Greens & Libertarians file for Recount in Nevada and New Mexico...

WHAT’S THE LATEST ON THE RECOUNT?

On Monday, November 29, Green party Presidential candidate David Cobb filed official requests for a recount in New Mexico and Nevada. As he did in Ohio, Cobb filed the requests jointly with Libertarian candidate Michael Badnarik. "The Green Party's dedication to protecting the integrity of the election process has led me to file for a recount in both New Mexico and Nevada. We want to ensure that every vote is counted and verify the accuracy of the electronic voting machines, particularly those which produce no paper trail," said David Cobb. For more information, read the press release.

On Sunday, November 28, the Reverend Jesse Jackson spoke in Columbus, Ohio to publicly voice his support for the Ohio recount and other challenges to the controversial Ohio vote. For more information, read the press release.


Meanwhile, on November 23rd, a federal district judge denied our request to expedite the recount process. Our legal team is considering our response to the ruling and our next course of action. If the ruling stands, the recount will proceed on the schedule dictated by the Ohio Secretary of State's office. Mr Blackwell is currently stating certification will not take place until December 6th.

Here is a press release describing the court proceedings. In the interest of full transparency, read the court documents yourself: the Motion for a Temporary Retraining Order (TRO), Complaint by the Green Party and others requesting the recount, and the Brief supporting the request for a Preliminary Injunction.

David Cobb of the Green Party and Michael Badnarik of the Libertarian Party are represented by John Bonifaz, General Counsel of the National Voting Rights Institute, and Ohio attorney Nancy Holland Myers. A November 17th Cobb-Badnarik letter to Ohio Secretary of State Blackwell said that the lack of a meaningful recount will violate Ohio recount law, as well as, "the rights under federal and state constitutional and statutory law of all Ohio citizens who cast a ballot for President on Election Day….. Immediate action is necessary so that the recount procedures may begin as soon as possible."

"This is consistent with our standing up for the right to vote and for each vote to be counted. What's the point of having a recount if it won't be completed in time? Everyone knows what happened in Florida in 2000 and no one wants to see that happen again," said Blair Bobier, Media Director for the Cobb-LaMarche campaign.

Press coverage in Ohio and around the nation has been growing steadily, as voters realize that the recount is moving forward. Local papers covering the story include the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Toledo Blade. National coverage has been seen in papers as far away as Los Angeles (the Los Angeles Times), Philadelphia (the Philadelphia Inquirer), and northwest Alabama (the Times Daily).

Thanks to the generosity of thousands of small donors coast-to-coast, we raised $250,000 toward the costs of the recount. $113,600 has gone out the door already to pay the State of Ohio for the recount costs, and we now have staff on the ground in Ohio. We’ll be mobilizing thousands of volunteers to observe the hand recount in all 88 counties.

We still need volunteers to come to Ohio for the next few weeks to make this recount happen. Students, seniors, anyone with vacation time - you all are welcome. All political parties and independents are welcome. Anyone who wants to preserve democracy in America is welcome. See you there!
Read our letter of November 17th demanding a recount.

Link to site:
http://www.votecobb.org/

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2004/11/29/state1956EST0121.DTL

Judge to rule Tuesday on part of challenge to Bush victory in Nevada

SCOTT SONNER, Associated Press Writer
Monday, November 29, 2004

-snip-
A judge intends to decide Tuesday whether to allow a legal
challenge to move forward aimed at blocking Nevada's five
electoral votes from being cast next month for President
Bush.

Washoe County District Judge Peter Breen said Monday he's
considering setting an evidentiary hearing to determine
whether there are grounds to keep the votes from Bush -- who
carried Nevada by 21,500 votes -- due to allegations of voter
registration fraud and claims some voting machines
malfunctioned.

-snip-
"President Bush is claiming he has a mandate and included in
that is that the state of Nevada stood behind him. Even if
Nevada's five electoral votes will not change the election, it
does have an impact on whether Nevada is part of that
mandate," Dickerson said.

`If there are disenfranchised voters who were illegally
disenfranchised ... then those voters are not having their
will voiced," he said.

:kick: