Printable Version

Clinton and Obama Campaigns Agree on Ground Rules For Vote Counting Process

(Albuquerque, NM)  Today, the Democratic Party of New Mexico and the presidential campaigns of Senator Hillary Clinton and Senator Barack Obama reached an agreement of standards for qualifying the 17,276 provisional ballots cast during the February 5^th New Mexico Presidential Preference Caucus.  The agreement determines how ballots will be verified and qualified.

"With this unprecedented turnout and close margin between Sen. Hillary Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama, both campaigns and the Democratic Party of New Mexico agreed to establish ground rules for the qualification of provisional ballots prior to the official count, thus assuring a more fair, consistent and transparent vote counting process," said Democratic Party Chairman Brian Colon.  "Often the vote counting process begins without agreement and is slowed by disagreement over the treatment of individual ballots, but by agreeing to common, inclusive standards the two campaigns and the party are taking the unprecedented step of preventing disagreement before it starts."

"Both campaigns have successfully worked together to reach a framework from which to move forward and ensure New Mexicans voices are heard in this process," Mara Lee, State Director for the Hillary Clinton Campaign.

"Today is a step forward in counting the thousands of provisional ballots in a transparent and fair way. We look forward to continuing to work with the New Mexico Democratic Party and the DNC to complete this process in the days to come," Carlos Monje, Jr, Obama State Director.

Text of the agreement follows--Signed Copy is Attached:

Agreed Guidelines for Qualification

Sect. V(B) of the Democratic Party of New Mexico (DPNM) Caucus Manual, Guidelines and Rules provides for the disposition of provisional ballots. Specifically, a provisional ballot:

1.         Shall not be counted if the registered voter did not sign either the voter registration list or the affidavit;

2.         Shall not be counted if there is no record of the voter ever having been registered as a Democrat in New Mexico by January 4, 2008;

3.         Shall not be counted if the voter have voted absentee, or otherwise cast another ballot during the same caucus.

 Sect. III(C)(19) of the Democratic Party of New Mexico (DPNM) Caucus Manual, Guidelines and Rules provides for the data requirements for provisional ballots. Specifically, a provisional ballot affidavit shall include the

            1.         Name and signature of the voter;

            2.         The voter's registered address (es);

            3.         The voter's birth year;

            4.         The reason for using the provisional ballot;

            5.         The caucus site at which the voter has voted.

This section also provides that a provisional ballot shall not be rejected for lack of the information required by this section provided the voter signs and provides sufficient information to determine eligibility to participate and vote in the caucus.

Due to unexpectedly high voter turn-out, the DPNM and the respective campaigns have a reasonable belief that some portion of the provisional ballots may not have been completed fully in accordance with the established rules and guidelines, but nevertheless wish to qualify as many provisional ballots as possible within the constraints of the party rules and guidelines.

To this end, the DPNM convened a meeting with the presidential campaigns of Senator Hillary Clinton and Senator Barack Obama to establish agreed-upon standards for the qualification of provisional ballots cast during the February 5, 2008 New Mexico Presidential Preference Caucus.

The campaigns agreed to the following:

1.         The absence of either an inner or outer envelope is not dispositive as to the disqualification of a provisional ballot.

2.         The absence of a signature on an affidavit is not dispositive as to the disqualification of a provisional ballot.

3.         The absence of the use of the official DPNM affidavit is not dispositive as to the disqualification of a provisional ballot.

4.         The absence of the use of the official DPNM provisional ballot is not dispositive as to the disqualification of a provisional ballot.

5.         A discrepancy as to the correct congressional district is not dispositive as to the disqualification of a provisional ballot.

6.         In accordance with the philosophy of inclusion, if a link can be made between the name of a voter and that voter's provisional ballot, that ballot will be qualified and counted in the tally unless:

a.         It can not be demonstrated within a reasonable degree of certainty that the provisional voter was registered and eligible to participate in the February 5, 2008 caucus;

b.         It can be demonstrated within a reasonable degree of certainty that the provisional voter cast another ballot, whether absentee, emergency, regular, or other provisional ballot.

The DPNM and the campaigns recognize that there may be discrepancies between the number of voters who signed the voter roll and the number of ballots counted at any given caucus site. It is expected that minor discrepancies of this nature could occur due to human error and high voter turnout. However, in the event a material difference between the number of ballots cast at a specific caucus site and the number of signatures found on the voter roll, the campaigns reserve the right to protest such discrepancy.

The DPNM and the campaigns recognize that there may be discrepancies between the number of provisional ballots reported by a caucus site on Caucus night with the actual number of provisional ballots received from that caucus site by the DPNM. It is expected that minor discrepancies of this nature could occur due to human error and the high voter turnout. However, in the event a material difference between the number of provisional ballots reported by a caucus site on caucus evening and the actual number of provisional ballots received from that caucus site by DPNM, the campaigns reserve the right to protest such discrepancy.

Agreement between the campaigns was not reached for the following scenario:

If more than one provisional ballot was received and separated from the provisional voter affidavit, and no link can be made between a provisional voter and that voter's ballot.

Because no agreement was reached by the campaigns on this particular scenario, the DPNM Caucus Judges will determine how these provisional ballots will be processed. The individual campaigns reserve the right to protest the decisions of the Caucus Judges.

The campaigns may take measures to resurrect disqualified provisional ballots, but the determination as to whether disqualified ballots will be qualified is with the Caucus Judges, with appeal to the DPNMs Canvassing Board.

Any dispute regarding the above shall be addressed and resolved by the DPNM Caucus Judges. It is intended that the campaigns reserve their rights to appeal DPNM determinations to appropriate bodies.

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For Immediate Release                                     February 7, 2008

Contact: Brian Colon 270-2154 or Laura Sanchez 401-9441