Scott Powers
Gov. Rick Scott‘s Republican U.S. Senate campaign wants Broward County’s late-transmitted machine recount results to count in Florida’s U.S. Senate race.
Scott’s campaign recount attorney Tim Cerio has fired off a letter to Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner asking for confirmation that Detzner will accept the Broward County numbers even though they arrived after Thursday’s 3 p.m. deadline.
That machine recount, which Broward County Supervisor of Elections Brenda Snipes and the Broward canvassing board proclaimed before Thursday’s deadline but did not transmit before that deadline, tallied 469,949 votes for Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson and 210,513 for Scott.
That recount actually resulted in a boost for Scott of 779 votes in the margin between them.
So Scott’s team wants that recount to count, even though Snipes missed the filing deadline by two minutes.
Cerio wrote to Detzner late Thursday arguing that the Broward canvassing board finished its work around 2:45 p.m. and then announced its results, and adjourned at 2:50 p.m. So any trouble the office had transmitting the data to Tallahassee should be irrelevant because the results became official when the board adjourned.
“The law is very clear,” Cerio wrote. “When a canvassing board completes a recount process by the statutory deadline, as it did today in a public meeting in Broward County, those results are valid. Any administrative failure after it finishes is irrelevant to whether or not the canvassing board completed its process.”
The election has moved to the hand recount phase. However, if Broward cannot finish that recount on time, then Broward’s final numbers will be whichever were the last received by the Secretary of State’s Office. Cerio wants to make sure those are Thursday’s numbers, not last Sunday’s numbers.
“I write to confirm that you intend to rely on the second unofficial results for Broward County, which were announced by the Broward County Canvassing Board at approximately 2:50 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 15, 2018,” Cerio wrote.
4 comments
C Walsh
November 16, 2018 at 11:11 am
Gov. Scott doth protest too much, methinks. You know damn well if the votes for Nelson increased Scott would be screaming “Bloody Murder” at such a request.
mck
November 16, 2018 at 11:34 am
Likewise, Nelson has kicked Broward to the curb about this administrative deadline faux pas, despite having sued, and screamed bloody murder, to extend the recount due dates; additionally, he has sued to make sure every vote is counted and to wave signature laws. And Gillum refuses to leave the race, because he demands all votes must be counted, and claims tens of thousands of votes remain to be counted without providing any evidence (but this is of course solely for his Presidential run in 2020).
The validity of these votes is not in question, but the Democrats wish to disenfranchise some 700 odd voters for Brenda Snipes idocracy. Do you not hear your hyper-partisan hypocrisy? Your attitude, Nelson’s attititude, Gillum’s attitude all give credence to the claim that this has nothing to do with fairness and everything to do with sour grapes.
The Democrats silence on the disenfranchisement of 700 voters here is deafening.
All of you, Republicans and Democrats alike, are making me despise you more and more everyday, and make me prouder by the day that I am NPA.
FWIW Gillum is not doing himself any favors with his absurd obstinacy. I live in Broward. The majority of Democrats here did not vote for him in the primary. Many had never heard of him. They have no love for him and he is beginning to embarass him.
Republicans will turn out in droves to vote against him out of revenge should the Democrats make him their candidate in 2020, though I do not think they will. All I hear is Beto.
Fred Bar
November 16, 2018 at 5:18 pm
Aren’t the Democrats the ones crying that “Every vote counts?” No matter the delay? What’s up, you did not like the results? It was the opposite of what you expected? Who is the hypocrite now?
On the other hand, lets not forget what happened in 2000’s Presidential Election and the showcasing of Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade political mischief and/or utter incompetence and/or criminal behavior. The only way to stop this is by going immediately to court and suing on the merits, that is, the rules which include timeliness. Obviously for a Progressive, History is a subject better left ignored.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000_United_States_presidential_election_recount_in_Florida
C Walsh
November 16, 2018 at 1:03 pm
Correctional officer – Cute.
So funny how anonymous people feel emboldened to say stupid things
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