'Daily Voting News' For November 25, 2008

Prior to election day we, VotersUnite.Org, counseled voters to not use straight-party voting. We put it on our website and I wrote about it in these spaces. Straight-party voting as it is used in Texas is rife for misunderstanding and mistakes by the voters. When someone votes a straight-party ticket but then also selects the name of a candidate within that party in a particular race, electronic machines "deselect" that candidate. If no other candidate is chosen, no vote is counted in that race. The best solution, in our minds, was to NOT use straight-party voting but we got a lot of push back from some party officials in the state. Now Dallas Co. Democrats have been in court in an attempt to get the county to count all deselected or emphasis votes. The Secretary of State and the county both say no. The court, after two days of hearings and the promise of a decision, has, at the last minute, decided that they may have no jurisdiction. There would be no problem at all if straight-party voting had not been pushed by party officials....

National: Time to Rethink Electoral Politics LINK

Colorado: Boulder County - Election results get partial sign-off LINK

Florida: Broward County - Rep. Rivera had tough time against 'ringer' - even after she quit LINK

Georgia: 'Document Hold' Served by OH Attorney to GA SoS in Advance of State's U.S. Senate Run-off Election LINK

Iowa: Voter Dissatisfaction Over Polling Places Comes Before Supervisors LINK

Michigan: Bay County - Two losing candidates file for vote recounts LINK

Minnesota: Ballots Missing in Coleman-Franken Recount, Attorney Says LINK

Minnesota: Franken losing ground to Coleman on DFL turf - Minneapolis LINK

Minnesota: MN U.S. Senate Hand-Count: A Vote for McCain Must be a Vote for Coleman, Says Coleman Camp LINK

Minnesota: Run-up in ballot challenges cloud Coleman-Franken recount
With 3,000-plus votes disputed, it's hard to know who is really gaining. LINK

Minnesota: Opinion - Nick Coleman: Elections with less acrimony? That's the true beauty of IRV LINK

Minnesota: Franken Camp's Claim: We're Only Down By 84 Votes LINK

Minnesota: The Twin Cities Throwdown
Weekly Standard: The Coleman-Franken Recount May End Up Like A Replay Of Florida 2000 LINK

Minnesota: Every Vote Matters in MN's U.S. Senate Hand-Count. Every. Single. One. LINK

North Carolina: Cumberland County - Voter fraud appeal delays oath of office LINK

New Jersey: Editorial - New Jersey Still Needs to Fix Its Electronic Voting LINK

New York: Westchester County, White Plains spar over bill for elections LINK

Ohio: Cuyahoga County - Brunner sets Cuyahoga board free LINK

Ohio: Cuyahoga vote board rejects 25% of provisional ballots from presidential election LINK

Ohio: Franklin County - Ohio high court to decide 15th District votes LINK

Ohio: Franklin County - Ballot case tossed back to Ohio Supreme Court LINK

Ohio: Hamilton County - Despite uproar, just 2 votes questioned
Ballots from out-of-stater, inmate flagged by Hamilton County LINK

Texas: Dallas County - Texas House District 105 battle lands in court LINK

Texas: Dallas County - Democrats go to court over e-votes in Irving race LINK

Texas: Dallas County - Judge says he has no jurisdiction in Texas House 105 recount LINK

**"Daily Voting News" is meant as a comprehensive listing of reports each day concerning issues related to election and voting news around the country regardless of quality or political slant. Therefore, items listed in "Daily Voting News" may not reflect the opinions of VotersUnite.Org or Scoop.**

"To encourage citizen ownership of transparent, participatory
democracy." The Creekside Declaration March 22, 2008