It's critical that voting process be maintained
Posted Online 11/16/00
The heart of the democratic process is the vote.
It is critical that the integrity and credibility of the voting process be maintained.
Heading into the presidential election, there was no change in the U. S. Constitution that provides the president of the United States should be elected by the Electoral College. Neither presidential candidate Vice President Al Gore or Governor George Bush contested the election process.
The process is well laid out and it should be allowed to follow through to its conclusion.
Who wins the election is not nearly as important as protecting the election process as dictated by our founding fathers in the Constitution.
States are in control of their individual election process. It is up to the states and their laws to determine if the process has been followed correctly. If there is a question about the 19,000 tossed ballots in Palm Beach county, the state of Florida should initiate action.
The state, not the political parties, should be concerned that the will of the people was accurately expressed on the ballot. The ballot by law must be designed so as to reflect the people’s vote. The state should be as concerned about this matter as are the campaign committees of both presidents.
The process should be allowed to continue, which means that the final certification of the recount has to include the count of the absentee ballots from Florida. In states where there were close elections, the absentee ballots should be taken into account.
What complicates matters is that Gore has won the popular vote, while Bush may have won the electoral vote. The Constitution, however, over rides that consideration and voters no doubt will agree that a process in place should rule and the electoral vote should decide the question.
How electors vote will be another part of the process. In some states, electors are beholden to vote as the popular vote dictates.
There should be no rush to complete this process, despite the pressures. The country’s leadership is not in limbo. The country has a president, an administration and a government to run the country. There should be no panic. The American people for the most part will be content to let the process run its course and it will abide by the result.
Editor’s note: This editorial is the opinion of ECM Editorial Board.
