Dems want GOP challenge rejected

The next leg of the ongoing gubernatorial race of 2004 starts this morning in Wenatchee, when state Democrats and county auditors throughout Washington will argue for a judge to dismiss the challenge to Christine Gregoire’s election.

They’re set to argue that a lawsuit filed by state Republicans and some voters who support Dino Rossi should be tossed out for several reasons, such as whether Chelan County Superior Court Judge John Bridges – or a trial judge in any county – has the authority to tell officials in the other 38 counties what to do to.

That should be the job of the state Supreme Court, or the Legislature, various court documents contend. Or no one at all, because there’s no proof that any illegal activity exists.

Meanwhile, Republicans continue to comb the records for voting “irregularities” – alleging everything from felons and dead people casting ballots to discrepancies between the number of ballots counted and the number of voters recorded by poll workers.

They don’t need to prove how many were cast for Gregoire or Rossi, GOP officials say. The fact that there are hundreds of questionable votes is enough to void the election that ended in a 129-vote victory for Gregoire after the final recount.

If Bridges agrees to dismiss the election challenge after today’s hearing, that decision is likely to land in the state Supreme Court. If he orders a trial on the GOP challenge, the outcome of that will likely be appealed, too.

But today’s discussions are expected to be repeated throughout the court battles, however long it lasts.

In asking to dismiss the lawsuit, Democrats say the request to throw Gregoire out of office and order a special election for a revote is unprecedented, and based on “a potpourri of vague and unsupported allegations of errors by election officials and potential mistakes” by individual voters.

“There is no allegation that there was any fraud or wrongdoing by election officials or that Governor Gregoire, her campaign, her party, or county election officials participated in election fraud,” the Washington State Democratic Central Committee argues. “There is no allegation that the challenged problems were unique in type or volume to this election.”

Republicans say they don’t have to prove an organized pattern of fraud or a conspiracy. In an interview Thursday in Spokane, Rossi said the point is that election controls in staunchly Democratic King County, where nearly a third of the votes were cast, were “so wide and loose that it allowed things to happen.” Because questions about certain ballots and the close margin of victory, “the winner is not knowable,” he said.

“The only remedy we’re asking is a revote,” Rossi added.

Democrats cite several reasons why they think a statewide gubernatorial revote can’t be ordered up. There’s no clear statutory authority and no county’s judge has the authority to order county auditors across the state to hold such an election, they contend.

The state Supreme Court, which has jurisdiction over the entire state, would have such authority, the Democrats contend. But even that court might be hamstrung by the state Constitution, which suggests any contested election for governor be settled by the Legislature.

But the Democrats went to court when they had challenges to the gubernatorial election, Republicans counter, and the Legislature has already passed on taking up this challenge, saying the courts are the best place to fight this out.

“The current Legislature, including both Democratic and Republican legislators, agrees that the courts are the proper branch to handle election contests,” Republicans say in their court document. When the Legislature certified Gregoire as the winner, many Democrats publicly stated the dispute should go to the courts, they add.

Just because they are legislators, and Democrats, doesn’t make them right, counter the Democrats.

There are precedents for a revote, Republicans argue in their court briefs. One such case, in 1974, resulted in a new election for an Adams County Commission seat after a recount turned around the outcome from election night. A trial court, backed later by the state Supreme Court, ruled that county elections officials didn’t take adequate steps to secure the ballots, and ordered a new race between Democrat Gordon Hays and Republican Kenny Foulkes. A new election was held in November 1975, and Foulkes, who had won the first election tally but lost the recount, was the winner; he replaced Hays and served the remaining three years of the term.

But the constitutional sections and state statutes that cover a gubernatorial race are different than the laws that deal with a county commissioner’s race, Democrats argue, and general election laws have changed since 1975. A race for governor would have to be held in a statewide general election, they say, which won’t happen until 2006 when half of the state Senate and all of the state House is up for election.