Ballot Confusion in Florida

* The scoffing article, “Why Drop the Electoral College? Just Weed Out the Dumb Voters,” by Kathleen Parker (Commentary, Nov. 13) misses the point. There are dumb Republicans and there are dumb Democrats. The design of the butterfly ballot was crystal clear for the dumb Republicans and a little challenging for other voters. Whether accidentally or not, the butterfly ballot was biased in favor of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney. Where it was used, there should be a revote.

JOHN H. RANDOLPH

Oxnard

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Ballots should be simplified, foolproof and standard. Computerized systems will do this, but in the short term, paper ballots should be standardized so all punch holes are on the right. The large number of voided ballots in Palm Beach County in two consecutive elections proves that tens of thousands of people had their voices silenced due to confusion over ballot format. As a society, we should bend over backward to make voting easy for all. Where there is obvious evidence of mass confusion, democracy isn’t served by the sneers of the elite.

RUSS KINGSTON

Los Angeles

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James A. Baker III said the fight over Florida is “a black mark on our democracy” (Nov. 13). He’s wrong. It’s a black mark on stupidity. I’ve voted in every election since 1942 and never knew that we did not have a uniform ballot in every state for the presidential election. Both parties are polarizing the nation. Republicans of good faith should understand the Democrats’ misery in seeing their candidate lose to a stupid ballot design; Democrats should be cautious about setting a dangerous precedent of heralding that ignorance of the ballot is an excuse.

HILDA ROLFE

Los Angeles

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I am a senior citizen. I have been voting for over 50 years. If my ballot follows the rules, count it. If my ballot does not follow the rules, throw it out. Anyone trying to treat seniors differently is messing with our dignity. Anyone trying to interpret or tamper with our ballot is blatantly messing with our civil rights.

HARVEY STUMP

Thousand Oaks

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At the March primary I discovered a somewhat similar situation to Florida’s present snafu. Stepping into a booth I found the voting punch was missing the small sharp needle needed to press through the card. After calling the precinct supervisor’s attention to the problem, the booth was closed while they hunted for a replacement punch, and I entered another booth. But there’s no telling how many voters who preceded me may have failed to notice and simply kept on pressing down throughout the entire ballot, not realizing the card was not being punched and their vote was not being recorded.

LOYOLA M. BANNON

Huntington Park

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If in a criminal case a faulty verdict form caused a foreman to mistakenly check the box marked “guilty,” no judge in America would let that conviction stand. Why should an American voting for the president of the United States be treated any differently?

ROBERT L. SHAPIRO

Los Angeles

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I don’t think a hand count of the Florida ballots is a problem as long as each and every county is recounted the same way.

ARDEN ACORD

La Crescenta

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Regarding whether to revote or not in Florida: What is saddest about this is that it so vividly demonstrates how our sense of fairness depends on the outcome we desire.

ANDREW LEWICKY

Los Angeles

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For those who say that voters are turned of by name-calling, personal attacks and fierce bickering by our politicians in Washington, let me say that this just mirrors the mood of the public. The proof of this is a visit to a political chat room on the Internet.

The foul language, excessive partisanship and lack of intelligent discussion in these chat rooms makes me wonder if anything or anybody can heal our country. Certainly the next president, whoever he is, will not be able to bring this country together.

LEON M. SALTER

Los Angeles

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We can ill afford a president picked by a flawed election process. We have no other choice but to let the affected voters recast their ballot. If we don’t, the integrity of Bush will be tarnished from day one and we will hear the endless jabber about this year’s elections for years to come.

HERMANN BACHOFNER

Beverly Hills

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Yes, we need to get rid of the electoral college. But we also need another change: If no candidate gets at least 50% of the national total vote, a runoff is held between the top two vote-getters. This prevents a third-party candidate from stealing the election. The new president would be elected by a true majority.

GEORGE ARMERDING

Irvine

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Throughout his presidential campaign, Gov. Bush claimed in his TV ads that the difference between him and Vice President Al Gore was that Bush “trusted people.” But Bush went to court to prevent people from counting votes in Florida. Now we know the truth: Bush trusts machines; Gore’s the one who trust people.

JONATHAN BOURNE

Santa Monica

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Gore wants to win the presidency in the worst way--even if it is the worst way. Had the Florida results been reversed, he wouldn’t have cared one hoot about the will of the people or righting perceived wrongs. With enough ballot finagling and second-guessing about voters’ intentions, Gore may yet snatch victory from the slack jaws of defeat.

DORIS O’BRIEN

Vandenberg Village

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Republicans are trying to scare us by saying, “What if we ask for recounts everywhere?” Let’s not be afraid--let’s have recounts everywhere that the vote was close! Don’t we want our president to be elected on the basis of truth and justice? I’d love to see Gore at the head of our country, but even more I want the person in the Oval Office to be there with a clear national conscience.

TAMAR FRANKIEL

Los Angeles

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Constitutional crisis? There are no people rioting in the streets. There are no mobs climbing the ramparts. Do you still go to work or school in the morning? Do you still love your family? Do you still eat meals, go to the movies, watch television? Doesn’t look like a constitutional crisis to me.

ROBERT L. FOX

Los Angeles

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Blaming others for their own mistakes, threatening long legal battles, gridlock, conspiracy theories, partisanship, potential constitutional crisis. Haven’t we seen it all before? Am I the only one who found it a fitting end to Bill Clinton’s presidency?

JASMINE KUNG

Irvine

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I say the Democrats should give the Republicans a taste of their own medicine and challenge the Florida results for as long as it takes. It was all right for the Republicans to tie up the nation for a year with the impeachment, so now it can be the Democrats’ turn. Who should be president during this time, you ask? Well, Clinton is just fine with me!

ERIC SOLOMON

Woodland Hills

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Here’s an election solution: Call it a “tie.” Joseph Lieberman goes back to being a senator from Connecticut. Cheney retires and collects his millions from Halliburton. Bush becomes president with Gore as his VP. After two years, Gore ascends to the presidency with Bush as VP. The American people get to see whether Bush can bring a new spirit of cooperation to Washington and whether Gore will fight for all Americans. Whoever is perceived as being the more successful will likely be rewarded with four “more” years.

ROGER MURPHY

Laguna Beach