Today's
New York Times has an interesting story regarding the disputed election ... in the Ukraine!
With more than 99 percent of ballots counted, the government tally gave Mr. Yanukovich 49.42 percent of the vote to 46.7 percent for Viktor A. Yushchenko, whose supporters turned out in the tens of thousands in Independence Square here, vowing not to move until results were reversed.
It gets better on the flip...
I wonder if 2.72% is considered a mandate in the Ukraine? The supporters of former Prime Minister Yushchenko took to the streets in protest because of the concern that the fix was in. They were emboldened by...
...an international election observer mission - from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the European Parliament, the NATO Parliamentary Assembly and the Council of Europe - released a preliminary report that buoyed them, declaring that the election did not meet democratic standards.
But what is the evidence for speculating that the election may be rigged?
The victory for the prime minister, by a margin of nearly 3 percentage points, that was given in official results diverged sharply from a range of surveys of voters at polling places that gave the opposition as much as an 11-point lead.
Is this starting to feel eerily familiar? I assume that "exit polls" translated into Ukrainian is "surveys of voters at polling places" (if not, one would have to assume that the "liberal media" hesitated to use the term exit poll... Never mind).
You would have to assume that Republicans would react to these charges of election fraud as they have in America: by either ignoring them or by painting the protestors' concerns as "frivolous". Wouldn't you? Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN) reacted slightly differently:
"A concerted and forceful program of election-day fraud and abuse was enacted with either the leadership or cooperation of governmental authorities," the Senator said Monday in Kiev.
UPDATE: And out-going Secretary of State Colin Powell got in on the fun:
"We cannot accept this result as legitimate because it does not meet international standards," Mr. Powell said, "and because there has not been an investigation of the numerous and credible reports of fraud and abuse."
Hmmmmm... Republicans couldn't have that brazen a double standard, could they? But that would require them to have one set of rules and beliefs for their side and one set of rules for everyone else... Wouldn't it? It may be a good idea to pose that question this week to Tom DeLay and the House Republicans!
By the way, here is Senator Lugar's contact information, just in case you wanted to reach out and ask him when he will be calling for an investigation into our election:
senator_lugar@lugar.senate.gov
WASHINGTON, D.C.
306 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-1401
(202) 224-4814
INDIANAPOLIS
1180 Market Tower
10 West Market Street
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204
(317) 226-5555
And Secretary Powell's:
Email Here!
U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20520
202-647-4000
One more question... How come when something like this happens in the Ukraine, a country with, let's face it, no history of democratic elections, the citizens understand their right to peaceably assemble and take to the streets? And when it happens, here, twice, in a country that pioneered democracy and wrote the First Amendment's guarantee of freedom to assemble, we roll over? Because they have this:
Opposition organizers pushed for protest and mass action.
And we have this:
I pledge to do my part to try to bridge the partisan divide. I know this is a difficult time for my supporters, but I ask them, all of you, to join me in doing that.
I agree with that sentiment... 5 minutes after we count EVERY vote.
I don't actually think that a recount will alter the result of the election (the U.S. election), but you are either in favor of counting every vote or you are not. Put me down as voting in favor...
Support the recount effort!
Support my food habit! - The Kicking Donkey