Lawsuits threaten another US election

NEW YORK - As the drama of a presidential vote recount in Florida played in every town and city in America, lawsuits challenging the results in one key county could lead to an unprecedented order for a new vote there.

Law professors specialising in constitutional and election laws say the cases filed in Florida are particularly compelling because the state's laws allow challenges to election results if there is evidence the wrong person, through irregularities, somehow received more votes.

There are at least two suits filed in state court by Palm Beach County voters who allege a confusing ballot caused them to mistakenly cast thousands of votes for Reform Party candidate Pat Buchanan instead of Vice-President Al Gore. The ballot used in Palm Beach County was the only design of its type used in Florida.

The 3400 votes cast for Buchanan in the county, were far more than he received in nearby counties. But these votes mattered in a race so close that the winner of the United States presidency hinges on a recount being conducted in the entire state. Fewer than 1800 votes separated Gore and Bush, and the winner will take Florida's crucial 25 electoral votes, giving him the 270 needed to gain the White House.

Gore said yesterday that he would back the legal challenges.

In addition, Democrats also say 19,000 votes in Palm Beach County were invalidated because the ballot design prompted voters to double-punch their cards, voting for both Gore and Buchanan.

Elizabeth Garrett, a professor at the University of Chicago Law School, said that Florida law allows the outcome of an election to be challenged if it can be shown that another person other than the real winner had been chosen.

She said the Palm Beach voters have alleged they mistakenly voted for the wrong person because of the ballot design. "They do not have to make allegations of fraud or that the confusion was intentional. It is not required by the statute.

"People can vote wrong all the time. But the question here was whether this was systematic and it appears that it was. It looks like something was seriously wrong."

"Lawrence Tribe, a professor at Harvard Law School said: "The only remedy that makes sense is to redo the election in the precincts where the ballots were confusing. A new election could be held quickly if the court acts quickly."

He said the Electoral College vote on December 18 could be delayed if a new election could not be held before then.

- REUTERS

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