Greens Paved the Way for Historic Electoral Vote Challenge

Columbus, OH —  Today's historic Electoral College vote challenge would not have happened without the leadership of Green Party presidential candidate David Cobb, who initiated the recount of Ohio's presidential vote and is demanding a second recount in federal court because the first recount was conducted in violation of state and federal law.

"Clearly, by demanding a recount and an investigation into the widespread irregularities with the presidential vote in Ohio, the Green Party paved the way for today's challenge to Ohio's Electoral College votes," said Cobb.

Cobb called for an investigation of the vote in Ohio on November 5 and announced several days later that he would ask for a recount. Cobb testified before two Congressional forums chaired by Representative John Conyers held in Washington and Columbus, Ohio, and announced at the second forum the allegations of voting machine tampering which are now the subject of investigations by the GAO and the FBI.

"Today is truly historic and marks the beginning of a new democracy movement in America. We cannot honestly call our country a democracy until we have publicly financed campaigns, instant runoff voting, a Constitutional right to vote and until each and every voter can verify their vote with a paper receipt," said Cobb.

Cobb spoke before hundreds of people in Washington, DC, today, who were gathered at two rallies. The first rally featured Cobb and Reverend Jesse Jackson and took place in Lafayette Park, across from the White House, at 10 a.m.

Reverend Jackson acknowledged the leadership role that the Green Party has played in seeking justice in Ohio. Cobb then joined with hundreds of protestors marching from the White House to the Capitol along Pennsylvania Avenue. Protestors took over two lanes of traffic and chanted pro-democracy messages en route.

Once at the Capitol, the marchers joined with another demonstration in progress at Upper Senate Park where Cobb again shouted out the Green message of grassroots democracy and social and racial justice.

Cobb recently asked a federal court in Ohio to order a second recount because the initial recount was conducted in violation of Ohio recount law and constitutional guarantees of due process and equal protection. Cobb has also demanded a recount of the vote in New Mexico, the state with the
highest percentage of under-votes in the nation. New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson has refused to comply with the recount law of New Mexico so Cobb filed a lawsuit to get the recount started. That case is now pending before the New Mexico Court of Appeals.

Additional information about the Ohio and New Mexico recounts and the Cobb-LaMarche campaign can be found at www.votecobb.org. The website for the national Green Party is www.gp.org.