Growing chaos over US House Dem primary results in Maryland

Growing chaos over US House Dem primary results in Maryland. Six years after 2000 presidential election, balloting still not fixed by GOP congress
by Joe in DC - 9/22/2006 11:08:00 AM

They're still counting votes in the Democratic Primary in Maryland's Fourth Congressional District 10 days later. There seems to be a lack of concern about the obvious problems that arose during that election. Keep in mind that this was a Democratic Party primary -- a general election controversy would be bad enough -- but this is an intra-party voting scandal. Since November of 2000, we've known that there are problems with counting votes in American elections. Maryland's 4th C.D. Democratic Primary is the quintessential example. Last week, I wrote a post in which I referred to Al Wynn as "Landslide Al" linking to a site which documented the electoral shenanigans of "Landslide Lyndon" Johnson back in 1948. Johnson basically cheated to win. Apparently, Al Wynn likes that comparison:

From a House Committee on Energy and Commerce hearing, September 19, 2006:
Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX): Down in Texas, we had a Democratic primary about 50 years ago that Lyndon Johnson won by 54 votes. And he got the nickname "Landslide Lyndon." We have Mr. Wynn next. He had a little bit of a tussle last week, but he did win. And so, I want to recognize "Landslide Wynn" for any opening statement that he wishes...Rep. Albert Wynn (D-MD): Well, thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. In fact, they're still counting, but we're quite optimistic. And I did take a couple pages out of Lyndon's book, so if I win, it can be attributed to Texas know-how.(LAUGHTER)Barton: I hope not. I hope you win fair and square.(LAUGHTER)Wynn: A win is a win.Really funny, huh? Maybe "a win is a win" in football, Al, but not in the electoral process. This isn't a game. It's the heart of our democracy. No surprise that Al Wynn is just about the only elected official in Maryland who is not concerned about the major problems with the election system. He shows contempt for the voters in his district.Also, considering the magnitude of this issue, there really is a dearth of coverage of this race in the media. This is happening in the back yard of the Washington Post. The media has obsessed over Iraqi elections, but can't focus on the failings of the electoral system in their own back yard. Maybe if voters in the 4th District had purple fingers, their ability to participate in the democratic process would be honored.In the meantime, Al Wynn has no credibility.