Fascinating

Okay, call me geeky, I don't care.  I had the chance to attend an election recount yesterday and found the whole process fascinating.  This year, there were several very close races and two of the three races that ended in a tie were no better off after the official tabulation that is always done on the Friday after the Tuesday's election.

Even though the process was a little tedious, it was very interesting to me.  The room was filled with supporters of the two candidates; Democrats on the left of the room and Republicans on the right (I am not sure that was intended, but it ended up that way). Each precinct was taken individually and the chair of the election board read the tapes and then looked at each absentee ballot, made a judgement, and then passed it to the other commissioner to agree or disagree.  Finally the third commissioner had a chance to weigh in. Four times during the review, the commissioners broke off into executive session to argue any differences there were on the ballots they had looked at and then came back with a report of their decision. One of the two races still ended in a tie and lots will be drawn, as per the process, this Friday.

Maybe it was because it was my first time to attend a recount, or maybe it was just another way of witnessing Democracy in action, but I was enthralled with being able to witness thee process. The more I learn about this operation the more I am intrigued with it.  It may not be perfect, but there is much that is in the works to make it as fair as possible.  It has been working for over 200 years, so we must be doing something right.