[Cowperson]

'The largest category of those legally disenfranchised consists of almost 5 million former felons who have served prison sentences and been deprived of the right to vote under laws that have roots in the post-Civil War 19th century and were aimed at preventing black Americans from voting.

Obvioiusly that has nothing to do with GW Bush. Its probably pretty popular as a law as well.

But millions of other votes in the 2000 presidential election were lost due to clerical and administrative errors

Inexcusable but the blame lies more on the bureacracy than anything else.

"In elections in Baltimore in 2002 and in Georgia last year, black voters were sent fliers saying anyone who hadn't paid utility bills or had outstanding parking tickets or were behind on their rent would be arrested at polling stations. It happens in every election cycle," she said.

In a mayoral election in Philadelphia last year, people pretending to be plainclothes police officers stood outside some polling stations asking people to identify themselves. There have also been reports of mysterious people videotaping people waiting in line to vote in black neighborhoods.

Inexcusable. However, in counter to your argument, I will point out the Democrats were in power in Georgia at the time of elections in 2002 and a Democrat was Mayor in Baltimore in 2002 for that election. In the 2002 Philadelphia election, the Mayor incumbant was a Democrat.

The commission, in a report earlier this year, said that in Florida, where President Bush won a bitterly disputed election in 2000 by 537 votes, black voters had been 10 times more likely than non-black voters to have their ballots rejected and were often prevented from voting because their names were erroneously purged from registration lists.

I agree a statistic like that bears investigation.

In the Federal election before the last one, at a small rural polling station largely deserted, I was standing in front of two poll booth workers who were happily chatting away about how wonderful the Reform candidate was and how "the right guy was going to win" when who walks into the polling station but the candidate himself!!! Handing out chocolates!!!

"Don't worry folks. I looked it up. Perfectly legal!! Gotta take care of the election workers!!"

Unbelievable.

It's the only time in my life I've managed to puff out my chest and whistle up an effective withering glare and chase someone out of room without saying a word, holding up the line and refusing to budge until he'd left.

Unfortunately, stuff like that can happen anywhere.

Cowperson