Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News Wednesday 8/17/05

[autorank]

Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News Wednesday 8/17/05

All members welcome and encouraged to participate.

Please post Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News on this thread.

If you can:

1. Post stories and announcements you find on the web.

2. Post stories using the "Election Fraud and Reform News Sources" listed here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x371233

3. Re-post stories and announcements you find on DU, providing a link to the original thread with thanks to the Original Poster, too.

4. Start a discussion thread by re-posting a story you see on this thread.

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http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=203&topic_id=371233#371391



All previous daily threads are available here:
http://www.independentmediasource.com/DU_archives/du_2004erd_el_ref_fr_thr_calenders.htm

Please

"Recommend"

for the Greatest Page (it's the link just below). Atlanta Journal Constitution: Tens of Thousands March Supporting Voting Rights Act



CLICK HERE to get quick access to Election Results and Discussion Forum on your “Latest” page.

[autorank]

1. PHILIPPINES: Democracy in Turmoil due to Election Fraud

Great story. A crook gets elected so the “good guys/gals” go out and steal an election (it would seem). Now the whole democratic system is at risk. Election fraud charges left unresolved are dangerous to democracy.

Philippines’ democracy in turmoil

Steven Rogers
16 - 8 - 2005

A new round of scandal has brought democracy in the Philippines to breaking point. If democratic revival is possible it can only come from the people themselves, says Steven Rogers.

The president of the Philippines, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, was on top of the world only fifteen months ago. Elected vice-president in 1998, she became president in 2001, when Joseph Estrada was forced from office by popular demonstrations. Her early performance earned approval from the Philippine business community, foreign governments, and multilateral institutions; but the less-than-democratic succession left lingering questions of legitimacy, and in the elections of May 2004 Arroyo pursued a new mandate with a near-fanatical intensity.

After a contentious and clumsily managed five-way election Arroyo emerged with a small but clear margin of victory over popular actor and political neophyte Fernando Poe Jr. An exultant Arroyo, facing a new six-year term, promised to put politics behind her and focus on confronting the growing threats of insurgency, terrorism, poverty, and fiscal crisis.

Also by Steven Rogers in openDemocracy, “The United States, tyranny and democracy: a critique of Mariano Aguirre on Michael Ignatieff“

Today her administration is accused of graft and election fraud, and she is fighting for survival. Arroyo is beset by the products of her own errors, by a series of manipulations that seemed, at the time they were undertaken, to be justified by necessity, and by the weight of decades of deepening systemic crisis. Arroyo refuses to fall and cannot do more than stand, and neither she nor her opponents offer any credible avenue for reform.

The crisis threatens to undo one of the developing world’s longest-running experiments in democracy, and bears examination by proponents of democratic transition everywhere.

CLICK HERE to get quick access to Election Results and Discussion Forum on your “Latest” page.

[wli]

3. sounds a lot like the US, except here the people are losing n/t

[autorank]

2. VENEZUELA: Demonstration Violence Over Charges of Election Fraud

Who knows what’s going on down there? I’m sure the Venezuelans do but look what unresolved questions about election integrity lead to.

Rocks, bottles hurled at Venezuela march

http://www.sanluisobispo.com/mld/sanluisobispo/12266017.htm

Posted on Sat, Jul. 30, 2005

PATRICIA RONDON ESPIN

Associated Press
CARACAS, Venezuela - Two dozen Venezuelans shouting pro-government slogans hurled rocks and bottles into a crowd of more than 2,000 opposition protesters who marched Saturday through Caracas to demand a more independent electoral council.

Some protesters fled as rocks and bottles landed near them. Others continued their march until reaching a police barricade a block away from the electoral council. No injuries were reported in one of the largest opposition rallies in recent months.

Groups opposed to President Hugo Chavez's leftist government held the protest a week before Aug. 7 municipal elections, saying they are concerned about possible irregularities ahead of that vote as well as congressional elections set for December.

Some protesters held signs reading "No to Fraud." Other signs had images of electoral council chief Jorge Rodriguez, with a red mustache penciled on and the words "Get out, cheater."

Electoral officials insist that their council is independent and that adequate preparations have been made for fair and transparent elections.

CLICK HERE to get quick access to Election Results and Discussion Forum on your “Latest” page.

[wli]

5. hmm, there are suspicions that this is US-sponsored astroturf

I'm only superficially familiar with the recent events in Venezuela, though.

[autorank]

4. ETHIOPIA: Ballots Stolen and Sold in Local Markets. Election Boycotted.

Stealing ballots, selling them, election fraud, election boycott. It’s everywhere!

ETHIOPIA: Opposition parties to boycott Somali region polls

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/IRIN/c7fc7ac5aa820257b68ab66c4fc304c5.htm
16 Aug 2005 13:46:13 GMT
Source: IRIN

ADDIS ABABA, 16 August (IRIN) - Ethiopian opposition parties declared on Tuesday that they would boycott upcoming elections in 23 seats in the remote eastern Somali region, alleging that thousands of voter cards had been stolen and were on sale in local markets.

The region's three main parties also claimed the armed forces had taken control of some polling stations and impounded ballots and registration books ahead of national and regional elections scheduled to take place on Sunday.

"We have decided to boycott the elections because of the serious violations that are taking place," Joseph Nur, vice chairman of the Western Somali Democratic Party (WSDP), told a news conference in the capital, Addis Ababa.

Nur claimed that in one town, 10,000 voter cards had been stolen and were on sale in local markets for the equivalent of US $3.

CLICK HERE to get quick access to Election Results and Discussion Forum on your “Latest” page.

[autorank]

6. USA: Historic DU Post, TruthIsAll Points out the Obvious—Oops! Big Probl

The winter of our now long discontent. This was a milestone. The exit poll summary actually demonstrated that Bush lost the election. Oops. The only election data with 100% paper trail, the National and State Election Polls have demonstrated over and over that things are not always as they’re presented.

PREDICTION: THIS WILL BECOME AN HISTORIC DOCUMENT

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=203&topic_id=265121

TruthIsAll Donating Member Fri Jan-07-05 04:50 PM
Original message

NOVEMBER 3, 2004
12:23 AM

LONG AFTER THE POLLS CLOSED.

THIS IS THE SMOKING GUN.
EASY TO UNDERSTAND.
CLEAR.
UNAMBIGUOUS.

THIS WILL BECOME THE MOST FAMOUS EXIT POLL IN HISTORY.
IT WILL EDUCATE MILLIONS WHO NEVER KNEW ABOUT EXIT POLLS.
IT WILL ASTOUND MILLIONS WHO KNEW ALL ABOUT THEM.

IT IS THE TRUTH.

13,047 RANDOMLY-SELECTED VOTERS
1.0% MARGIN OF ERROR

KERRY WON THE FEMALE VOTE BY A HIGHER PERCENTAGE THAN BUSH WON THE MALE VOTE.

******* AND MORE WOMEN (54%) VOTED THAN MEN (46%) *********

Kerry = .54*.54+ .47*.46 = 50.78%
Bush = .45*.54+ .52*.46 = 48.22%

YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE A ROCKET SCIENTIST.
IT'S SIMPLE ARITHMETIC.

IT'S 1 IN 547 MILLION ODDS THAT BUSH WOULD GET 51.23% OF THE VOTE.

CLICK HERE to get quick access to Election Results and Discussion Forum on your “Latest” page.

[autorank]

7. Ukraine: “Orange Revolution” (clean elections) Improves Public Trust

Here’s what happens when you expose election fraud and do something about it. Read the whole article. It’s well worth it. The public attitudes are vastly improved toward all institutions. It’s up to the institutions in the Ukraine to perform but what a change…all it took was to fix a lousy election and let the people choose.

Ukraine: Pollster Maps Out Post-Revolutionary Moods

http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2005/8/AFF32F85-5069-45A0-81C9-03D9163C6C98.html

By Jan Maksymiuk

The Washington-based International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES) recently published its conclusions from a survey of 1,265 Ukrainians in late February that was devoted to perceptions of the Orange Revolution and its consequences. Pollsters explored perceptions of last year's presidential election, attitudes toward the mass antigovernment demonstrations that followed the second round of voting on 21 November, and postelection expectations for Ukraine.


Three of the clear findings that emerge from the IFES survey are that the Orange Revolution marked a zenith in the public's attention to politics, that a partisan rift has emerged over the country's democratic credentials, and that the events of November and December boosted citizens' faith in the ballot box and its outlook for the future. But while the polling agency highlighted that the events of late 2004 mark a defining moment in Ukrainian history and public opinion, it also noted significant sociopolitical cleavages that persist in the country.


Regarding expectations for the future, IFES concluded that 43 percent of Ukrainians believe the 2004 presidential election placed Ukraine on a path toward stability and prosperity, while 12 percent believe that Ukraine is headed toward instability. Economically speaking, 57 percent of Ukrainians describe the situation as bad or very bad, while just 9 percent perceive it as good or very good. In the 2003 survey, 86 percent described the economy as bad.

CLICK HERE to get quick access to Election Results and Discussion Forum on your “Latest” page.

[GuvWurld]

8. Kicked/Nominated (eom)

[Algorem]

9. Ohio Ballot Board approves five proposed amendments

http://www.cleveland.com/newsflash/cleveland/index.ssf?/base/news-18/112426772113250.xml&storylist=cleveland

8/17/2005, 5:35 a.m. ET
The Associated Press

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A GOP-backed group has filed a second lawsuit aimed at stopping Democrat-leaning activists from getting proposed constitutional amendments placed on the Nov. 8 ballot.

The five-member Ohio Ballot Board, controlled 3-2 by Republicans, unanimously approved Tuesday the four issues that would bring major changes to Ohio politics should voters give their approval...

Ohio residents must circulate petitions for candidates and local issues, but not for proposed constitutional amendments governed by the Ohio Constitution, said Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell, also the ballot board's chairman.

Donald McTigue, attorney for Reform Ohio Now, said the complaint was the second frivolous lawsuit filed by Ohio First to try to keep voters from considering the proposals...

[Algorem]

10. Ballot language decided after war of words

http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/news/1124271049126030.xml&coll=2

Election issues going to Ohio voters

Wednesday, August 17, 2005

Columbus - ...

By the end of an eight-hour hearing, the Ohio First Voter Education Fund - a Republican-run group opposed to a series of three sweeping political reform initiatives that have become four - won a series of important victories...

Voters will also read on the ballot that labor unions have rights under a campaign finance proposal that corporations do not, and that introducing competitiveness into politics is "a primary factor" in Reform Ohio Now's redistricting initiative...

Miller said RON's efforts were aimed at Blackwell's political activity, as, among other things, an honorary co-chair of the 2004 Bush-Cheney campaign and a spokesman for an anti-gay-marriage amendment....

Last year, Blackwell allowed an anti-gay-marriage constitutional amendment on the ballot even though many of the signatures were collected by out-of-state residents. He knocked presidential hopeful Ralph Nader off the ballot, however, after nonresidents of Ohio circulated petitions on his behalf, the lawsuit states...

[Algorem]

11. Decision today on Taft charges(1st Oh. Gov. criminally charged in office?)

http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/news/1124271195126030.xml&coll=2

Free rounds of golf spurred ethics probe

Wednesday, August 17, 2005

Columbus - Prosecutors are expected to decide today whether Gov. Bob Taft will go down in history as Ohio's first governor charged with a crime while in office.

On Tuesday afternoon, prosecutors received findings of an Ohio Ethics Commission investigation into Taft's June 21 announcement that he failed to include a number of free rounds of golf on his annual ethics statements.

Representatives of the Columbus city attorney and Franklin County prose cutor plan to meet this morn ing to discuss the findings, said Franklin County Prose cutor Ron O'Brien.

"The purpose of the meeting is to review the materials and determine what - if any - charges should be filed or what - if any - charges are appropriate," O'Brien said...

[Land Shark]

12. Interesting news today, kicked and nominated

[Bill Bored]

15. Yeah, they're at it again in Ohio.

Looks like someone's scared.

Even Blackwell was quoted as saying that non-residents can circulate these petitions.

[paineinthearse]

13. #9

As JC says, "don't be distracted".

Thanks for keeping us aware.

[FogerRox]

14. Autorank -- you have "expanded" the mission I like it--

good vision bro-

[MelissaB]

16. Conyers urges the Kerry-Edwards campaign not to drop Ohio recount, etc.

Busy Day Supporting Cindy, Treasongate, Making Every Vote Count

An unusually busy day for August, but with all of the GOP abuses, there never seems to be a shortage of things to post about.

First, as the top entry of the Conyersblog indicates, today we launched our effort to enlist at least 1000 individuals to write their local papers supporting the efforts of Cindy Sheehan to meet with the president. With Rush Limbaugh and others in the right wing moving into full a full scale Plaming of Cindy, I think it is important we show our support however we can. Just go to my web site to compose and email and have it sent, and to use the various resources in my new Crawford Action Center. And don't forget to ask your friends and family to write also.

Second, as indicated last evening, today Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) and I wrote to the Justice Department Inspector General, asking him to review whether former AG Aschroft violated ethical requirements in initially supervising an investigation into alleged misconduct by Karl Rove -- his friend and political ally -- regarding the outing of Valerie Plame. Rawstory has the full text of the letter. I was interviewed about this development by Tony Trupiano this afternoon, and will speak to the issue on the Amy Goodman show on Radio Pacifica tomorrow. I will try to get you the audio links to these interviews as soon as possible.

Third, today I wrote to the Kerry-Edwards campaign, urging them not to drop out of the Ohio recount case. The case is at a crucial juncture, and while we know the case will not alter the outcome of the election, their involvement is needed to allow us to establish important legal principles and precedents that will help insure that every vote is counted in future elections. The Ohio Election Fraud Blog has the letter.

So it was a busy day even before I learned that according to Rasmussen, Bush has hit a new low in his popularity, and that for the first time in history, a sitting Governor in Ohio was indicted on criminal charges.


Blogged by JC on 08.17.05 @ 09:56 PM ET


Discussion here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2016491