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Politics : Why is Gore Trying to Steal the Presidency? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: MasonS who wrote (1009)	11/18/2000 2:22:53 PM
From: Ellen	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3887

Go back and re-read my post. If rejected ballots can be counted or substituted & counted in Seminole County, why not elsewhere? Why do the Republicans say only they can do that? Where is your answer to that? > FLORIDA'S STANDARDS ARE UP TO THE "DISCRETION" OF THE INDIVIDUAL COUNTIES...AND THEY HAVE DEMONSTRATED THAT THEY CAN CHANGE MID-COUNT. < First of all, you are correct in that they DID change the standards they were using during the sample manual count, which was conducted to determine if a request should be made for a full manual recount. Prior to beginning the full manual recount, they stated - I saw the attorney myself state so live on television - that they were going to use the written standard as already established. This was for Palm Beach county. (Which they should have done all along.) He also displayed these written standards and, according to him, copies were distributed to those present who wanted them. As to the individual counties having their own standards, you are correct, as Florida election law states that "Each supervisor of elections shall establish written procedures to assure accuracy and security in his or her county, and such procedures shall be reviewed in each odd-numbered year by the Department of State" - but note who is ultimately responsible. Yes, the Secretary of State who currently is Katherine Harris, a Republican and the State Co-Chairperson For The Bush Campaign. Still want to complain about the standards? leg.state.fl.us 101.015 Standards for voting systems.-- (1) The Department of State shall adopt rules which establish minimum standards for hardware and software for electronic and electromechanical voting systems. Such rules shall contain standards for: (a) Functional requirements; (b) Performance levels; (c) Physical and design characteristics; (d) Documentation requirements; and (e) Evaluation criteria. (2) Each odd-numbered year the Department of State shall review the rules governing standards and certification of voting systems to determine the adequacy and effectiveness of such rules in assuring that elections are fair and impartial. (3) The Department of State shall adopt rules to achieve and maintain the maximum degree of correctness, impartiality, and efficiency of the procedures of voting, including write-in voting, and of counting, tabulating, and recording votes by voting systems used in this state. (4)(a) The Department of State shall adopt rules establishing minimum security standards for voting systems. (b) Each supervisor of elections shall establish written procedures to assure accuracy and security in his or her county, and such procedures shall be reviewed in each odd-numbered year by the Department of State. (c) Each supervisor of elections shall submit any revisions to the security procedures to the Department of State at least 45 days before the first election in which they are to take effect. (5)(a) The Department of State shall adopt rules which establish standards for provisional approval of hardware and software for innovative use of electronic and electromechanical voting systems. Such rules shall contain standards for: 1. Functional requirements; 2. Performance levels; 3. Physical and design characteristics; 4. Documentation requirements; 5. Evaluation criteria; 6. Audit capabilities; and 7. Consideration of prior use of a system. (b) A voting system shall be provisionally approved for a total of no more than 2 years, and the Department of State has the authority to revoke such approval. Provisional approval of a system shall not be granted by the Department of State to supersede certification requirements of this section. (c)1. No provisionally approved system may be used in any election, including any municipal election, without the authorization of the Department of State. 2. An application for use of a provisionally approved system shall be submitted at least 120 days prior to the intended use by the supervisor of elections or municipal elections official. Such application shall request authorization for use of the system in a specific election. Each application shall state the election, the number of precincts, and the number of anticipated voters for which the system is requested for use. 3. The Department of State shall authorize or deny authorization of the use of the provisionally approved system for the specific election and shall notify the supervisor of elections or municipal elections official in writing of the authorization or denial of authorization, along with the reasons therefor, within 45 days after receipt of the application. (d) A contract for the use of a provisionally approved system for a specific election may be entered into with the approval of the Department of State. No contract for title to a provisionally approved system may be entered into. (e) The use of any provisionally approved system shall be valid for all purposes. (6) All electronic and electromechanical voting systems purchased on or after January 1, 1990, must meet the minimum standards established under subsection (1). All electronic and electromechanical voting systems in use on or after July 1, 1993, must meet the minimum standards established under subsection (1) or subsection (5). History.--s. 4, ch. 89-348; s. 16, ch. 90-315; s. 551, ch. 95-147. And you said: > AND...aren't you getting a little ahead of yourself on what the Florida legislature will or will not do... < I didn't say what the Florida legislature may or may not do, the Washington Post writers did!! washingtonpost.com Here's something interesting. The Republican-controlled Florida legislature's plans to just assign electors as they choose may be met with difficulty - AS IT SHOULD - since Florida law states: leg.state.fl.us 103.011 Electors of President and Vice President.--Electors of President and Vice President, known as presidential electors, shall be elected on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of each year the number of which is a multiple of 4. Votes cast for the actual candidates for President and Vice President shall be counted as votes cast for the presidential electors supporting such candidates. The Department of State shall certify as elected the presidential electors of the candidates for President and Vice President who receive the highest number of votes.