Election Results May be Delayed Until the Next Morning After the Election!
County Registrars Help Sound the Alarm!
By Brad Friedman on 1/30/2008, 11:38pm PT  

ALERT! We just read the headline (via RAW STORY) at California's Bay Area NBC affiliate, and we are terrified:

Huge Delay Expected In Calif. Super Tuesday Voting Results

"Huge delay"?! What? Why? How could it be? The first graf of the article said it all. My God...it's true...

SAN JOSE, Calif. --- California voters are unlikely to know the results of Tuesday's presidential primary election until the next morning, a spokeswoman for the California State Association of Counties (CSAC) said Wednesday.

"The next morning"? Are they insane?! Thankfully, California's County Registrars are getting the word out now before it's too late. And thankfully, we live in a country where the media are all too happy to help warn us about such impending tragedies! Now we understand why those Registrars have been on such an anti-Bowen (CA's Sec. of State) rampage since she put in place new requirements that would require Election Officials to do stuff like actually count paper ballots (albeit on machines) before announcing results, and other crazy notions like that.

We only hope the state and country can survive this ordeal!

The important warning from CSAC Executive Director Paul McIntosh is then echoed by a similar comment from the not-similarly-shameless-at-all, Steve Weir of CACEO:

“There are very few contests on the February ballot, which will help expedite the counting process,” said Steve Weir, Contra Costa County Clerk-Recorder and president of the California Association of Clerks and Election Officials. “However, we are still looking at early Wednesday morning before we’ll have our numbers ready. This does not bode well for the upcoming elections in June and November, when the number of contests will be substantially higher.”

Wednesday morning?! Jesus fucking christ! With so much of California's National Guard in Iraq, who will be able to calm the riots and panic in the streets?!!

But it's not just the North Bay area which must now be on Red Alert, according to the same NBC 11 report:

South Bay To Suffer Same Problem

Oh, Jesus...Say it isn't so!...The South Bay will "Suffer" as well?!...

Santa Clara County voters are unlikely to know the local results of Tuesday's presidential primary election until the next morning as well, a spokeswoman for the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters said Wednesday.

Traditionally, the registrar's office has almost all county ballots counted by midnight.

However, because of new state rules that limit the number of touch screen voting systems that can be used at polling places, it will be at least Wednesday morning before the county's election results are known, according to registrar's office spokeswoman Elma Rosas.

"Because we're moving from touch screen to paper ballots it is going to delay the process. We're estimating that we'll have most of the ballots counted by 6 a.m.," Rosas said.

"6 a.m."?! The morning after the election?! Thank God NBC 11 has given us ample warning, so we can prepare now to "suffer" this "huge delay" in the wake of the limited number of touch screen voting systems our voters get to use. And all for what?! Just so that we can try to count the votes accurately?! This is madness!

We're outraged, and The BRAD BLOG will begin the Recall Bowen Movement just as soon as this unparalleled crisis blows over, believe you us!

But lest you think only Bay Area California residents will be the ones forced to weather this hellstorm! As we reported earlier today, the Los Angeles Times warned us yesterday that:

In San Bernardino, a test run of paper ballots in November found that optical scanners could count only 10,000 votes per hour. That means it could take more than 17 hours, starting at 10 p.m., to handle the 175,000 votes expected, said Registrar Kari Verjil.

Jesus. We're not math experts, but by our calculations, the people of San Bernardino may have to until 3pm on Wednesday to know who won or lost! Are they kidding?!

As we urged in that previous report: For god's sake, please, people, send blankets, water. and other emergency disaster supplies to the people of San Bernardino, and the other residents certain to be affected in these disaster areas, ASAP! 17 hours without instant election results?! Oh, the humanity...

Please contact NBC 11 here immediately if you have any additional tips to help them advance their invaluable coverage of this crucial story in advance of Election Day.

We're all Californians now, people. We're all Californians now. United we stand...And God Bless America...

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