Recount Fight Still On; Candidates Plan To File Notice of Appeal
By Barry Massey
The Associated Press
SANTA FE— Green and Libertarian presidential candidates are continuing
their legal fight for a ballot recount in New Mexico and plan to file a
notice of appeal today with the state Court of Appeals. Lawyers for
Green Party candidate David Cobb and Libertarian candidate Michael
Badnarik said they will ask the court to order a recount of presidential
ballots in the Nov. 2 general election. However, it potentially
could take weeks or even months for the Appeals Court to issue a
decision.
They are appealing a ruling against them by
state District Judge Carol Vigil in Santa Fe. The candidates are
fighting a decision by the state Canvassing Board to charge them in
advance the full cost of a statewide recount— an estimated $1.4
million. They have paid the state a deposit of $114,400 and contend
that's all state law initially requires to obtain a statewide recount.
The candidates acknowledge they must later pay the full costs of the
recount if it doesn't change the outcome of the presidential race.
President Bush defeated Democrat John Kerry in New Mexico by nearly
6,000 votes and a recount isn't expected to change Bush's win. But Cobb
and Badnarik want a recount to focus on potential voting problems in New
Mexico. Lowell Finley, a lawyer for the candidates, said Tuesday the
canvassing board has failed to follow the law by demanding full payment
in advance. He contends the Canvassing Board— made up of the
governor, the secretary of state and the chief justice of the Supreme
Court— must order a recount once candidates pay an initial deposit
based on the number of voting machines and precincts involved. The
state Supreme Court last week without explanation denied the candidates'
emergency request to order an immediate recount of votes. The
candidates went to the Supreme Court with an expedited lawsuit rather
than taking the traditional but slower approach of going to the Court of
Appeals after losing in district court. Finley said in a telephone
interview the candidates will ask the Appeals Court to issue a stay to
prevent county clerks from clearing election returns from voting
machines while the legal challenge is pending in the weeks or months
ahead. Filing a notice of appeal should be enough to preserve vote
tallies statewide for a recount, according to Finley.
http://www.abqjournal.com/elex/279977elex12-29-04.htmalso:
URL for Green recount reports for Ohio counties