Florida House Dispute May Lead To Revote
A House task force will take the first steps Tuesday in an investigation of a Florida congressional election decided by 369 votes amid complaints that voting machines failed to count thousands of electronic ballots.
Republican Vern Buchanan was declared the winner of the election, a result Democrat Christine Jennings is challenging in Florida court.
The House, which has final authority over its membership, typically waits until legal challenges are completed before taking action. But Florida Democrats last month asked the House Administration Committee to begin reviewing the election after reports of an anomaly in the touch-screen voting machines that recorded about 18,000 skipped votes in Sarasota County.
Committee Chairwoman Juanita Millender-McDonald, D-Calif., created the three-member task force to investigate the issue and report back to the full committee.
Jennings' spokesman David Kochman said it is time for congressional intervention and order a revote.
"We think this is an important step," Kochman said Monday. "It's already been more than five months since the election and we don't have any answers. Hopefully this will bring answers."
The controversy in Florida's 13th Congressional District has become a rallying point for advocates challenging the accuracy of electronic voting machines.
News reports last month revealed that voting machine manufacturer Elections Systems & Software informed state and local election officials of the machine's slow response times nearly three months before the November election.
Kochman said the company's memo is significant because it shows there were problems with the iVotronic machines that were not disclosed to the public or Jennings' lawyers, although they had requested all correspondence about issues with the machines.
The company has said the slow response is not the reason no votes were recorded in the race for some 18,000 Sarasota County voters who cast ballots in other contests.
The rate of non-votes in the county was far beyond the norm, but a state audit and two recounts found no evidence of a malfunction in the machines.
Jennings and several voter advocacy groups have appealed a circuit judge's decision not to allow them access to ES&S source code, which the company says is proprietary. A decision on those cases is still pending.
Buchanan and Jennings campaigned for the House seat Katherine Harris left to make an unsuccessful Senate run. As Florida's secretary of state in 2000, Harris presided over the presidential election recount that gave George W. Bush the presidency.
© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Republican Vern Buchanan was declared the winner of the election, a result Democrat Christine Jennings is challenging in Florida court.
The House, which has final authority over its membership, typically waits until legal challenges are completed before taking action. But Florida Democrats last month asked the House Administration Committee to begin reviewing the election after reports of an anomaly in the touch-screen voting machines that recorded about 18,000 skipped votes in Sarasota County.
Committee Chairwoman Juanita Millender-McDonald, D-Calif., created the three-member task force to investigate the issue and report back to the full committee.
Jennings' spokesman David Kochman said it is time for congressional intervention and order a revote.
"We think this is an important step," Kochman said Monday. "It's already been more than five months since the election and we don't have any answers. Hopefully this will bring answers."
The controversy in Florida's 13th Congressional District has become a rallying point for advocates challenging the accuracy of electronic voting machines.
News reports last month revealed that voting machine manufacturer Elections Systems & Software informed state and local election officials of the machine's slow response times nearly three months before the November election.
Kochman said the company's memo is significant because it shows there were problems with the iVotronic machines that were not disclosed to the public or Jennings' lawyers, although they had requested all correspondence about issues with the machines.
The company has said the slow response is not the reason no votes were recorded in the race for some 18,000 Sarasota County voters who cast ballots in other contests.
The rate of non-votes in the county was far beyond the norm, but a state audit and two recounts found no evidence of a malfunction in the machines.
Jennings and several voter advocacy groups have appealed a circuit judge's decision not to allow them access to ES&S source code, which the company says is proprietary. A decision on those cases is still pending.
Buchanan and Jennings campaigned for the House seat Katherine Harris left to make an unsuccessful Senate run. As Florida's secretary of state in 2000, Harris presided over the presidential election recount that gave George W. Bush the presidency.
Recommended
- How Independent Are Vaccine Defenders?
- Gardasil Researcher Speaks Out
- Exclusive: Rape in America: Justice Denied
- Growing Threat Of Russia's Mob Play Video
- VA Hid Suicide Risk, Internal E-Mails Show
- Health Care Lobbyists' Rise to Power
- FEMA Trailer Builder's Illness Play Video
- Veterans' Claims Found in Shredder Bins
Why hasn't anyone gone after the Supreme court for breaking the law - they are not allowed to be involved in political elections, but they said to ignore 3600 ballots in Florida, and gave the chimp a victory.
Seems like everyone is focused on the wrong things, and scared to tackle tough problems. I would love to see congress go after the Supreme court, they need their butts kicked.
Come on, our technology is better than this. Let's get some real IT people working on this.
The Republicans claim to be the party of family values and of god. How come the three top canidates running for President have like 9 divorces between them some of which are cheating and all the good family values and god fearing things?
The Dems top three canidates have never been divorced and they have done all they can to save their marraiges. What is this all about is it that maybe the family value and god fearing people are really wolves in sheeps clothing?
Just a question and a though to ponder.....
And we're glad you left, raised the IQ of the party by 5 points the minute you walked out the door.
Now I'll put my partisan hat back on and say that here in Florida, it's Republican officials that bought these paperless machines, and it's the GOP that fights in the Florida Legislature to keep it paperless. Democrats have been begging for a paper trail.
I have sent a 10,000 word statement to the heads of both partys. and also sent a copy to the vp, and whitehouse. stating that if they in anyway back down on this bill,and fold like ******* to this traitorest president/vp/rove/rumsfeld/ that
they will see a REVOLUTION IN THIS COUNTRY TO THE LIKES THAT THEY HAVE NEVER SEEN..
I told them the only bill that should be sign by the president is a bill he owes to all americans i thinks its around 3.000,000,000,000,0000,000,00,000,00,00,
00,00,00,.
so go and arrest all of them. and america will stand behide you. you all will go down as hero.
we need not to be in iraq,iran,or any were in the middleeast.
to the president of the united states of america. you are not a dictator, no ones is listen to all the lies anymore. any true american in this country is gearing up to have you and your crime buddies taken out by force.
you have to be stoped!!!! as i am a vet. i only wish was i was still in so i could make sure no more of my brothers and sisters get murdered by you and cheney,rumsfeld,rove,and so on.
how come no more outside speaches?? what worried about something??? good its going to get worst so keep it up you chimp
nobodys listen to you asap. like i ask yesterday were have you served?? go ahead bigboy go and sign up? whimp,coward,pussie,chimp,like your fathers bush,cheney,rove,rumsfeld,and your mother connie