Crazy Counting an Ongoing Theme

Alaska's Senate election went to state court Monday when Republican Joe Miller sued the state over the manner in which write-in ballots have been handled. The judge granted a temporary injunction halting certification of the Senate election.

The state suit contends voters who didn't provide proper identification or were not known to election officials cast regular ballots instead of questioned ballots, as they should under state law.

That seems important. It should not be that we are allowing people to vote who are not legally allowed to vote, whether they have forfeited their right because they are jailed felons or are not citizens, or allowing the dead to vote, or allowing people to vote multiple times, or using handlers to influence votes, or any of a number of what has become common practices.

There are two ways to disenfranchise people.  One is to not allow them to vote.  The other is to negate their vote with fraudulent ballots.

Secondly, it claims that in several precincts, the handwriting on "many or all" write-in ballots appears to be from the same person, or a small group of people. It claims this is a violation of state law, which says the voter must write the candidate's name. This, however, could be due to voters receiving requested, allowable aid in filling out ballots.

The lawsuit says the state has ignored state law requirements implemented to prevent voting fraud and uphold the integrity of the process, "thereby casting serious doubt on the returns from certain precincts."

The lawsuit also says that ballots rejected by the machines were handled differently if they contained write-in candidates. They would be reviewed to determine voter intent, while other rejected ballots aren't subject to any review or hand count, the court document says. 

The Miller campaign has said he wants a hand count after a court rules on the standard by which ballots should be judged.

Seems reasonable. What does the Murkowski camp say?

"It doesn't make sense to me that Miller continues to delay the inevitable. He's going to court in order to hope to lose by less votes," Sweeney said. "We're going to court in hopes that he'll lose by more."

I gotta tell you, as messed up as our electoral process has become, there is something about the all-in, cut-throat aspect of a guy like Sweeney that gives me a chuckle.