Democrats draw attention to voting irregularities

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In an effort to draw attention to widespread voting irregularities that occurred in Ohio and other parts of the country during the 2004 Presidential election, Democrats in the House of Representatives and the Senate today raised an objection during a joint session of Congress called to count the electoral votes. The objection forced both houses of Congress to debate the issue, providing an important opportunity to highlight the need for electoral reforms, said Rep. George Miller (D-Martinez). Miller issued the following statement today:

“I do not dispute the outcome of the 2004 presidential election. I do, however, believe that our nation must address significant voting irregularities that took place in November that were not only highly offensive to thousands of voters but denied many voters their fundamental right to vote. We must act to ensure that such voting problems do not occur in the future. That is why we raised our objection today – not to overturn the election results, but to make it clear that serious concerns must be addressed.

“In November, in precincts in Ohio and all across the country, untold numbers of voters were disenfranchised – by malfunctioning machines, long lines to vote, purging of names of eligible voters from voter lists, harassment of voters on their way into the polls, and other problems.

“We raised our objection today to make a simple point – that Americans’ right to vote and have their votes properly counted is fundamental to our democracy. Congress has a solemn obligation to ensure that problems at the polls are not repeated in future elections.

“Starting today, with this debate, let us commit to building an electoral infrastructure that befits a democracy as great as ours. We should have done it a long time ago, but that’s no excuse for not getting it done now. We don’t lack the money, the know-how, or the ability. We just need the political will.”

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