Calls for New Election in Florida Voting Machine Meltdown-18,000 Votes “Lost” by Paperless Machines in 13th District

Full-Page New York Times Ad Runs Tuesday“Welcome To Florida: Where Only Some Votes Count”

WASHINGTON - December 19 - MoveOn.org Political Action will run a full-page ad in the New York Times on Tuesday, calling for a re-vote in Florida's 13th Congressional District race. Electronic voting machines appear to have lost 18,000 votes—votes almost certain to change the outcome of this close House race. The voting machines used in Florida don’t keep paper records, so there’s no way to recount the votes short of a new election.

MoveOn is also circulating a petition urging the House of Representatives to call for a re-vote. Nearly 200,000 people have signed the petition which will be delivered to the new House leadership this week.

The ad's tagline reads: "Welcome to Florida: Where Only Some Votes Count."

“Paperless voting machines don't work, so people across the country are asking Congress to call for a re-vote before seating anyone from Florida's 13th District,” said Noah T. Winer, Election Integrity Campaign Director, MoveOn.org Political Action. “This petition is just the first step in fixing a flawed election system.”

In just three hours, MoveOn members contributed enough money to pay for a full-page ad in the New York Times.

Democratic Committee Chair Howard Dean has declared support for a re-vote. Currently the two candidates in FL-13 are separated by 369 votes. The U.S. Constitution grants the House of Representatives the authority to call for a re-vote. The House intervened in a similar case as recently as 1985. The last re-vote in a congressional election was in 1975.