salvation]

I certainly hope the WA GOP steps up to the plate here!

[Greenpees]

Another day the Dems will regret. Their tactics are there for everyone to see.

They even had to steal a win out of a losing battle in a lost war. They are scum, and many of their own voters now know it.

[gop_gene]

There are more than three times as many registered voters in King County as in the next-three-largest counties combined.

There are plenty of things to be suspicious about here. The fact that King County takes longer to count is not one of them.

That is a legitimate reason for King County being the last to report in. However, they could be hiding behind that legitimate reason to do illegitimate things.

[sarah_f]

There are more than three times as many registered voters in King County as in the next-three-largest counties combined.

There are plenty of things to be suspicious about here. The fact that King County takes longer to count is not one of them.
=======
I say "incorrect."

King county has three times as many votes to count? Wonderful, USE THREE TIMES AS MANY VOTE COUNTERS.

King County learned this tactic from that corrupt 'rat bas**rd Daley in Chicago: Count everyone one else first, so you know exactly how many votes to manufacture. The other counties have already reported, but you can keep finding votes ad infinitum, which is EXACTLY what the corrupt 'rats in King County did.