Europeans to monitor US election

The machinery of an anxious democracy

For the first time, representatives from the OSCE - the European body which has traditionally monitored elections in fledgling democracies - will observe as Americans elect their president.

There have certainly been objections to the involvement of foreign monitors in the domestic affairs of a country which sees itself as a beacon of democracy.

But the Florida fiasco of 2000 with its hanging chads and voter purges has shaken confidence in the sanctity of the system, producing in the words of one observer, a climate of "unease, distrust and scepticism".

From the link you posted:

Under the new system, everyone who believes they are entitled to vote - regardless of whether their name features on a roll or not - may cast a ballot. The validity of their vote will be decided later - although how this will be decided has also been a subject of some speculation.

That sounds like it will cause a heck of a lot of confusion and problems. How much time and money will go into trying to figure out whose vote counts and whose doesn't? We won't know what the REAL results of the election are until after all of the legitimate ballots are seperated from the illigitimate ones! This seems more problematic to me. If a voter feels that he should be allowed to vote and is concerned that he might not appear on a roster than it is HIS duty and responsibility to fix the problem BEFORE the elections.

I really don't like the idea of foreign monitors being involved in our elections. Maybe I'm just being defensive but I think the U.S. can figure out a way to handle our elections on our own!

Jemison

Already covered here:

www.abovetopsecret.com...

And:

www.abovetopsecret.com...

Feel free to add to the existing thread.

Thread Closed.

[edit on 26-9-2004 by UM_Gazz]