GOP Alleges Felons Voted in Wash. Race

http://www.wjla.com/headlines/0205/209088.html

UPDATED - Wednesday February 23, 2005 12:49am from our sister station WJLA-TV


OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) - Republicans dissatisfied with the balloting that installed Democrat Gov. Christine Gregoire alleged Tuesday that 1,108 felons voted illegally in the 2004 election.

Dino Rossi, the failed GOP candidate, is challenging Gregoire's election in court on the grounds that illegal votes and election workers' errors irrevocably tainted the results. He's pushing for a new election.

Gregoire won the election by just 129 votes, after a hand recount of 2.9 million ballots. Rossi had won the first two counts.

Democrats say Gregoire is the legitimate governor, and say Republicans don't have enough evidence to warrant nullifying the election.

The next step will likely be a hearing to determine what Rossi will need to prove to win his case in court. Judge John E. Bridges declined last Friday to set a trial date, saying he wants both sides to finish their discovery before he decides when the trial should happen.