[North-NV-Greens] Fwd: [usgp-dx] GREEN RELEASE Constitution mandates penalties for states where votes are blocked

Thu Dec 16 21:32:09 PST 2004

>
>GREEN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES
>http://www.gp.org
>
>For Immediate Release:
>Thursday, December 16, 2004
>
>Contacts:
>Scott McLarty, Media Coordinator, 202-518-5624,
>cell 202-487-0693, mclarty at greens.org
>Nancy Allen, Media Coordinator, 207-326-4576,
>nallen at acadia.net
>Asa Gordon, Chair, Electoral College Task Force
>of the D.C. Statehood Green Party, 202-635-7926,
>electorsus at aol.com
>
>
>U.S. CONSTITUTION MANDATES PENALTIES FOR STATES
>WHERE VOTES ARE OBSTRUCTED, SAY GREENS
>
>According to the 14th Amendment (Section 2),
>voting irregularities may require a reduction in
>the number of allotted Electoral College votes
>for Ohio or other states.
>
>
>WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Green Party leaders warned
>that Ohio and other states where a significant
>amount of voter obstruction has taken place face
>penalties mandated by the U.S. Constitution.
>
>Under the leadership of presidential candidate
>David Cobb, Greens have launched vote recount
>efforts in Ohio and New Mexico in response to the
>numerous complaints of voting irregularities in
>the 2004 election
>
>According to the 14th Amendment (Section 2) of
>the U.S. Constitution, "...[W]hen the right to
>vote... is denied... or in any way abridged,
>except for participation in rebellion, or other
>crime, the basis of representation therein shall
>be reduced in the proportion which the number of
>such male citizens shall bear to the whole number
>of male citizens... in such State."
>
>"If legitimate voters have been disenfranchised
>in any state, the Constitution requires that the
>state's representation be reduced," said Asa
>Gordon, Executive Director of the Douglass
>Institute of Government, chair of the D.C.
>Statehood Green Party's Electoral College Task
>Force, and member of the party's national Black
>Caucus.  "If it can be shown that a class of
>legitimate voters were obstructed from voting or
>having their votes counted in Ohio, Florida, New
>Mexico, or any other state, then that state may
>lose one or more of its allotted Electoral
>College votes."
>
>Thousands of African American voters in Ohio
>reported that their voting rights were challenged
>at the polls, and that they faced prohibitively
>long lines for too few voting machines at the
>polls while majority white and Republican
>precincts enjoyed a sufficient supply of
>machines.  Thousands of voters in majority
>Democratic precincts also complained of long
>lines for too few machines and reported that
>machines rejected or altered their votes.
>
>If African Americans, Democrats, third party
>voters, or any other group was targeted as a
>class for disenfranchisement in Ohio or any other
>state, then that state may face class action
>penalties mandating a reduction of Electoral
>College votes proportional to the class of voters
>so disenfranchised.
>
>Based on this application of Section 2's
>mal-apportionment penalty, Ohio could lose
>several of its 18 U.S. Representatives and 20
>Electoral College votes, based on the percentage
>of African Americans in Ohio (12.1%, 2000 U.S.
>Census) or Ohioans who call themselves Democrat
>(Ohio election law currently does not provide for
>voters to register in parties; the national
>percentage of registered Democrats is about 45%,
>according to Ballot Access News statistics for
>2000).
>
>While no precedent exists for Congress using
>Section 2 to penalize a state and reduce its
>number of U.S. Representatives (and Electors, the
>number of which is in part based on the number of
>Representatives), the Supreme Court has affirmed
>the applicability of Section 2.  See Justice
>William Rehnquist's opinion, Richardson v.
>Ramirez, 418 U.S. 24 (1974)
><http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?navby=case&court=us&vol=418&invol=24>.
>
>In October, 2004, the Green Party of the United
>States endorsed a statement
><http://green.gpus.org/vote/displayproposal.php?proposalId=110>
>calling for enforcement of the 14th Amendment's
>guarantee that voters enjoy equal protection and
>treatment in their representation by the
>Electoral College.
>
>In the statement, Greens demand "that
>apportionment of Electoral College votes reflect
>the actual votes within states."  The statement
>addresses the failure to enforce Section 2 of the
>14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the
>lack of democracy in the state-based
>winner-take-all apportionment of Electoral
>College votes.
>
>"The struggle to ensure fair elections and
>accurate vote counts is emerging as a major civil
>rights issue of the 21st century," said Diane
>White, Corresponding Secretary of the Green
>Party's Black Caucus and Pennsylvania delegate to
>the national party.
>
>"It took nearly a century to enforce Section 1,
>the equal protection provision of the 14th
>Amendment.  Let's not let another century pass to
>enforce Section 2, the right to vote provision,"
>added Asa Gordon.
>
>
>MORE INFORMATION
>
>The Green Party of the United States
>http://www.gp.org
>1700 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 404
>Washington, DC 20009.
>202-319-7191, 866-41GREEN
>Fax 202-319-7193
>
>"Greens: Enforce 14th Amendment's 'Right to Vote'
>Provision"
>Press release, October 18, 2004
>http://www.gp.org/press/pr_10_18_04.html
>
>"Mal-Apportionment Penalty Civil Actions"
>Douglass Institute of Government
>http://members.aol.com/electorsus/map.htm
>
>2004 Cobb/LaMarche Campaign: news on the Ohio
>recount
>http://www.votecobb.org
>
>
>~ END ~
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-- 
Paul Etxeberri

"Forests precede civilizations and deserts follow"   ---Chateaubriand