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Friday, September 26, 2008

Judge Rules Republicans Can Cloak Identity on Ballots

posted by on September 26 at 14:11 PM

Dino Rossi and other Republicans may list “GOP” as their party preference on general-election ballots, King County Superior Court Judge Richard Eadie announced this morning. Democrats had sued the Washington Secretary of State, which oversees elections, requesting an emergency order to stop printing ballots because the GOP label was deceptive.

A poll by Elway Research in June found that 25 percent of the state’s voters didn’t know GOP means Republican. And more recently the opinion research firm reported that Rossi gained 6 percent when he used the “GOP” label instead of “Republican.”

“They are trying to steal the fucking election,” says Dwight Pelz, chair for the Washington State Democratic Party. He says that in addition to Rossi, 22 legislative candidates have filed this year using the GOP label, which obscures their political leanings and benefits Republicans. “We find that when we identify candidates as Democrats, they get more votes.” The Republican name “is toxic,” says Pelz.

Eadie ruled that the “GOP” and other non-traditional party preferences could remain mostly for logistical reasons. Revising ballots would burden county elections offices and potentially disrupt the election because there are only about 40 days remaining until polls close.

Dave Ammons, a spokesman for the Washington Secretary of State, says King County has already printed 200,000 ballots and other counties have have already mailed military and oversees ballots. “In a sense, the election is underway already,” he says. He also says the judge decided labels on ballots must remain consistent with those on ballots in the primary election in August.

Since courts struck down Washington’s blanket primary, which forwarded one candidate from each leading party to the general election, and the state implemented a top-two primary system, candidates can list their party preference any way they like. Sam Reed, Secretary of State, said in a statement today, “This ruling again underscores that the new system is driven by and for the voters, not the political parties, and we couldn’t be happier with the outcome,”

But the “new system” clearly benefits Republicans. The state Washington State Republican Party—which doesn’t call itself the GOP party, ahem—even joined the state’s legal defense.

Pelz says state Democrats will go to the legislature in the 2009 session to “try to get them to close this loophole of deception.” If that fails, he says, the they will sue the state again next year.

RSS icon Comments

1

Then educate the voters. Send out fliers with the other info that states clearly "GOP means Republican."

Posted by Vince | September 26, 2008 2:14 PM
2

Damn, and I was going to run as a whig in the next cycle.

This seems like a tempest in a teapot--even if someone is so out of the loop that they don't know that GOP = Republican, it seems unlikely that alone would "trick" them into not voting Gregoire.

Posted by Westside forever | September 26, 2008 2:18 PM
3

GOP is an abbreviation, but it's hardly obscure. How dumb does Pelz think voters are?

Posted by joykiller | September 26, 2008 2:20 PM
4

1. Go to your polling place early.
2. Vote.
3. Stand outside the rest of the day with a sign that says "GOP MEANS REPUBLICAN".

Posted by Dr. Savage Mudede | September 26, 2008 2:22 PM
5

#4, I wonder if you'd get hassled for electioneering within X feet of a polling place?

The Republican brand is so toxic, just informing voters that someone on the ballot is a Republican might be considering an act of campaigning against them.

Posted by w7ngman | September 26, 2008 2:38 PM
6

That should be Gregoire's next ad: Dino Rossi is a Republican. At the very least it would be more effective than that stupid stem cell ad.

Posted by keshmeshi | September 26, 2008 2:40 PM
7

@3: Apparently, 6% of them are that dumb.

Posted by Greg | September 26, 2008 2:41 PM
8

Gregoire has ads out?

Posted by JC | September 26, 2008 2:41 PM
9

So all ads from now on refer to the "GOP republican(s) candidate(s). Or start ads stating outlining your stance against Dino Rossi and his platform of Goat Oral Pleasure.

Posted by Banna | September 26, 2008 2:46 PM
10

So all ads from now on refer to the "GOP republican(s) candidate(s). Or start ads stating outlining your stance against Dino Rossi and his platform of Goat Oral Pleasure.

Posted by Banna | September 26, 2008 2:51 PM
11

Pelz says "Democrats: we is the party of dumb voters."

Posted by David Wright | September 26, 2008 2:56 PM
12

@ 3 & 11) This is based on polling data. Follow the links for the methodology. The confusion is not among confused Democrats--as Pelz says, Democrats are drawn to Democrats--but the misled (dumb folk) are independent or undecided voters who are fooled by the "GOP" tag.

Posted by Dominic Holden | September 26, 2008 3:01 PM
13

Well, it's a Grand Old Party, after all! Complete with strippers and booze, I'm assuming.

Posted by laterite | September 26, 2008 3:08 PM
14

Can we do something about Pelz? why wasn't this an issue back before the primary? Why is Gregoire struggling? Why is the Dem Atty. General candidate MIA? Why does the GOP/Repug Lands Commissioner even have a chance after revealed as a serial groper and his laize faire logging policy caused the floods in SW Washington last winter? Why isn't the cost of those floods topic #1 whenever the state budget is debated?

Did Pelz et al think they were going to just coast on Obama's coattails? I keep getting emails from his office for Obama, not state offices.

Posted by La Mareada | September 26, 2008 3:38 PM
15

Pelz and/or Gregoire need to come out with an ad explaining that GOP = Republican. Do it quick & do it frequently. I was shocked that 25% of people don't know what GOP means, but when I expressed my shock to my husband he said, "What's GOP?"

Posted by REM | September 26, 2008 4:30 PM
16

#14, you have hit the jackpot. Everyone who gives money or time or votes to state Democrats should be asking, "What the fuck, guys?" Repeatedly.

Posted by Greg | September 26, 2008 4:31 PM
17

wouldn't gregoire be better served by dropping about half of her ad budget into 15 second spots that said, "gop means republican. i repeat. gop means republican"? god knows it be better than most of the ads she's run until now.

Posted by andy pant | September 26, 2008 5:07 PM
18

Who cares? Let him say that he's affiliated with the Party of Floyd.

The less power the parties have, the better. I've never understood why the top-two primary is bad.

Posted by Lee Gibson | September 26, 2008 7:58 PM
19

@6 & 17 She (or her supporters) has (have) already run adds saying Dino is George Bush, would saying he is a Republican be any more effective?

Speaking of misleading ballot titles, who is this macho sounding "Chris"? Wikipedia says; "Gregoire, born Christine O'Grady,"

BTW, Wikipedia also says Dino's spouse is named Terry.

Posted by Epimetheus | September 26, 2008 8:17 PM
20

ever since the new top 2 primary happened and i saw the ballots i have thought that it would be good for someone to register sites like:

www.gopequalsrepublican.com
www.gopmeansrepublican.com

etc etc etc....as far as i can see they're still available.....

Posted by jezbian | September 26, 2008 10:46 PM

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