Losing by 335,000 in N.H., Nader Demands a Recount (GRANTED)

[Tab]

Independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader, who lost by about 335,000 votes in New Hampshire, has asked the state for a recount.

No, the longtime consumer advocate is not hoping to change last week's outcome in the Granite State, where Democrat John F. Kerry was the winner. Rather, he said, he is concerned about the veracity of the results.
...
"We have received reports of irregularities in the vote reported on the AccuVote Diebold Machines in comparison to exit polls and trends in voting in New Hampshire," Nader wrote Secretary of State William M. Gardner. "These irregularities favor President George W. Bush by 5% to 15% over what was expected."

New Hampshire uses Diebold machines at 132 polling places. Gardner's office received Nader's fax at 4:59 p.m. Friday, one minute before the deadline. Under state law, if a candidate requesting a recount finished more than three percentage points behind, he must pay for the process. Gardner said that if the Nader campaign sends a check for $2,000 and promises to pay any additional charges, he will round up the ballots and initiate a hand count.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A38000-2004Nov9.html

[jdj]

1. oh, no, the post finally drank the kool-aid. reg. required.

I'll post one in a minute.

login from bugmenot: [email protected], username-hairy

[lovuian]

2. Is Nader sending the check??? I hope so if He does Alleluia!!!

:bounce:

[Andy_Stephenson]

7. Last I heard...a few minutes ago

Nader sent the check.

[KurtNYC]

3. Must. Stop. Liking. nader.

[alittlelark]

4. You go Ralph!!!

I used to detest him.....I'm a flip-flopper!!

[MuseRider]

5. So someone WAS there.

At least someone went and reported.

[Goldmund]

6. 2 grand???

I'll fucking send him 2 grand. Let's go with this recount!

[rodeodance]

8. ...and a promise to pay what ever else the costs are. 2 grand seems to

be a down payment?

[Tab]

18. It's both

NH has a set of charges that vary from race to race (e.g. Selectman's race vs. State Senate vs. U.S. Senate vs. Presidential Election).

And within those races, the rates vary depending on the closeness of the reported results.

Since Ralph didn't get much of anything in terms of votes, he has to pick up not only the base charge, but since he wants a recount of an area far wider than is contested, he has to basically foot the whole bill.

On the bright side, NH is small (1.3 million people), and not everyone used eVoting. I don't know how many of the bigger towns used Diebold, although I understand some did.

This could be a red herring; if there was no tampering in NH, then maybe it puts the 'matter to rest' so GOP can claim "see, they looked and found nothing". OTOH, FL and OH were the really contested spots, so giving NH a clean bill of health may not mean anything.

OTOH (again), NH Gov Craig Benson (R-Cabletron) isn't always the most ethical guy in the world, so who knows. Don't know much about the SoS, though - probably perfectly ethical.

[grumpy old fart]

9. How do they count?

Thought these Diebold BBV didn't have a paper trail. Thought that was the point of the problem with them.

[UL_Approved]

10. I want to know the real reason behind this

I seriously doubt that Nader has any real intent on helping out Kerry or exposing voter fraud. He wants to get himself elected in N.H. and will do anything to get it. Don't be surprised if they "by some miracle" come up with an Nader majority in that state after the "recount". If he was really interested in exposing voter fraud, he would start in Ohio or Florida or other states with closer margins.

[sniffa]

11. kerry won NH

i'd prefer he caLLed for a recount in ohio

[Luminous Animal]

12. Ohio

Nader wasn't on the ballot in Ohio. He has no basis to ask for a recount.

[DoYouEverWonder]

14. This is just the beginning

NC just announced they are might have to revote! Of course at this point they are excluding the race for president. But if this really happens it just might be the beginning of the end for Bush and his mandate.

[DemFromMem]

19. No, NH is a smart move

It's a small enough state that a recount could be done relatively quickly and if shenanigans are identified, there will be a good case to look at Ohio, Florida and other places.

It seems that most of the questionable voting is going Bush's way, not Kerry's. So if there really is an issue, my guess is that Kerry's margin will only increase (especially given the exit polling).

[WhereIsMyFreedom]

21. This is about proving fraud

This is just a first step towards Ohio and Florida. NH had one of the highest discrepancies between the outcome and the exit polls (~15%) so fraud there is highly likely. It is also small enough to do a hand recount quickly and cheaply. If we can prove fraud in NH, then that calls into question every other state that greatly differed from the exit polls.

Ohio and Florida are going to have recounts initiated by citizens (if the candidates won't do it). See http://www.helpamericarecount.org/ to donate money.

[Ducks In A Row]

32. depending on the results of the recount (what problems are found)

it will give ammno for ohio and florida recounts.

[grumpy old fart]

13. Thank makes little sense.

For all he is, he is not an idiot. He knows he can't win the state, but it is probably the smallest, and therefore cheapest, place to challenge the vote and start exposing the fraud. Assuming you can expose any fraud from these paperless machines....I'm still confused on that point.

[CitySky]

16. audit the machines?

Maybe have auditors try to vote for each candidate a set # of times & see if the totals come up right? :shrug: Won't help if any pernicious code was written with expiration dates though.

[asjr]

20. Any machine that doesn't give a printout so you can see it

should not be allowed at all. Our votes are sacred and we should feel comfortable that they count. They should be abolished.

[mountainvue]

33. All paper ballots in NH. n/t

[laheina]

25. They're trying to establish a statistical baseline...

NH is a small state (easier to recount) with a good mix of voting methods where reports can be compaired. There is also something about the legal system...? Does anyone know about this?

[BlueNomad]

15. I suspect

that the point is to expose fraud particularly as the DIEBOLD machines are concerned. Nader needs to have been on the ballot. And that sounds like a substantial padding for BUSH.

[anamandujano]

17. I've been waiting for this news all day

Wonderful!

And to all doubters, Ida Briggs will be here in moments to inform you that she and Bev Harris asked Ralph to do it. (Poor Ida, there have been hundreds of these threads.)

He's not being a bad guy this time.

[KurtNYC]

22. Two things Nader doesn't lack: Ego and

Cajones

[Chimpanzee]

24. I thought it was spelled Camejo?

[Lone_Star_Dem]

23. This could be the first of many steps toward fixing the problems

Or, it could blow up in our faces. I hope it one small step for Diebold removal.


You go Nader. Never thought I would be saying that.

[laheina]

26. Send him ten bucks

I never thought I'd be rooting for Nader, especially after this last year, but anybody who can, send him ten bucks or so. Even if someone else is helping to fund the effort -- he may be more inclined to cooperate.

Maybe I'm not giving Nader the benefit of the doubt, his life has been spent tackling consumer protection issues like this.

[Deere_John]

27. Oh, man I hope we find a real smoking gun in NH.

Not only would we have something that could bring Bush down, but my relatives would stop looking at me funny.

[Demit]

28. Never thought I'd say it but--Ralph Nader redeems himself!

Wow. He's going back to his "Unsafe at Any speed" roots. Right on, Ralph.

[bluedeminredstate]

29. My Dad who lives in NH

told me that all of NH votes on paper. They must have different counting methods, but if it's all on paper it shouldn't take too long.

[Finder]

30. We use Scanners,,

The ballots are done by hand, at least in my district.

What better place to start than the "Live Free or Die" state?

[jimbot]

31. It is one of four things (I'm guessing)

1. He didn't cause the Kerry loss so he is feeling inconsequential and wants to get his name back in the papers.
2. He feels that there is an accuracy issue with the voting process and wants an audit to confirm his suspicions.
3. He is truly a republican shill and chose a state that will not turn up irregularities to lay to rest any other voting inconsistencies.
4. My mind is not working well today...I know there were 4 things I was thinking of when i started this post...maybe I'll edit this later and add the 4th :)
On edit:
Now I remember...
4. He is worried that Ohio will get overturned and wants to give NH electoral votes to Boosh so even if Kerry gets Ohio, * still wins.

Anywho,
I'm voting that it is number 1.

[Moderator]

34. Duplicate topic--Please continue discussion here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=974763&mesg_id=974763