Recount is underway in Palm Beach County.
GOP, media teams begin Palm Beach
vote review
BY SHARI RUDAVSKY
srudavsky@herald.com
Two news media organizations and the Republican Party started sifting through
more than 20,000 disputed ballots in Palm Beach County Tuesday, in what could
be a marathon task.
Working from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. with no breaks, representatives from The Herald,
The Palm Beach Post and Republican Party plowed through just 600 of the
contested votes.
A representative from each organization sat at a table as a Palm Beach elections
worker held up ballot after ballot for inspection.
Tuesday's review took place in almost absolute silence. The few television outlets
that showed up briefly at the beginning of the day quickly disappeared once the
task of ballot review began. It became clear what the Palm Beach Canvassing
Board had been up against in November as it raced against the clock to make it
through the hefty stack of ballots before a deadline set by the state Supreme
Court.
Some ballots had barely an indentation in the ``three'' or ``five'' position, the spot
for President-elect George W. Bush and unsuccessful presidential candidate Al
Gore. Other ballots were riddled with problems -- from hanging chads to strips of
tape.
On some ballots only a spot for president was depressed and perhaps one or two
others. After a holiday break, Broward resumes its review of about 6,600 ballots
today under newly elected Supervisor of Elections Miriam Oliphant. Oliphant was
sworn in on Tuesday.
Miami-Dade, Highlands, Okaloosa, Osceola, Pasco, Pinellas and St. Lucie
counties will also begin ballot reviews today. Hillsborough County, which has
about 5,500 disputed ballots, is scheduled to resume its review Thursday.
The Herald has hired the national accounting firm BDO Seidman to review
undervote ballots and tabulate results. |
