Federal Judge Refuses to Boot Overseas Ballots

A federal judge refused Saturday to throw out about 2,400 overseas ballots, most of them cast by military personnel, that were received up to 10 days after the Nov. 7 election.

The decision was immediately appealed to the U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, said Roger Bernstein, a lawyer representing six of 13 individual Democratic voters who brought the suit. He said a request had been made for oral argument Monday.

Republican George W. Bush received 1,575 votes among the contested ballots, compared with 836 for Democrat Al Gore. The difference would be more than enough to change the outcome of the election.

The suit claimed that state and federal laws as well as the U.S. Constitution require all ballots to be received by the close of the polls on election day and provide no exception.

Florida’s administrative code, however, requires election officials to count ballots mailed on or before election day as long as they are received within 10 days after the election.

U.S. District Judge Maurice Paul found the 10-day rule should be considered the equivalent of a federal court order, although it was adopted as part of a consent decree between the state and federal governments rather than a court order.

Although the Florida Legislature failed to put the extension in law, it “was fully involved in attempting to enact statutes to satisfy the federal decree.”

Paul also noted federal officials have known Florida and seven other states allow the postelection acceptance of ballots and yet have sued none of them.