November 19, 2000

Overseas vote ought to arrive with rest

One thing is sure about this year's presidential election ... at least in Florida.

The overseas vote, including those from military personnel, is not being ignored.

The 10-day wait from election day to midnight Friday for the additional votes from overseas made us aware that in other years, those votes usually came in after the election was decided. That's because the normal procedure is for the results to be so decisive, that by the day after the election, the losing candidate has conceded and the attention shifts away from vote counting.

It's a good time to review the timing requirements for these overseas absentee ballots.

If the ballots were made available 10 days earlier, and those voting absentee were made aware of changed deadlines, it would be simple to change the requirement for arrival of the mailed ballots to coincide with the closing of polls on election day.

That way, military and other overseas ballots would be counted at the same time as those cast at the polls ... and they would be a part of the initial tally.

The people serving our country should have their votes count every time, not just in a close election.

Who needs nationwide mayhem?

The people who say the 2000 election clinched the argument for getting rid of the electoral college system might want to rethink that stance.

Consider:

1) If this presidential election had been based on the popular vote,

2) And if the person trailing in the popular vote -- in this instance Bush -- had the same propensity to sue in every available court -- as does Gore,

3) Then we would have a brouhaha like the one in Florida being duplicated in each of the other 49 states, as every possible extra vote was sought.

There may be those who would enjoy a nationwide session of legal/recount mayhem.

But from here, such a prospect makes another pretty good argument for keeping the electoral college system.