Judge says Michigan must count provisional ballots cast in wrong precincts

[Judi Lynn]

Judge says Michigan must count provisional ballots cast in wrong precincts
By Los Angeles Times

HASH(0x29019fc)

Wednesday, October 20, 2004

A federal judge in Michigan, spurning arguments raised by the Justice Department, ruled Tuesday that the state must count provisional ballots cast by voters who turned up at the wrong precinct but were in the right city or township.

The decision by U.S. District Judge David Lawson in Bay City was the latest ruling in what has become a thorny issue in the 2004 presidential campaign.

The judge issued an injunction forbidding Terri L. Land, the state's Republican secretary of state, from directing election officials throughout Michigan not to count a provisional ballot unless a voter was at the correct precinct.

Lawson based his ruling on Michigan statutes and the Help America Vote Act, which was passed in the aftermath of the problem-plagued 2000 presidential election, "when thousands of eligible voters were not permitted to vote because of the improper or erroneous administration of local election laws."
(snip/...)

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/content/news/epaper/2004/10/20/a8a_provballots_1020.html

[Demeter]

1. 'Well, That's Interesting

I'm going to assume that any such counting will occur after November 2, since poll workers will not be adding them to the totals but stuffing them into a sealed envelope, according to the training we have received this time.

[gavodotcom]

2. I heart democracy.