Virginia judge won't force count of 55 absentee ballots in close delegate race

[Eugene]

Source: Washington Post

Virginia judge won’t force count of 55 absentee ballots in close delegate race

By Rachel Weiner and Laura Vozzella November 17 at 12:45 PM

A federal judge in Alexandria declined Friday to force a count of 55 absentee ballots that could help determine control of the Virginia House of Delegates.

In the race to fill the seat held by retiring Speaker William J. Howell (R-Stafford), Republican Robert Thomas is ahead of Joshua Cole by 82 votes. Cole’s campaign filed suit arguing that 55 absentee ballots that arrived in Stafford County the day after the Nov. 7 election were late because of postal-office problems and should be counted.

Judge Claude M. Hilton disagreed.

“These ballots were late,” he said. Everyone, Hilton added, wonders sometimes “what’s wrong with the mail.” But he saw no evidence of “improprieties” here.

Cole’s campaign pointed to an email sent to state officials the day after the election by Greg Riddlemoser, general registrar of Stafford County, saying that “there is no possible way in my military mind that these ballots should not have been available to us on Election Day before close-of-polls.”

-snip-

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/virginia-judge-wont-force-count-of-55-absentee-ballots-in-close-delegate-race/2017/11/17/492d27c6-cbb4-11e7-b0cf-7689a9f2d84e_story.html

[Madam45for2923]

1. How awesome for the revolution that Donald gets to life-appoint judges all over the nation !

Will make the revolution much much yummier! Good luck to our next generations.

[Roland99]

2. Who the hell appointed this judge?

This needs to be appealed.

[Igel]

5. Reagan. 1985.

Sort of a moot point, though.

I wonder how many other precincts around the country had absentee or mail-in ballots picked up the day after elections. If it's done in one district at federal-judiciary command shouldn't it be done everywhere?

[Roland99]

7. Sickening how little regard Repukes have for democracy

[LisaL]

3. I just want to point out the obvious. There is no way that 55 ballots could change outcome of the

election where difference is 82 votes. It's not enough to make up for the difference.

[Heather MC]

4. How dare you!

[Lulu KC]

6. I was getting ready to open my calculator--thanks!

[Roland99]

8. Doesnt matter. This is blatant disenfranchisement

[dsc]

11. by itself no

But we have recounts for a reason there could be other errors which combined with the 55 would be enough

[DFW]

9. Was this that race where the election worker "forgot" to go to the post office box?

I heard there was one where the ballots were received "late" because the poll worker responsible neglected to go to the post office on election day and get the mail. That is NOT a case where the ballots arrived late. That is a case where they were deliberately ignored.

[NoMoreRepugs]

10. The USA is in freefall on its way to

banana republic status insofar as free and honest elections are concerned.

[blueinredohio]

12. I thought in a democracy every vote counts

[Codeine]

13. They do, sure. But even if every single

ballot in the late batch were for the Democratic candidate the 'Puke would still win. It really doesn't matter.

[TomSlick]

14. Tell me again how we support our troops.

That is unless they want to vote, or want their widow's respected, etc.

Another meaningless pseudo-patriotic platitude.

Military people aren't fooled. We know that current members and veterans are simply used and not respected.

[Kaleva]

15. Sadly, we only take the counting of late military absentee ballots seriously...

when it may change the outcome of an election in our favor.

We are just being hypocritical when we only care about the military vote during certain circumstances but don't give a shit in all other elections.

[SharonAnn]

16. Um, no. Late Florida ballots from military were counted in 2000 and Bush won.

[Kaleva]

17. There was no DU then

What I'm saying is that the outrage over the not counting of late military absentee ballots seems to be selective. I can't recall a single post over the years where someone was angry that late military absentee ballots weren't counted in an election where the counting or not counting of such would have made no difference to the outcome.

In reading on the subject, military absentee ballots not being counted because they don't arrive in time is a rather common thing.

[LisaL]

18. In this particular case, I already pointed out that there isn't enough ballots to change the outcome

So clearly you suggestion isn't accurate.

[dsc]

20. there was a huge difference in these ballots and the ones we are discussing now

The ballots in Florida had been mailed after the election and may well have been cast after the election (they didn't have any indication of what date they were filled in and sealed). The ballots in VA were cast before the election. There is no doubt of that since they arrived at the post office on election day.

[Kaleva]

21. Who is talking about Florida?

In elections all across this nation, it is routine for military absentee ballots to arrive late for any number of reasons and not be counted.

[Vinca]

19. They should appeal to the Supreme Court - for whatever that might be worth.