Democrat Myths on Ohio's 2004 Election

The Democratic National Committee released its "investigation" of Ohio's 2004 election process on Wednesday, and it will be filed promptly under Fiction.  It's packed with myths and conspiracy theories that have long since been disproven and rejected.  Let's review:

MYTH #1:  More Than One-Quarter Of Ohio Voters Had Problems At The Polls.

FACT:  With Over 5.7 Million Votes Cast In The 2004 Election, More Voters Participated In This Election Than Any Other Election In Ohio History.  Election Officials And Leading News Organizations Agree: The Election Went Smoothly.

• Akron Beacon Journal: “Not One Shred Of Evidence Has Been Presented To Show That Ohio’s Strictly Bipartisan System Of Running Elections Was Manipulated. There Isn’t Any.” (Editorial, “Still Chasing Conspiracies,” Akron Beacon Journal, 12/24/04)

• The Columbus Dispatch: “Ohio’s Effort Was Pretty Close To The Mark. The Recount Proved It.” (Editorial, “Ohio’s Validation,” The Columbus Dispatch, 1/4/05)

• Ben Marrison, Editor Of The Columbus Dispatch: “We Have Written A Lot About It, But We Have Found Very Little Evidence That Anything Has Happened In The Election That Didn’t Happen In Every Other [Ohio] Election … Every Rock We Have Turned Over, We’ve Found Nothing.” (Joe Strupp, “Ohio Papers Getting Nowhere On Vote Fraud Allegations,” Editor & Publisher, 12/3/04)

• “The Final Results Were Determined In A Precinct-By-Precinct Audit By Ohio’s 88 Bipartisan County Election Boards That Included The Provisional Ballots, Overseas Absentee Ballots, And Absentee Ballots That Arrived At Election Boards On Nov. 2.” (James Drew Blade, “Blackwell Certifies Bush As Ohio Victor By 118,775 Votes,” Toledo Blade, 12/7/04)

MYTH #2: There Was Widespread Fraud And Intimidation And There Is Reason To Question The Integrity Of Ohio Elections.

FACT:  There Is No Evidence Of Voter Fraud In Ohio’s 2004 Election.  Democrats Had Previously Said No Voter Fraud Had Occurred.

• A Previous Study Revealed Only 4 Votes Out Of More Than 9 Million Were Fraudulent. “Of 9,078,728 votes cast in Ohio in 2002 and 2004, only four were fraudulent, according to a new review by a pair of voter advocacy groups. The review’s sponsors – The Coalition On Homelessness And Housing In Ohio and The League Of Women Voters – contended Tuesday that rampant voter fraud in Ohio is a myth that is being used to impose new restrictions on voters in future elections.” (Julie Carr Smyth, “Review: Rampant Voter Fraud A Myth,” The [Cleveland] Plain Dealer, 6/15/05)

• DNC Chairman Terry McAuliffe: “[Overall The Election Results Are] Undisputed.” (Carl Weiser, “For Some, Ohio Still Is Not Decided,” The Cincinnati Enquirer, 11/13/04)

• Kerry Ohio Counsel Dan Hoffheimer Found No Voter Fraud In Ohio. “[Kerry-Edwards Chief Ohio Counsel Daniel J.] Hoffheimer emphasized that the ‘effort is not in any way intended to overturn George Bush’s victory in Ohio, and we do not expect to find a pattern of voter fraud. Rather, the Kerry-Edwards legal team’s intention is to assure that provisional, absentee, overseas and regular ballots are counted in accordance with federal and Ohio law. In that way the final, official count will be as accurate and honest as is humanly possible, given the serious limitations imposed by Ohio’s antiquated election laws.’” (Henry Weinstein and Ralph Vartabedian, “Looking For Voter Reform, Groups Keep Eyes On Ohio,” Los Angeles Times, 11/13/04)

• Hoffheimer: “None Of These Problems (In Ohio) So Far Adds Up To Conspiracy Or Fraud Or Enough Votes To Change The Outcome …” (Mark Niquette, “Kerry’s Supporters Continue Challenge,” The Columbus Dispatch, 1/4/05)

• Hoffheimer: “No Evidence Of Confirmed Fraud [In Ohio].” (Jules Witcover, Op-Ed, “Recount In Ohio,” The Baltimore Sun, 11/26/04)

• Executive Director Of The Coalition On Homelessness And Housing In Ohio, Bill Faith: “There Is No Evidence Of Massive Voter Fraud In Ohio.” (Jim Siegel, “Voters Soon May Have To Show ID,” The Columbus Dispatch, 6/15/05)

• Michigan Democrat Party Chair Mark Brewer: “I Have Not Seen Any Evidence That There Was Fraud [In States Like Ohio].” (MSNBC’s “Hardball,” 11/30/04)

MYTH #3: In Franklin County (Columbus And Surrounding Cities), Where Voters Reported Waiting In Long Lines, There Were Proportionally Fewer Voting Machines In Minority Neighborhoods.

FACT:  The Bipartisan Election Board In Franklin County Allocates Voting Machines Based On Statistical Data Such As Voter Registration And Turnout History.  Race Is Not A Factor In Determining Voter Machine Allocation.

• Franklin County Board Of Elections:  “Accusations Have Been Made That Partisanship Or Bigotry Played A Role In Voting Machine Allocation. This Is Untrue And Baseless.” (Franklin County Board Of Elections Report, “Election 2004: A Report To The Community,” http://www.electionline.org, Accessed 6/20/05)

• Franklin County Board Of Elections:  “Starting With Two Machines Per Precinct As The Baseline, Or 1,576 Machines, Staff Began Allocating The Remaining 1,165 Initially Available Machines Based Upon Active Voters And The Other Indicators. Because The Number Of Voting Machines Available For Use Was Fixed, Staff Had To Continually Increase The Threshold Of Active Registered Voters Required For Adding A Machine, Until All Of the 2,741 Initially Available Machines Were Allocated. (Franklin County Board Of Elections Report, “Election 2004: A Report To The Community,” http://www.electionline.org, Accessed 6/20/05)

MYTH #4: Lawyers, Law Students And Other Election Challengers Intimidated And Mislead Voters At Voting Precincts.

FACT:  Ohio’s Closely Watched Election Helped To Make Sure Every Legal Vote Counted And Prevented Widespread Voter Fraud.

• According To The Non-Partisan Election Reform Information Project Website:  “In Ohio, However, It Was The Absence Of Challengers That Was The Biggest News. State Republicans Fought In Court To Open The Polls To Challengers—Ultimately Succeeding In The Wee Hours Of The Morning On Election Day—But Challengers Largely Failed To Appear In The Numbers Some Had Predicted.” (Election Online Website, “Briefing: The 2004 Election,” www.electiononline.org, Accessed 6/21/05)

• Officials Investigated ACT “For Hundreds Of Suspicious Registration Forms And Absentee Ballot Requests.” (Joe Mahr, “Voter Fraud Case Traced To Volunteer,” The [Toledo] Blade, 10/19/04)

• Fraudulent Cards Were Submitted By NAACP Voter Fund, Worker Paid Crack Cocaine In Exchange For His Efforts. (“Man Arrested After Voter Forms Turned In For Mary Poppins, Michael Jordan, Ohio Officials Say,” The Associated Press, 10/19/04)

• “Elections Officials Knew Something Was Wrong When They Got Voter Registration Cards For Mary Poppins, Dick Tracy, Michael Jordan And George Foreman.” (“Man Arrested After Voter Forms Turned In For Mary Poppins, Michael Jordan, Ohio Officials Say,” The Associated Press, 10/19/04)

• Misleading Phone Calls Were Made To Republican Voters Telling Them Incorrect Directions To Their Polling Places And That They Were Required To Bring Multiple Forms Of Identification To The Polling Place In Order To Vote. (Dana Wilson, “Allegations Of Misleading Calls,” The Columbus Dispatch, 11/4/04)

• “The Lawyers Who Contested The Presidential Election In Ohio Last Fall Will Not Be Punished For Doing So, The Chief Justice Of The Ohio Supreme Court Ruled Yesterday. Critics Argued The Challenge Was Frivolous, But Although Thomas J. Moyer Said That The Lawyers’ Assertions Of Election Fraud Were ‘At Best, Highly Improbable’ And ‘Devoid Of Logic,’ He Rejected A Request For Sanctions Because The Lawyers Dismissed Their Case Before Trial.” (Mark Niquette, “Lawyers Who Challenged '04 Election Won’t Be Sanctioned,” Columbus Dispatch, 5/20/05)

MYTH #5: Many Young People Had Hassles Voting And There Were Various Problems Encountered By Voters At The Polls Vary According To Age, Wealth, Race, Gender And Neighborhood.   

FACT: Despite Massive Turnout, Democrats, Republicans And Third Parties All Agreed Election Day Went Smoothly In Ohio. 

• Ohio Democratic Party Spokesman Dan Trevas: “Statewide, ‘You Didn’t Hear About Problems With Mass Challenges Of Voters’ Rights To Cast Ballots Because Of Registration Problems, Trevas Said, ‘So It Wasn’t What We Expected.’” (Tom Beyerlein and Mara Lee, “Heavy Turnout Creates Lines, But Process Generally Smooth,” Dayton Daily News, 11/3/04)

• Dayton Daily News: “Despite The Massive Turnout And Election-Related Litigation That Continued To Swirl Through The Day, Election Officials Said Polling Generally Went Smoothly In Battleground Ohio.” (Tom Beyerlein and Mara Lee, “Heavy Turnout Creates Lines, But Process Generally Smooth,” Dayton Daily News, 11/3/04)

• “‘By And Large We’ve Had An Outstanding Election,’ Said Carlo Loparo, Spokesman For Ohio Secretary Of State J. Kenneth Blackwell.” (Tom Beyerlein and Mara Lee, “Heavy Turnout Creates Lines, But Process Generally Smooth,” Dayton Daily News, 11/3/04)

• “‘I Would Say [The Conspiracy Theories Are] Unprecedented,’ Said Ned Foley, Director Of The Election Law Program At Ohio State University. ‘It’s Taken On A Life Of Its Own. And The Fight Is Going On Even When Kerry Said, “No, It’s Not There.” People Were Just Not Ready To Give Up.’” (Bill Lubinger, “Conspiracy Theories On Ohio Vote Refuse To Die,” The [Cleveland] Plain Dealer, 12/5/05)

MYTH #6: African Americans Were Disproportionately Affected By Voting Problems, Taking Away Democratic Votes.

FACT:  African American Support For President Bush Was A Key Factor In His Ohio Victory. 

• “Bush Nearly Doubled The Support He Got From Black Voters In 2004 In The Crucial Battleground State Of Ohio. That Helped Tip The White House To Him.” (Earl O. Hutchinson, “Black Evangelicals Conspicuously Quiet in Schiavo Debate,” Capital Outlook, 3/31/05)

• “President Bush Won 11% Of The Black Vote In The 2004 Presidential Election … He Got 16% Of The Black Vote In Ohio, Which Helped Secure His Victory In That State … Bush Had Drawn 9% Of The African American Vote, Both In Ohio And Nationwide, In 2000.” (Peter Wallsten, “GOP Forms Panel to Draw More Blacks Into Tent,” Los Angeles Times, 3/10/05)

MYTH #7: The Number Of Provisional Ballots Cast Was Extremely High, Raising Questions About Voter Registration And Possible Disenfranchisement.

FACT:  Ohio’s Provisional Ballot System Ensured More Voters Had Their Votes Count. 

• Ohio’s Provisional Ballot System Has Existed For More Than Twenty Years: “Ohio’s [Provisional Ballot] Law Was Enacted In The Late 1980s To Accommodate Voters Who Had Moved Or Changed Their Names And Not Updated Their Registration …” (Mark Niquette, “Judge Blasts Blackwell,” The Columbus Dispatch, 10/21/04)

• Ohio Ranks 4th In The United States For Percentage Of Total Provisional Ballots Cast Counted. (ElectionOnline.org Website, “Solution Or Problem? Provisional Ballots In 2004,” www.elecitononline.org, Accessed 6/20/05)

• 78% (Or 123,548) Of Ohio’s 158,642 Provisional Votes Cast Were Counted. (ElectionOnline.org Website, “Solution Or Problem? Provisional Ballots In 2004,” www.elecitononline.org, Accessed 6/20/05)

• Ohio Ranks 16 States Ahead Of Pennsylvania, In Which Only 49% (Or 26,092) Of Pennsylvania’s 53, 698 Provisional Votes Cast Were Counted. (ElectionOnline.org Website, “Solution Or Problem? Provisional Ballots In 2004,” www.elecitononline.org, Accessed 6/20/05)

• Ohio Ranks 10 States Ahead Of Michigan, In Which Only 58% (Or 3,277) Of Michigan’s 5,610 Provisional Votes Cast Were Counted. (ElectionOnline.org Website, “Solution Or Problem? Provisional Ballots In 2004,” www.elecitononline.org, Accessed 6/20/05)