Ore. to recount ballots in select races
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — To be sure election results are accurate, Oregon counties plan to count ballots by hand in randomly selected races following Tuesday's general election.
The extra count is part of a new measure to ensure accuracy in elections and is required by state legislation passed in 2007.
"We have many checks that we make on the scanners in the system," said Don Hamilton, spokesman for the Oregon Secretary of State's office. "This is simply a different precaution."
Only a few precincts in a given race will have recounts, he said, and the count will only determine if optical scanners count votes correctly.
Almost all Oregon counties count ballots using the same type of optical scanner that generates a paper trail for each vote.
"We want to be absolutely certain that our count is accurate," Hamilton said.
Many county elections officials say the recount adds little to the protections already in place, and creates extra work at a time when they are expected to meet other deadlines.
It can also be more difficult to get an accurate hand count than an accurate machine count, said Annette Newingham, Lane County elections supervisor.
"I would say that hand-counting may have more flaws," she said. "We're human; we make mistakes."
The extra count is mainly a result of suspicions that stem from the 2000 presidential race when many began to question the accuracy of ballot-counting machines, she said.
A three-member committee appointed by Secretary of State Bill Bradbury will oversee the Oregon recount. The committee includes former Oregon Supreme Court Justice Susan Leeson, former Oregon House Speaker Lynn Lundquist and retired Oregon State University statistics professor David Thomas.
On Wednesday morning, the committee will draw random precincts and races from a rolling drum, similar to one used in lottery and bingo games.
Counties will know by 5 p.m. which races and precincts must be counted by hand, and they will have to count a minimum of 3 percent and a maximum of 10 percent of their precincts involving at least three races.
The counts will be done only after county clerks have certified final election results, which must be done by Nov. 24.
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press.
