After a statewide recount, gubernatorial candidate Dino Rossi led Christine Gregoire by 42 votes out of more than 2.8 million cast. That, Gregoire told her supporters last week, “is a tied race.”
Actually, no. It’s a remarkably close race, but not a tie.
After the secretary of state certifies the recount results – that could happen today – Gregoire and the Democratic Party will have 72 hours to request a manual recount at the party’s expense. Speculation is that manual recounts will be sought only in areas that Gregoire won handily, such as Seattle. The hope would be that she would make up the 42-vote deficit to Republican Rossi, forcing taxpayers to foot the bill for a statewide manual recount.
It’s a shot in the dark, and, as the term implies, a reckless one. Gregoire would better serve the citizens of Washington by standing down and preventing a damaging legal fight. Such statesmanship would be in keeping with the integrity she has demonstrated in 12 years as the state’s attorney general.
One thing is virtually certain in a statewide recount: the vote totals will change slightly. Counting votes on a large scale, whether by machine or the human hand, is subject to error. In a race as close as this one, the margin of error is magnified. There is no way to eliminate it completely.
Suppose a recount of King County gives Gregoire the lead, sparking a statewide recount. Will the losing side be satisfied with the result? Most likely, a legal circus would ensue, rekindling memories of the 2000 Florida fiasco. An election should not come down to which side has the better lawyers or draws the more sympathetic judges.
More importantly, a barrage of litigation would further delay the next governor’s transition, preventing key hires from being made. The inauguration is to take place Jan. 12, and a manual recount could keep the race in doubt until Christmas; litigation could delay things even further.
It’s not even certain that a manual recount would provide greater accuracy. Punch-card ballots, still used in several counties, can deteriorate with repeated handling, making each recount potentially less reliable than the last. Remember the pictures of Florida election officials holding ballots up to the light to discern voter intent? Such pictures here won’t bolster faith in the final result.
The votes have been counted and recounted. Both times, Rossi was the winner. Gregoire should take the high road and concede, rather than putting up more roadblocks to an effective transition.
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