BRAD BLOG: Candidates Nationwide Called Upon to Challenge Suspicious Elections

[emlev]

'If You Want Our Votes, We Want Your Pledge,' says new website launched today by Velvet Revolution

Election Integrity Advocates Ellen Brodsky and Clint Curtis first to sign on!

Velvet Revolution - co-founded by Brad Friedman (of The BRAD BLOG) - today launched its newest campaign at StandingForVoters.org, calling on candidates across the country to pledge to challenge elections when necessary.

"This election, let's make democracy the winner!" the Standing For Voters site proclaims. Readers of The BRAD BLOG know that's quite a stretch, that we're a long way from having a true democracy in this country. Yet challenges by candidates --- before, during and after the elections --- could be an important step in the right direction. In many situations, only candidates have standing to challenge elections.

StandingForVoters.org is primarily directed towards candidates themselves and serves to educate them about election integrity issues, types of election challenges, and recent history of candidates who challenged elections. Voters are encouraged to participate by finding candidates who will pledge; tips about how to do this are provided on the site, including:

• Print out this card (.pdf) and get it to every candidate you can reach, whether or not you plan to vote for them. Attend candidates' nights or other campaign activities. During the Q&A portion of the program, make a statement about the importance of election integrity and ask the candidates publicly if they will sign the Standing for Voters pledge.
  
• Call in to radio shows where candidates are being interviewed. Ask the candidates on the air to sign the pledge.
  
• Write a letter to the editor or an op-ed piece in the local newspaper urging candidates to pledge. (You can also encourage the paper only to endorse candidates who have made the pledge.)
  
• Visit candidates' websites and send them emails asking them to sign the pledge. Include a link to StandingForVoters.org.
  
• Talk to your local political clubs. Find out who has direct contact with candidates and enlist their help.
  
• Once one candidate for a particular office has signed on, call their opponents and ask them to match that pledge.

More tips

Read the whole post at The BRAD BLOG

And check out Standing For Voters!

[texpatriot2004]

1. K & R for the Brad Blog and for election integrity! Three cheers

for transparent and Democratic elections in the good old USA.

Thanks Brad for your continued dedication to this cause.

[Misskittycat]

2. Very needed. K&R

[Dr.Phool]

3. Clint Curtis went down to a major defeat in his primary today.

DLC and DCCC money bought that one.

On a brighter note, John Russell in the 5th district won a 3-way primary with 50.8% and will face Ginny Brown-Waite (R-Obnoxious) in November.

[emlev]

7. It's too soon to be sure about any election results...

...I'm not saying Clint Curtis won, just that when there are problems with an election, it often takes some time before the story gets out. Let's stand by and see what happens.

[elleng]

8. Florida's 24th:

"Democrat Suzanne Kosmas, a former state representative, took 72 percent of the primary vote to beat out 2006 House nominee Clint Curtis for the nomination to take on three-term Republican Rep. Tom Feeney for what is expected to be a highly competitive general election race.

Kosmas prevailed despite efforts by Feeney’s organization to kibitz in the Democratic primary campaign. The Republican incumbent’s campaign paid for automated phone messages delivered to district Democratic voters that promoted Curtis, whom Feeney easily bested in 2006, in part by arguing that he is a stronger opponent of the Iraq war than Kosmas. Feeney did so even though he supports Bush’s policy of maintaining a large U.S. military presence in Iraq.

Democrats believe Feeney’s connection to convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff — who surreptitiously paid for a golf trip the congressman took to Scotland several years ago — have made him vulnerable in his campaign for re-election. The national party as well as EMILY’s List, a political action committee that supports Democratic women candidates who favor abortion rights, have backed Kosmas’ candidacy.

But the incumbent, who easily beat a little-known primary challenger, maintains an edge in the Republican-leaning district. CQ Politics rates the race Leans Republican."

http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?docID=news-000002941318&cpage=3

[kster]

4. K&R..nt

[robinlynne]

5. FANTASTIC! Time to talk about the important part of the election!!

[bleever]

6. Or, we can let the votes be counted in the blackberry-filled rooms.

[Stevepol]

9. Wish I could give this 5M Recs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Stevepol]

10. Clint Curtis is a great patriot. Refused a million From Feeney and Yang

to shut up about the prototype to steal elections he built for Feeney.

I have no doubt Curtis's loss to Feeney earlier was manipulated. I'm not certain the manipulation was enough to change the outcome, but I think it's quite possible.

Curtis himself canvassed voters and got the evidence to show that he got more votes than the machine count indicated. The vote was definitely manipulated as any election that has any significance for the Repubs or that involves crooks like Feeney will be manipulated now. It's just too easy to do and so impossible to do anything about it.

But people like Curtis should be treasured, not minimized and shunted to one side.

[Freddie Stubbs]

11. Will Curtis be challenge his landslide loss in yesterday's primary?

:shrug:

[emlev]

12. Haven't spoken with him yet. n/t

[Kurovski]

13. K&R. (nt)

[diva77]

14. How will the cost of a recount be covered when a candidate challenges the result?

n/t

[emlev]

16. Velvet Revolution will help if it can, funds will need to be raised...

In some cases, candidates will have the money to do this.

[Kurovski]

15. Kick. (nt)

[DeeDeeNY]

17. Kick