Last week, about the only thing I was thankful for in the world of New Mexico politics was Diane Dennish's announcement that she would introduce legislation to remove the financial burden of a recount from the losing candidate in close elections.
The Lt. G's announcement came the day after outgoing Attorney General, Patricia Madrid, conceded her race to unseat Heather Wilson, despite pleas that she seek at least a partial recount.
Madrid's campaign and the Democratic party made the decision not to seek a recount seem like rational one, saying the cost could be as high as $300,000 and where we they get that kind of cash? After all, Patricia PAC, "Justice For America," only had $492,519.93 in its account as of October 10th and evidently that money to be used for Madrid's next race in 2010.
Look, let's be honest, Madrid conceded for practical political reasons relating to her future as a politician, not because of the cost. Madrid had the cash, assuming it would have been legal for Madrid to use her "Justice For America" funds. It was just that "Justice For America" is probably her plan B money...remember?
according to Monahan, Madrid "did everything but take a Heather challenge off the table when she phoned in Monday to comment about the blog and La Politica." Madrid, term limited as AG, actually stated that she was considering a challenge to Lt. Governor Diane Denish, as well as a run for Land Commissioner, in which case she would likely square off against Albuquerque City Councilor and rising star, Martin Heinrich, in the primary.
-Democracy for New Mexico: Sound Off: Madrid's Madness
I don't blame Madrid for the decision she made. Could you imagine watching her floor speeches on CSPAN? But by conceding the race, I suspect citizens for accurate and transparent elections lost their only chance at verifying the accuracy of our election results and the functionality of our new voting machines prior to this time in 2008.
The Democratic party said they might seek a 2% recount of certain precincts in Bernalillo, but I wouldn't count on it. My gut tells me that without a candidate state law won't give standing to anybody seeking a recount. My gut also tells me that the DPNM isn't all that excited about parting with any more money than it has to, especially since whatever is left over will more than likely have to cover the bills until the next infusion of national money.
What's really mystifying is that we spent in excess of $20 million on computers, but just like the state SHARE system, we didn't require the vendor to purchase a performance bond should the system be faulty. The difference is that with the SHARE system, at least we know it's not working when people don't get paid. With our voting system how can we get angry if we don't know if our vote has been counted or not?
Technorati Tags: CD 1, Congress, Democrats, DNC, Elections, Heather Wilson, local news, media, Nancy Pelosi, New Mexico, news, Patricia Madrid, Politics
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