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PRESS RELEASE January 20, 2005 EFF launches two new projects to ensure free and fair elections in Washington state OLYMPIA—The Evergreen Freedom Foundation (EFF) has launched two new projects: The Voter Integrity Project (VIP) and Grassroots Washington (GW). The purpose of both projects is to help restore the free and fair elections that are indispensable to political freedom, secure the sanctity of the ballot, and restore public confidence in our voting system. EFF estimates both projects will span two years. This announcement coincides with EFF’s release of election reform recommendations to the legislature. The Voter Integrity Project is a research and educational effort. EFF is currently completing a thorough investigation of the 2004 election: What happened county-by-county and who was in charge? Its research will culminate in a call for a federal grand jury investigation, the filing of a federal complaint with the Department of Justice, and a request for penalties against those who broke the law. The project will also monitor the 2006 elections to ensure compliance with federal and state laws. A soon-to-be-released report will detail VIP’s investigation, which has uncovered or substantiated some startling and disappointing facts. Among them: More than 55,000 ballots "enhanced" by election workers; more ballots counted than cast; newly "discovered" ballots illegally added to the count; voting by felons, dead people and the homeless; 3,500 duplicate absentee ballots sent in King County; some military ballots sent too late; violation of privacy rights; improper election certification; etc. Information about the 2004 election, Washington state election law and EFF’s research will be regularly posted online at www.effwa.org/vip. Grassroots Washington is aimed at eliminating the flaws identified in the election system and changing the status quo. Through an aggressive grassroots campaign, GW will work to achieve the following results:
GW will call on citizens to “get active” on unresolved items by calling their representatives or the officials directly involved. “Achieving our goal requires citizen involvement at many levels,” said Bob Williams, president of the Olympia-based watchdog organization. “We will be asking Washingtonians to attend legislative hearings, task force meetings and public forums; write letters to the editor; talk with media; and rally their neighbors to the cause.” “Free and fair elections are indispensable to political freedom,” Williams continued. “Unfortunately, the election process in our state has been badly compromised and the uncorrected problems continue to grow. For the sake of freedom and fairness, we have to fix these problems now.” Additional Information Contact: Booker Stallworth | Communications Director | 360.956.3482
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1 Part Honesty; 2 Parts Arrogance At a March 23, 2005, House Appropriations hearing on a bill to gut the voter-approved I-601 spending limit, Rep. Jim McIntire (D) asked a supporter of I-601’s two-third supermajority requirement for the legislature to raise taxes the following question: "Can you name a time when we [legislators] have actually not just set it [supermajority requirement] aside by majority vote? I mean, this is in many respects a procedural motion that has no bearing. It’s a statutory constraint that cannot constrain any legislature that chooses as a majority to set it aside . . . have we ever used a supermajority [to raise taxes]?" - Rep. Jim McIntire (D - 46) Despite the arrogance of some state officials, Washington's constitution is clear: "All political power is inherent in the people..." |
