Posted on Fri, Jul. 09, 2004
Kerry: 'Every vote' will count
Presidential candidate John Kerry told Democrats in Broward County that he has hired a lawyer to guard against a repeat of voting problems in the state.
BY LESLEY CLARK
lclark@herald.com
Touching down for the first time at the center of the bruising 2000 presidential election, Sens. John Kerry and John Edwards vowed Thursday in South Florida to see that ''every vote'' will count in November, as the campaign detailed a legal strategy that includes hiring a lawyer with recount experience to pursue potential voting irregularities in Florida.
''I've got news for you,'' Kerry told a crowd at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. ``In 2004, not only does every vote in Florida count, but every vote is going to be counted.''
Charging state officials with a ''pattern'' of voter disenfranchisement, the Kerry campaign said Thursday it has hired Steve Zack, a Miami attorney and member of Al Gore's legal team during the protracted legal battle of 2000.
''If you look at everything that's going on, there's a repeated attempt by Gov. Jeb Bush and others to disenfranchise voters,'' said Matt Miller, a spokesman for Kerry's Florida campaign. ``We're looking at ballot access, we're looking at the purge list, we're looking at the machines.''
Earlier this year, Kerry told a West Palm Beach audience that the strategy could include ''pre-challenges'' and injunctions ''where necessary'' to avoid a repeat of the election fiasco of 2000.
(snip/...)
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/local/states/florida/counties/broward_county/9111842.htm(Free registration required)