Add Nassau to List of Problems

Shirley N. King had a gut feeling there was something wrong with the recounted election results in Florida’s Nassau County, a low-slung coastal region just east of Georgia’s famous Okefenokee Swamp.

There was no proof. Just a sense, honed during King’s 28 years as Nassau County’s supervisor of elections, that the mandatory recount her staff conducted Nov. 8 was flawed somehow.

Despite her misgivings, Nassau County Atty. Mike Mullin said Monday, King accepted her staff’s recommendation and certified the recount totals, setting in motion a series of events that have added Nassau County to Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties as potential symbols of how not to run an election.

At issue in Nassau County is which of two counts should have been reported to Florida’s secretary of state: the election night results that had George W. Bush ahead, 16,404 to Al Gore’s 6,952, or the recount that, for reasons officials can’t explain, totaled about 200 fewer ballots than those initially tabulated.

That second, mechanical recount gave Bush 16,280 votes to Gore’s 6,879. According to county officials, the first vote gave Bush a net of 51 more votes than the second count. (Some media reports earlier had put the net gain at 52.)

Calling the county’s actions “inexplicable,” Gore campaign attorney David Boies on Sunday accused Nassau County elections officials of violating Florida laws by eventually reversing itself and submitting the initial election night returns.

The Gore campaign Monday asked Leon County Circuit Judge N. Sanders Sauls to bar Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris from awarding Florida’s 25 electoral votes to Bush until the conclusion of court challenges to election results in the counties.

King could not be reached Monday for comment.

Judy Tiner, Nassau County’s assistant supervisor of elections, said the confusion began after local officials completed their part of a mandatory statewide recount the day after the election.

The recount was required by law because the election was so close.

“After the figures and everything had been certified and sent to Tallahassee, some research was done on some of the totals and that found that about 200 ballots had evidently been left out of that count,” Tiner said.

Over the next few days, Mullin said, King became increasingly concerned about the difference in the totals and announced that she would seek an opinion from the secretary of state’s office on what to do.

Mullin said King was told that if she felt there was an error, she should take whatever steps she felt necessary to correct it. So last week, King notified Harris’ office that the Nassau County recount missed about 200 ballots. Mullin said word came back that the secretary of state would certify the initial election night results.

Officials for Harris’ office could not be reached Monday for comment.

On Friday, the three-member Nassau County canvassing board, which includes King, voted to certify those initial results, giving Bush those extra 51 votes.

Now, even that board vote has become a point of legal contention. One of the three original members of the canvassing board, Nassau County Commissioner Dave Howard, was on a family vacation and missed Friday’s meeting. He was replaced by another county commissioner, Marianne Marshall.

Gore’s attorneys say it was illegal under Florida law for Marshall to sit in on the board and vote.

Mullin said the canvassing board will decide Wednesday or Thursday what its next step will be.

“They will decide [whether] they want to participate in this legal battle . . . or take the position [that] we’ve done what we believe to be the right thing and let the courts decide,” Mullin said.

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Recount Math

Attorneys for Vice President Al Gore argue that George W. Bush’s official 537-vote lead in Florida is actually smaller and could be overcome. A look at the vote totals and Democratic arguments, which Republicans reject:

Certified Bush lead in Florida: 537

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Votes awarded Gore in Palm Beach County but rejected by the state, which said it could not accept incomplete returns: --215

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Votes awarded Gore in Miami-Dade County but never submitted to the state because the county decided to stop its manual recount: --157

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Ballots Gore attorneys argue should be subtracted from Bush’s total in Nassau County because county officials reverted to their election night count after a mandatory machine recount missed about 200 ballots. The election night total cost Gore 51 votes: --51

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Bush lead, which Gore attorneys argue they would surpass if the recount continues in Miami-Dade County, the state accepts amended ballots and if questionable ballots are rejected: 114

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Source: Times staff

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A Day in Court

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THE ISSUES

“Butterfly Ballots” (Palm Beach County)

Democrats charge the county’s “butterfly ballot” was confusing and caused some voters to mistakenly cast ballots for Pat Buchanan instead of Al Gore. They asked a Circuit Court judge to order a new election in the county.

WHAT THEY WANT

Gore’s lawyers asked the Florida Supreme Court to overrule the Circuit Court judge. The judge had said the Florida Constitution did not give him authority to order a new election.

WHAT’S NEXT

The Florida Supreme Court did not agree Monday to review the case. Instead, it gave attorneys until 5 p.m. today to submit written arguments on why it should or should not take the case.

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THE ISSUES

Absentee Ballots (Seminole County)

A Democratic Orlando-area attorney sued county election officials, saying they improperly allowed Republican Party operatives to correct more than 4,700 incomplete applications for absentee ballots.

WHAT THEY WANT

The suit asks that 17,000 absentee ballots in Seminole County be tossed out. If those ballots were eliminated, Bush’s statewide lead in Florida would disappear.

WHAT’S NEXT

The case was scheduled to go to trail Wednesday in Seminole County, but attorneys for both sides agreed to transfer it to Tallahassee. The case could go to trial this week.

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THE ISSUES

Stopped Recount (Miami-Dade County)

Gore attorneys argue Miami-Dade County election officials improperly halted a hand recount of votes.

WHAT THEY WANT

Gore attorneys want the Leon County Circuit Court to order Miami-Dade to complete the hand recount and compel the Florida secretary of state to accept the updated results.

WHAT’S NEXT

Trial date uncertain.

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THE ISSUES

Incomplete Recount (Palm Beach County)

Gore attorneys argue that the Florida secretary of state accept results of hand recounts in Palm Beach County. The secretary refused to accept the results, saying the county failed to meet a Sunday deadline to complete them.

WHAT THEY WANT

Gore attorneys ask the Leon County Circuit Court to compel the secretary of state to accept hand-count results from Palm Beach.

WHAT’S NEXT

Trial date uncertain

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THE ISSUES

Recount Tally (Nassau County)

County officials threw out results of a mechanical recount saying the results were somehow flawed and submitted election night results to the state instead. The election night results netted Bush 52 votes.

WHAT THEY WANT

Gore attorneys ask the Leon County Circuit Court to bar the state from certifying Nassau’s votes until the conclusion of court challenges to election results. Gore attorneys argue the results of the mechanical recount should be submitted to the state.

WHAT’S NEXT

Trial date uncertain

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THE ISSUES

Federal Appeal (U.S. Supreme Court)

Republicans argue the Florida Supreme Court overstepped its authority when it ordered the secretary of state to accept results from hand recounts past a state-mandated deadline.

WHAT THEY WANT

Bush attorneys ask the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the Florida high court’s decision.

WHAT’S NEXT

The U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments on the case Friday.