Ohio Presidential Recount Lawsuit

[Dan]

On Tuesday August 30, a federal district judge set a trial date for the Green Party's Ohio Recount lawsuit and indictments were handed down against two Cuyahoga County elections officials for their roles in the bungled election audit. The timing was coincidental; the two actions are not related though they both stem from charges that the recount was conducted in violation of state and federal law.

Judge James Carr set the trial date for August 22, 2006. The lawsuit was initiated by Green Party presidential candidate David Cobb and his Libertarian counterpart, Michael Badnarik.

The Ohio election and recount has been the subject of a number of investigations and reports. A report by the U.S. House Judiciary Committee's Democratic staff states that "there were massive and unprecedented voter irregularities and anomalies in Ohio. In many cases these irregularities were caused by intentional misconduct and illegal behavior, much of it involving Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell, the co-chair of the Bush-Cheney campaign in Ohio." The August issue of Harper's magazine featured an article by Mark Crispin Miller on the Ohio election fraud and the lack of "mainstream" media coverage devoted to it, entitled "None Dare Call it Stolen."

"The truth about the fraud, manipulation and voter suppression in Ohio is slowly coming out. The price of freedom is eternal vigilance and we will pursue this as long as necessary to protect the integrity of our democratic process. When Republicans steal elections and Democrats roll over and play dead, the public can rely on the Green Party to protect the right to vote and the right to have all votes counted," said Blair Bobier, spokesman for the party's 2004 presidential campaign.