WP: Vote Disparity Still a Mystery In Fla. Election For Congress

[DeepModem Mom]

Vote Disparity Still a Mystery In Fla. Election For Congress
By Peter Whoriskey
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, November 29, 2006; Page A03


Observers watch as Florida election employees test one of Sarasota County's touch-screen voting machines during an audit. No problems were found. (By Steve Nesius-Associated Press)

SARASOTA, Fla., Nov. 28 -- Almost since the time the votes were tallied here on election night, the race for Florida's 13th Congressional District has been surrounded by a contentious mystery:

Why were there no votes for Congress recorded from more than 18,000 people who chose candidates in other races?

The answer is central not only to the outcome of the election, which for now has been won by Republican Vern Buchanan by a mere 369 votes and is in litigation, but also to the ongoing debates over whether the electronic voting systems in use nationwide can yield reliable tallies and recounts. Coincidentally, the latest dust-up has occurred in the contest for the seat being vacated by Katherine Harris, who presided over Florida's election apparatus during the much-disputed 2000 contest between President Bush and former vice president Al Gore.

So far, there are three theories, and lots of political and legal posturing.

Maybe, as scores of voters have claimed, there were glitches with the touch-screen systems and they dropped votes.

Or maybe voters overlooked the congressional race simply because of a confusing ballot design.

Or maybe, as some say, an astoundingly high number of Sarasota County residents decided to forgo voting in the high-profile race.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/28/AR2006112801382.html

[Old and In the Way]

1. Or maybe there was vote fraud.

As long as we are speculating, why not consider the most likely scenario?

[Ghost Dog]

3. I believe the psyops people attempt to subsume this scenario

under the all-encompassing but essentialy meaningless term 'glitches'.

Any honest IT professional would assure you that the observed phenomena simply could not be the result of some kind of 'bug' (ie. programming error) in the software.

Such phenomena can only occur by design.

k&r.

[Old and In the Way]

4. Yes, let's avoid the unelected elephants in the room....

[TwentyFive]

2. Buchanan is an anti-abortion nutcase. Against it even when the MOTHER'S LIFE IS IN DANGER

Buchanan, the republican candidate, has a VERY shady past. Court records are sealed in the lawsuit from investors that he bilked. Politically, he makes Pat Robertson look like a moderate. He spent 10+ million of his own money on the race. The most likely explanation is that 18,000 votes disappeared to make way for a Buchanan win. After all, Sarasota county is owned by republicans.

[Doctor_J]

5. A mystery? Snark

GOP gets overcounts in 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006. Even Inspector Clouseau could have solved this "mystery" by now.