We're having some issues here in Franklin County, Indiana, seemingly stemming from new voting machines or software from Fidlar Election Company. The general election last week was our first time using them.
All the Libertarian Party candidates got in the 6-8% range- about half a dozen times more than anywhere else in the state. Heck, I'm not even the top vote getter among Libertarians here.
I'm getting ready to go watch a re-count, or "re-canvas" as our poor beleaguered county clerk insists on calling it. We're due to convene within the hour at the courthouse, with several representatives of Fidlar trucked in, and new memory cards. Thankfully, we do have actual physical ballots to "re-canvas."
They seem to think that there was a simple error that switched the straight ticket votes for the county between Libertarians and Democrats.
Looking at those numbers scares me a bit, though. 1022 "Democratic (LIB)" votes versus 60 "Libertarian (DEM)" votes, according to this "final canvas" sheet would seem to mean I'd personally owe them 962 votes (1022 minus 60) from my US Senate bid.
Problem is, I only got 821 votes in Franklin County, which looks like it means I'm going to be owing them 141 votes. What am I going to do? I already spent the 821 votes, let alone paying back the 141 I'm short.
Can anybody spot me a few hundred votes till the next election?
Here are the vote listings from the Secretary of State for Franklin County as of today, 11-11-2004 at 6PM as I head out to re-canvas:
President and Vice-President of the United States Statewide
Kerry, John F. John Edwards (Democratic) 2299
Badnarik, Michael Richard V. Campagna (Libertarian) 707
Bush, George Walker Dick Cheney (Republican) 6978
Kennedy, John Joseph No Candidate Filed (Write-in(Dem)) 0
Cobb, David Patricia LaMarche (Write-in(Green)) 0
Bone, Lawson Mitchell No Candidate Filed (Write-in (Ind)) 0
Nader, Ralph Peter Miguel Camejo (Write-in (Ind)) 10
Brown, Walt Mary Alice Herbert (Write-in(Socialist)) 0
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Article comments
1 - Mike Kole
Al, I am most interested to know the outcome of your recount ordeal yesterday. I think the Dems are grasping here, since Franklin County voted 7% Libertarian in 2002- just like 2004.
The Indy Star reported on the fact of the recount in this morning's edition, without reporting anything about the result.
2 - Al Barger
I'll be interested to parse this out myself. After having coming in for an 8 am emergency meeting of the Election Board, I was back at 6:30 pm for "re-canvassing." At 10:30, they were maybe almost halfway through, and I finally went home and crashed.
I wasn't allowed within 10 feet of their work anyway, so I don't know how much I was really seeing.
3 - Mike Kole
Recount mania is in full swing in Indiana. Al and the Franklin County Libertarians have apparently had votes go out of their totals and over to the Democrats, with the result being a Democratic candidate for County Commissioner now being declared the winner, with a Republican candidate being un-declared the winner. It was a best 3 of 5 type election for those positions.
There were two other filings made. One was by LP of LaPorte County Chair Greg Kelver. His filing was based on a couple of complaints, among them the fact that the first batch of absentee ballots listed him as a Republican candidate instead of Libertarian, prompting the recall of some early ballots.
The second filing was made by the Democratic Party on behalf of Baron Hill, who lost his contest for re-election for Representative in the 9th District. Hill had lost by less than 1,500 votes. Libertarian Al Cox had about 5,000 votes. Here's betting more LP votes magically wander over to a Democrat.