Travis Texas recount 'shines light on election problems'. Minn recount slammed

Seriously? Politico piece slams Minnesota recounts, says they should be harder to get...Meanwhile judge rules against Dems quest for Nassau recount in Johnson-Martins NY 7th Senate race. Johnson to appeal..Value of recounts learned in Texas House Dist 48: "That recount has become like turning over a big rock to see all the unpleasant things that live in the darkness beneath it, and what it has revealed about voting in Travis County is not pretty."..6 India EVMs recovered from scrap dealers..We bank online, why not vote online? Consider "Millions cashless in bank glitch"...

All this and more in today's voting news below...

AK: Joe Miller gambles with Alaska Senate challenge
http://dailycaller.com/2010/12/04/joe-miller-gambles-with-alaska-senate-challenge/

CA: Three Compton residents sue city, allege voting rights violations
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/12/three-compton-residents-sue-city-allege-voting-rights-violations.html The complaint filed Thursday in Los Angeles County Superior Court alleges that the at-large elections for City Council seats have the effect of diluting the Latino vote.

GUAM: Gutierrez Election Lawsuit Gets 1st Hearing in Superior Court December 15th
http://www.pacificnewscenter.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9821:gutierrez-election-lawsuit-gets-1st-hearing-december-15th&catid=45:guam-news&Itemid=156
The lawsuit filed by former Governor Carl Gutierrez which seeks to over-turn the Guam Election Commission's certification of Calvo-Tenorio as the winners of the 2010 Gubernatorial election will gets its first hearing in Superior Court next week Wednesday.

MA: Plymouth County Commission write-in winners written off?
Results don’t include top vote getters from Carver, Abington
http://www.wickedlocal.com/rochester/town_info/government/x556844365/Write-in-winners-written-off Governor’s Council to reconsider election results..

MN: Emmer drops nearly all Hennepin challenges
http://www.startribune.com/politics/recount/111328179.html?page=1&c=y
For Republican Tom Emmer, behind by nearly 9,000 votes, the path to the governor's office has only gotten steeper since Election Day.

MN: (Editorial)States can avoid Minnesota's recount mess
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1210/45913.html
Criticizes MN recount trigger, recounts are expensive, etc.

MN: Minnesota recount ends, but Emmer seeks answers
http://www.grandforksherald.com/event/article/id/185626/ When Hennepin County election officials ended their work Friday night, the five-day recount of all 2.1 million ballots cast on Nov. 2 wrapped up with Democrat Mark Dayton leading by about the same as when it started: roughly 9,000 votes. But work continues today as Emmer and Dayton's campaigns begin examining ballots Emmer representatives challenged.

MN: State allows disputed ballots to be examined again
http://www.startribune.com/politics/recount/111303764.html A Supreme Court justice also scolded his former colleague who is now one of Tom Emmer's attorneys in the recount.

MN: Ballot example 9 (one of the challenged ballots)
http://www.startribune.com/politics/recount/111147224.html A ballot challenged by volunteers for GOP gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer that Hennepin County elections officials have deemed to be frivolous. (The ballot is clearly & correctly marked)

MN: Minn. prosecutor finds no evidence of voter fraud
http://plainsdaily.com/story/8367
A prosecutor in north-central Minnesota says he won't file charges in a complaint that two disabled voters had their ballots filled out by a group home worker.

NY: Republicans Lay Claim to New York State Senate
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/05/nyregion/05elect.html?_r=1
Republicans claimed they had retaken the New York State Senate on Saturday after a State Supreme Court justice rejected a hand recount of a pivotal race in Nassau County. But Democrats said they planned to appeal the decision this week,

NY: 17% Of NYC Votes Not Counted In Midterm Election
http://gothamist.com/2010/12/03/17_of_nyc_votes_not_counted_in_midt.php
And if you voted in Queens, there was a 1 in 3 chance the the ballot wasn't counted, with a whopping 80,000 uncounted ballots found in the borough alone.

NY: Judge rules against recount in Johnson-Martins race
http://blog.timesunion.com/capitol/archives/35028/judge-rules-against-recount-in-johnson-martins-race/ But not so fast! The judge set a hearing for Tuesday on whether or not a 5 percent audit is required before certification. And Senate Democrats say Johnson on Monday will file an appeal to Saturday’s decision.

NY: Editorial: Fix New York's election laws
http://www.newsday.com/opinion/editorial-fix-new-york-s-election-laws-1.2515192
..only seven of the 32 machines randomly selected for audit came from the crucial 7th Senate District, where control of the State Senate hangs in the balance. To create total confidence in the outcome, the best bet is a full recount of all the paper ballots in this district...

OR: State GOP could take Senate race to courts
http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20101204/NEWS/12040309

TX: Texas House District 48 Recount Shines Light on Election Problems
http://blogcritics.org/politics/article/texas-house-district-48-recount-shines/
(Travis County)The eSlate voting machines do not track votes or link them to voters in any way and there is no way to verify anything about those votes beyond just carrying out another automated count....The system offers no transparency and no verification or protections for the rights of the voter.

WY: Indians Question Colo. Firm's Motives In Vote Case
http://cbs4denver.com/news/Wyoming.Indians.question.2.2031500.html
At issue is a local dispute over the election of county commissioners in Fremont County. Mountain States Legal Foundation has been representing the county pro bono for the last five years in a fight against American Indians who want greater representation on the commission.

WY: Wyoming legislation would ban primary crossover voting
http://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/wyoming/article_a76552d5-2d13-5fba-871c-e9483dd60fcc.html Nearly 10,000 Wyoming voters changed their registration for the primary election in August so they could vote for the other party's candidates.

Internet voting watch

Australia: Millions cashless in bank glitch
http://www.smh.com.au/business/millions-cashless-in-bank-glitch-20101126-18akf.html
A corrupted file in the National Australia Bank's computers on Wednesday jammed its payment system, hitting customers from a range of banks who rely on the NAB to process payments

Canada: Electronic voting open to abuse
http://www.timescolonist.com/opinion/Electronic+voting+open+abuse/3930610/story.html
Who decided to do it this way anyhow? I don't remember being asked my opinion.
...
say let's go back to an honest system. I sure don't mind waiting the extra time for results if I know for sure they'll be unmanipulated


National

“Where Are the Vote Counts?” From New York to Ivory Coast
http://www.trustthevote.org/where-are-the-vote-counts-from-new-york-to-ivory-coast

Ranked-Choice Voting: Democracy or Expediency?
http://www.nbcbayarea.com/blogs/prop-zero/Ranked-Choice-Voting-Democracy-or-Expediency-111345844.html

International

Egypt: Run-offs digest: Egyptians face intimidation and vote-buying at the ballot box...again http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/news/run-offs-digest-egyptians-face-intimidation-and-vote-buying-ballot-boxagain

India: 6 EVMs recovered from scrap dealers
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/6-EVMs-recovered-from-scrap-dealers/articleshow/7049951.cms

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