Reply #14: Warren Stewart: Did We Bounce An Election?

[Al-CIAda]

Saturday, 1 January 2005, 1:33 pm
Opinion: www.votersunite.org

Did We Bounce An Election?
By Warren Stewart, votersunite.org

I'll admit it; my checkbook is not very tidy. Like many people, I don't scrupulously reconcile my bank statements and I don't record every trip to the ATM or check card purchase the way my dad taught me. Usually everything works out fine but every once in a while I bounce a check and suffer the consequences of my sloppiness. It seems our public officials are being just as reckless with our votes. An examination of the New Mexico canvass report of the November 2 election suggests that the state might be running the risk of bouncing an election.

The canvass report (available as a pdf from the Secretary of State's website http://www.sos.state.nm.us/Election/cntyindx04.html) is the official record of the election results. It is certified by the state Canvassing Board (consisting of Governor Bill Richardson, Secretary of State Rebecca Vigil-Giron and Supreme Court Chief Justice Patricia Maes) and is used as the basis for determining who will represent the people of New Mexico in public offices and, in a presidential election, which slate of electors will be chosen for the Electoral College. With so much at stake, one would expect the canvass report to be a lot cleaner than my checkbook. That is not the case.

Much has been made of New Mexico's dubious honor of leading the nation in undervote percentage. I recently wrote an article pointing out the alarming number of phantom votes lurking in the New Mexico canvass report. Just what are undervotes and phantom votes and what do they tell us about our election process?

Con't-
http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0501/S00014.htm