Thursday, February 2nd, 2006...6:23 am
Wait, You Mean 2004 Isn’t Over?
I’ve resisted writing anything about this, mostly because it is a story I am having trouble following. I have trouble following it mostly because I am usually uninterested in intramural disputes between Maricopa County Republicans. Let ‘em kick each other, I say.
Back in 2004, the Republican primary for State House in District 20 (Ahwatukee, Western Chandler) featured five candidates, including incumbent Bob Robson. The second seat was open, and three candidates ended the evening within single digits of eachother. That’s single digit votes, not percentages.
The main dispute right now is between John McComish and Anton Orlich (whatever happened to Jeff “JD” Dial?). Orlich ended the evening ahead by four votes, but McComish was declared the winner when more votes were counted.
Ever since then, a group of Republican activists, including Sen. Jack Harper, have been fighting to seat Orlich, even getting the New Times to pay for an investigation of the election.
However, I have been suspicious of the motives of the folks helping Orlich. McComish isn’t their kind of conservative, and this just seems to be a way of undercutting more moderate voices in the caucus.
This is also why I have been disapointed with the “Live Free or Diebold” crowd in my party on this one. I have been getting e-mails from folks in the local progressive caucus, proud that they are helping demand a recount. I wouldn’t mind so much if say, Harper was pushing for broader election reform or calling for a paper trail. Unfortunately, they are throwing in with the right wing of the Republican party to skewer a moderate, and getting little or nothing that will actually assure fair elections. Is Harper sponsoring any bill demanding hand counts in other close elections? Nope.
But, here is the best part:
Rumor has it that Orlich has left the state. That’s right, Harper and company are fighting on behalf of a guy that didn’t even bother to stay in town. Lovely.
I was going to point out the hypocricy of the Republicans now being all about recounts and election reform (but only in this case!), but I figured I’d leave that up to you.
NB - Hey, Harper and the conservative activists who so much want election reform, but only when it comes to Republican primaries in District 20 occuring between 2003 and 2005, you have a chance to show where you really stand. Rep. Doug Quelland has a bill allowing the Secretary of State to suspend elections when she has determined there is “civil disorder” or any “catostrophic event.” You guys come out against this piece of authoritarianism, then we can talk as fellow reformers.
7 Comments
February 2nd, 2006 at 9:05 am
Actually, they are not “fighting to seat Orlich.” The election has been certified and a recount would have no bearing on the outcome, except to show whether there are problems with the voting machines in Maricopa County. In the first count, Orlich was ahead by 4 votes. In the recount, over 400 new votes were ‘found’ and McComish ended up winning by a larger margin.
Whether you like Orlich’s politics or not, that’s indicative of a real problem, especially when you consider the lame explanations the county recorder has given for the disparity and the County Attorney’s complicity in preventing a key witness from testifying in the lawsuit over the recount. Because a deputy county attorney working for Orlich-supporter Andrew Thomas told a witness who had information that there were problems with the voting machines NOT TO COME TO COURT despite her subpoena, the court had no choice but to certify the election.
I’m no fan of Harper (or Thomas or Orlich or any of them for that matter). But something is rotten in the state of Denmark and we need to get to the bottom of it.
Why should we let partisan politics choose our side for us? Perhaps you’re afraid that if something is found to be wrong with the machines, that would undermine Napolitano’s razor thin victory over Matt Salmon???
Luckily, the US Attorney’s Office has gotten involved and subpoenaed the ballots to investigate.
February 2nd, 2006 at 9:08 am
You criticize me for “partisan politics” then bring up the old cannard that Napolitano somehow didn’t really win the election. Next, I’ll hear afain how she was put into office by illegal aliens.
What is frustrating me is that I don’t see these same Republicans being the least bit concerned about broader reforms which would prevent these alleged shenanigans from happening in the future.
February 2nd, 2006 at 11:57 am
point well taken on the Napolitano remark, but you don’t address why we, the non-rightwingers, should sit this out or criticize the effort to get to the bottom of the problem … if there is one.
First, they need to do the recound and machine analysis and then, if it turns out there are problems, address broader reforms. You’re putting the cart before the horse, Ted.
Dems don’t need to “take sides” with the moderate or extremist Republicans in order to want to get to the truth … no matter what that may turn out to be.
February 2nd, 2006 at 11:59 am
Remember that NY transit workers strike? Well, just recently, they voted on their proposed contract, and despite the support for the contract from both Mayor Bloomberg and the President of the union, it was defeated 11,234 to 11,227.
The thing about that is, that despite the disappointing outcome from the point of view of those who wanted to see the contract passed, there were no complaints about how the votes were counted. Everyone agreed that the result was accurate.
What this proves is that if you want to run an accurate election in which the results, no matter how close, are beyond dispute, you can do so. So one has to conclude that the party in power doesn’t WANT to get things right– being in power, they have a ‘fudge factor’ which they may not apply against each other, but which they can against Democrats.
February 2nd, 2006 at 1:59 pm
It doesn’t exactly take a self-proclaimed political expert to track down Orlich’s whereabouts… after all, he only made the national news.
http://www.usatoday.com/money/media/2005-12-27-pronosticate-usat_x.htm
—-B
February 2nd, 2006 at 3:10 pm
Hmm…well…if he’s planning on joining McKinsey and Co, he’d have to leave since they have no Phoenix operations.
Not self-proclaimed…self-ordained…very different.
February 3rd, 2006 at 12:47 pm
I’m afraid I agree with the recount/ballot access folks on this one. The more evidence that the vote can be, and, in fact, has been jiggered, the stronger the case for reform becomes. If that costs us a moderate Pug, so be it.
Oddly, there is no mention here that the FBI has seized the ballots and is conducting an ‘investigation’. Does it mean that I have become terminally paranoid when I no longer trust the FBI to act as anything other than a Bush Gestopo?