Yesterday was a good day for folks like John Brakey, a Tucson Democrat who’s been involved in election-integrity issues since 2004.
Judge Michael Miller’s rulling–that forces Pima County to hand over election files–came just after Brakey found out he was a new grandfather to a baby girl.
“This gives me lots to celebrate,” Brakey said over the phone yesterday. “This is an amazing win. It’s a big deal for us.”
The Superior Court public information office e-mailed Miller’s rulling on Dec. 18 at 3:49 p.m., just as we went to deadline, meaning we couldn’t get very much info regarding the ruling into the story in this week’s issue about the folks behind the fight for the databases–Brakey, Black Box Voting activist Jim March and attorney Bill Risner.
In an interview on Monday, Risner said he was optimistic Miller would rule in the party’s favor. The 2006 general and primary election data was needed, he said, to be able to analyze previous election data and compare it to the 2006 Regional Transpirtation Authority election data. Some election-integrity activists believe vote-flipping may have happened during the RTA election.
In a press release sent out today, Pima County Democratic Party chair Vince Rabago said the ruling was a major victory of national importance for public oversight of elections.
“The judge specifically found that the Democratic Party’s involvement has helped make elections more secure and that the public will benefit from our continued involvement–including our involvement in ‘reviewing election management software,'” said Rabago. “This is a victory for the public which should never accept anything less than transparency and accountability in the conduct of its elections.”
But wait a minute, Vince: The data files remain in Pima County’s hands. Evidently, the county is planning an appeal, and the Board of Supervisors has put the files on the agenda at the Jan. 8 meeting, which starts at 9 a.m. Board members are slated to discuss whether they will give the files up, or of they will appeal the ruling. The meeting could end up being one of those Ray Carroll vs. Everyone Else meetings–and this doesn’t even have anything to do with taxes.
This article appears in Dec 13-19, 2007.
Dear Fellow Election Integrity friends:
Yes, Mari Herreras with the Tucson Weekly is 100% correct; the real fight is now on for Jan 8th meeting of the Pima Board of Sups.
Please, write them, call them and be there at the meeting Jan 8th. Tell them it over! They had their day in court! The “Mayhem and Chaos” defense lost and “Get over it”!
Tell them “We the People” all seems to agree that elections should be free, fair, accurate, and trustworthy. I’ve yet to meet anybody who admits to being opposed to free, fair, accurate, and trustworthy elections. At least till now that 4 out of the 5 Sups At this time except for Supervisor Ray Carroll, he is the only one who truly who stands with us that we can count on.
This is very sad, let them know this, call them, write them, lets hold them accountable.
What we all do dose make a difference!
Sincerely,
John Brakey, co-founder of AUDIT-AZ (Americans United for Democracy, Integrity, and Transparency in Elections, Arizona) & Co-Coordinator Investigations for Election Defense Alliance http://www.electiondefensealliance.org/about_john_brakey
Tucson, AZ
520-578-5678
Cell 520-250-2360
John’s AUDITAZ@cox.net
I believe Brakey is in the right in whistleblowing elections fraud purely if you look at the numbers for Arizona Congressional District 7: 80% non-Republican, yet recorded as having voted 42% for Bush.
The numbers are fair: in 2004, “53 percent of the voters are Democrats, while less than 28 percent are Republicans,” noted our man Nintzel.
In 2004, independents largely leaned Democratic. Something doesn’t add up if twice as many people voted Republican than there are Republicans registered as such in the district.
I guess I’m missing something. If the GOP had the ability to change votes after they’re cast, why would they lose the election? That’s like robbing a bank and leaving the money at the door on the way out.
The voter registration numbers don’t necessarily reflect the percentage of each party who came out to vote. Hispanic turnout tends to lag behind the population as a whole.
Good point Jim; I thought about that after posting.
and retro,
If the GOP wanted to fully manipulate the system for a victory, then the next question would be, would they really want to put Joe Sweeney in power ? That was the guy who won the primary, and his positions often put him at odds with party heads.
“There’s a reasonable chance the Pima County Republican Party will be unwilling to support him, will disavow his candidacy,” the Star quoted Pima Cty Republican Chairman John Munger saying after Sweeney won 70% of the primary vote over less-known candidate Munoz.