http://www.iowagop.net/shownews.asp?artid=20

"With attendance of 33,000 and votes cast by more than 14,000, Republican party officials called the 2007 Iowa Straw Poll a resounding success. No one was more pleased than Governor Mitt Romney who received 4,516 votes to win the Straw Poll.

In second place Governor Mike Huckabee earned 2,587 votes and was followed by Senator Sam Brownback who received 2,192 ballots cast in his favor. In a close fourth, U.S. Representative Tom Tancredo received 1,961 votes. In fifth place was U.S. Representative Ron Paul with 1,305. Governor Tommy Thompson finished in sixth place with 1,029 votes and was followed by seventh place finisher, and undeclared candidate, Fred Thompson who had 203 votes cast for him. Mayor Rudy Giuliani received 183 votes for eighth place followed by U.S. Representative Duncan Hunter in ninth place with 174 votes. Senator John McCain, in 10th position, got 101 votes. And finishing last with 41 votes was John Cox."

Evidence Suggests Ron Paul Was Cheated
Ron Paul's fifth place in the Iowa Straw Poll questioned due to voting machine failure, fuzzy figures and conflicts of interest


Steve Watson
Infowars.net
Tuesday, August 14, 2007


Email Print Friendly Page
Yahoo! MyWeb Del.icio.us

A host of curious events at the Iowa Straw Poll at the weekend has raised questions as to whether there was some kind of tampering with the final vote count, with evidence to suggest Ron Paul may have been wrongly placed in fifth position behind Mitt Romney and three second tier candidates.

It was reported by local TV news stations before the event that upwards of 45,000 Republicans would arrive to meet candidates and cast their votes, however this number was dwindled down to between 30,000 and 33,000 according to the Iowa GOP's projected figures.

The number of voters then decreased by another sizable margin to around 26,000 the next day, only for the final figure to drop EVEN FURTHER to 14,302 actual votes cast.

Even if the immediate figures of 45,000 and 33,000 were wrong and the Iowa GOP grossly overestimated the figures, with only 26,000 tickets being sold, this still does not account for the other 12, 000 tickets that suddenly disappeared. One has to ask the question why did 12,000 people buy tickets at $35 each and not vote?

In 1999 the Straw Poll, which was won by George W Bush, attracted 23,685 voters, an incredibly similar figure to the 26,000 tickets sold this year.

As we reported yesterday, it has come to light that the voting procedure was overseen the Story County Auditor's Office, the head of whom happens to also be a member of Mitt Romney's "Leadership Team".

When the electronic voting machines inevitably malfunctioned, many immediately became wary.

According to some reports 4500 ballots had to be re-run and the announcement of the poll results was delayed by over an hour.

Earlier in the week a group of Ron Paul supporters had attempted to block the vote based on concerns over insecurities in the Diebold machines, yet the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals refused to join an injunction against the vote.

It hasn't helped Romney's case that swirling around the blogosphere are rumours that previous to the straw poll he was "joking" out loud that his team were going to "stuff the ballot box".

The plot thickens with further analysis of the figures. A reader to popular website Whatreallyhappened.com writes:

FUZZY MATH #1
So we know from the state Auditor that one ‘problem’ machine contained 500 votes. Assuming most machines contained a similar pattern of use, then they should also contain about the same number of votes. 60 (machines) x 500 = 30,000 votes. That is more than TWICE as many as the official count. Based on a total vote count of 14,301, if all machines were used about equally, then the average number of votes per machine SHOULD have been 238 {14,301 (total votes) / 60 (machines) = 238 votes per machine}. What are the odds that one of the machines that ‘malfunctioned’ and actually gave up an audited vote tally would contain TWICE as many votes as the ‘average’ machine? But it gets worse…

FUZZY MATH #2
State Auditor David Vaudt (who unofficially certified the vote count) said that there were only 2 machines out of the 60 that were inconsistent (paper printout vs. electronic tabulation) and needed to be recounted. Mary Tiffany of the Iowa GOP said that a total of approximately 1500 votes were re-fed into the Diebold machines. Since we know that there were only two machines that were a problem and one of them contained 500 votes, then the second machine must have contained about 1000 ballots, which is more than FOUR TIMES what the ‘average’ machine should contain based on a total vote of 14,301. It seems more likely that there were actually 3 problem machines, and the true average per machine was about 500 votes, which would have resulted in a total vote of about 30,000 which is twice the official total vote count.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The true story behind government sponsored terror, 7/7, Gladio and 9/11, get Terror Storm!
Let us help you reach a huge audience of potential customers. Help support the website and take advantage of low advertising rates. Click here for more info.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Though it was reported that "there were nothing but Ron Paul signs in the crowd" and that his campaign signs lined the highways and streets leading into Ames, Iowa, Paul came in fifth place behind Romney, Huckabee, Brownback and Tancredo.

Some exit polls also suggested that Ron Paul had actually WON the poll outright, before the final result was announced.

The Ames Straw Poll's results are non-binding and have no official effect on the presidential primaries. However, the straw poll is frequently seen as a first test of organizational strength in Iowa by the news media and party insiders. At the very least an investigation should be conducted to determine how significant an effect on the vote the Diebold machine malfunctions had and also why 12,000 tickets were not translated into votes.


Source: http://infowars.net/articles/august2007/140807Poll.htm

Malfunctioning Diebold Voting Machines Run By Romney Team Member At Iowa Poll
Ron Paul snatches fifth place in Straw Poll as voting machines again fail, questions raised over conflicts of interest in oversight personnel

Steve Watson / Infowars.net | Monday, August 13, 2007



Ron Paul supporters were angered at this weekend's straw poll in Iowa by the fact that Diebold voting machines once again malfunctioned and caused significant delays in the count, coupled with the fact that a Mitt Romney team member was placed in charge of overseeing the voting procedure.

Earlier in the week a group of Paul supporters attempted to block the vote based on concerns over insecurities in the Diebold machines. The Paul supporters took their case to the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, after being blocked by a lower court, but the appeals panel also refused to join an injunction against the vote, an attorney for the Iowa GOP, Matt McDermott, told the AP.

More concerning was the fact that earlier in the week a huge conflict of interest was exposed by a Ron Paul supporter as it was revealed that oversight of the voting procedure was conducted by a "Mitt Romney Leadership Team" Member.

The Story County Auditor's Office, which was in charge of running the votes is headed by Mary Mosiman who also happens to be on Mitt Romney's "Romney for President Leadership Team".



Though Ron Paul's campaign people chose to remain uninvolved in these matters, it turned out that the fears were justified as around 4500 ballots were re-run and the announcement of the poll results was delayed by around an hour as a recount was initiated.

The machines used were Diebold's optical scanners, which do provide paper ballots, unlike the Direct Recording Electronic (DRE) voting machines which provide no paper trail to go back to should the machines fail.

Though it was reported that about 30,000 to 33,000 Republicans came to meet candidates and cast their votes, only 14,302 were actually cast. Over a quarter of the votes had to be recounted after the malfunction.

Though it was also reported that "there were nothing but Ron Paul signs in the crowd" and that his campaign signs lined the highways and streets leading into Ames, Iowa, Paul came in fifth place behind Romney, Huckabee, Brownback and Tancredo. This is encouraging however because many of Paul's supporters came from out of state, meaning they were ineligible to vote.

Mitt Romney 4516 31.5%
Mike Huckabee 2587 18.1%
Sam Brownback 2192 15.3%
Tom Tancredo 1961 13.7%
Ron Paul 1305 9.1%
Tommy Thompson 1039 7.3%
Fred Thompson 203 1.4%
Rudy Giuliani 183 1.3%
Duncan Hunter 174 1.2%
John McCain 101 1.0%
John Cox 41 0.1%

14,302 Total Votes
26,000 Total Tickets Sold

Given that Romney reportedly spent millions on advertising the straw poll and personally paid for his supporters travel expenses, laying on hundreds of buses, as well as paying for their tickets, it was not surprising that he won by such a margin.

In addition, given that only about 14,000 votes were reportedly cast, Ron Paul’s showing of 1305 votes is almost 10 percent, quadruple the 2% of the vote he supposedly has in national polls and what sources said was the base level of support that the campaign hoped to achieve in the Iowa Straw Poll.

Ron Paul's campaign is encouraged by the result which has proven that he is able to turn online support into actual votes and has disproved ridiculous claims that his supporters are merely trolls and spammers who are adept at fixing online polls.

"We are pleased and encouraged by the results. ... Our campaign has begun," Paul's campaign chairman Kent Snyder said in a statement posted on the RonPaul2008.com. Snyder listed three ingredients for success: the message of "freedom, peace and prosperity"; "the man: Ron Paul"; and Paul's committed supporters.

Source: http://www.jonesreport.com/articles/130807_diebold_iowa.html

Romney Jokes About Cheating in Iowa Poll, Dodging Questions

Garance Franke-Ruta / Alternet | August 14, 2007

This post, written by Garance Franke-Ruta, originally appeared on the Iowa Independent website.

Last night, at the pre-Straw Poll "Ronstock" concert at the Bali Satay House in Ames, a Ron Paul volunteer played back a recording of competing Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney joking about cheating in a State Fair popularity contest, stuffing the ballot box in Ames, and dodging questions across the state.

Dudley Brown, executive director of Rocky Mountain Gun Owners, a group which has been shadowing Romney across the state, introduced me to Jeffrey Goines - which also happens to be the name of a character in the movie Twelve Monkeys -- who had been entertaining a group of gun enthusiasts with a recording he says he made at the Mitt Romney pre-Straw Poll rally, also held that evening in Ames. Goines said he attended the event to pass out Paul fliers and was not an official tracker for the Paul campaign.



"Gosh, those Ask Mitt Anythings, how many of those did we have? 46? 47? Unfortunately, people took us for our word," Romney joked, according to a sound clip on the digital recording device. "They asked me anything. There were some truly awful questions. But I, but I tried to dodge most of those. And I, I'll keep on doing that as long as I can."

Dudley, who described himself as "a different kind of gun nut" and carried an iPhone, was appalled by the joke, which he says was inappropriate given the administration's obsession with secrecy.

"This is America!" Dudley said. "The real story is him saying they're dodging questions."

Romney also joked about stuffing the ballot box at today's Straw Poll. "At 7 o'clock they will count the ballots. We will stuff the ballot box, I hope," he said on the recording.

And he joked about cheating in the Corn Poll, the bi-partisan State Fair popularity contest in which attendees are asked to "cast your kernel" by placing a kernel of corn in a jar for their favored candidate to show their support. "I was a little dismayed because I saw Barack Obama, he had a lot of corn in that Mason jar," quipped Romney. "But I was number one - so thanks for cheating!"

UPDATE: Romney Wins Iowa Straw Poll, Huckabee Scores a Surprising 2nd Place Finish

This post, written by Chris Cillizza, originally appeared on The Fix-The Washington Post's political blog

AMES, Iowa -- The biggest political event of the 2007 calendar year gave former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney a victory, but the biggest winner may well be former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who placed a surprising second.

Romney's 4,516 votes were roughly 2,000 more than Huckabee received. Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback came in third with 2,192 votes. Rep. Tom Tancredo (Colo.) placed fourth, while Rep. Ron Paul (Texas) was fifth. Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, who said he would likely leave the race if he didn't finish first or second, came in sixth. (Full results are available here.)

The turnout was far lower than in 1999, when 23,685 votes were cast and George W. Bush was the winner. The turnout may have been suppressed by the fact that three of the biggest names in the GOP race -- Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson and John McCain -- chose not to attend the event. Republican voters have also expressed their dissatisfaction with the current field in any number of public polls.

The delay of more than an hour in announcing the results led to whispers of impropriety and chicanery -- all unconfirmed. Rep. Steve King (Iowa) sought to downplay any talk of double-dealing in the moments before the results were announced, praising the "tremendous amount of integrity" in the process.

The ripple effect of today's vote won't be known for at least 24 hours, but here are a few of our initial thoughts about what to expect in the days to come from the Republican field.

* Romney did what he needed to do at Ames -- WIN! There will be the inevitable debate about whether he should have won by more given the resources he threw at the event. But that seems to us to be an argument for political junkies, not the average voter. A win is a win. And Romney's victory should cement him as the frontrunner heading into January's caucuses.

* Huckabee knew his back was against the wall, and he pulled out the surprise of the night. On the ground it was evident that Romney and Brownback had spent the most money courting straw poll voters, while Huckabee was working with a far smaller budget (his campaign spent $150,000 or so, according campaign manager Chip Saltsman). No matter how it happened, he got it done. Huckabee's campaign was looking for a spark and they seem to have gotten it tonight. He must -- and we repeat MUST -- turn this surprise showing into campaign cash or it will be for naught. But today is Huckabee's best day as a candidate by far.

* Brownback invested a lot into the straw poll and got little return. Finishing third behind Huckabee makes it tough for the Kansas Senator to make the argument that he is the most viable social conservative candidate in the field. This is a major setback for Brownback and could well lead to his departure from the race in the near future.

* Tancredo's fourth-place finish could well be a triumph for his campaign, which has been mired in the one or two percent range in most of the polling we've seen. His strident opposition to illegal immigration found a ready audience here in Ames, and Tancredo effectively turned that into votes. What does it mean for the future of his candidacy? Probably not much. But all of the frontrunners should heed the power of the immigration issue among Republican base voters.

* Paul's problem in this race was on vivid display here in Ames. While his supporters were fanatically loyal (and loud), not enough of them were from Iowa for him to make a major impact on the race. Paul has a rabid national following fueled by the Internet, but the nominating fight remains a state by state affair.

* Thompson (Tommy, that is) seems to have reached the end of his campaign. The four-term governor never seemed to hit his stride on the campaign trail, struggling to push out his message in a field of better-known, better-financed and more charismatic candidates. If he doesn't drop out in the next few days, we'd be stunned.

* Duncan Hunter finished behind two candidates -- Fred Thompson and Rudy Giuliani -- who didn't actively participate in the Straw Poll. Need we say more?

The biggest unknown of the race is Fred Thompson's candidacy. Thompson had a small, unofficial presence at Ames, but he is not yet an official candidate and won't be one until after Labor Day. There was some talk here today that Thompson had missed a golden opportunity to slow Romney's momentum in the state by not participating. Maybe. Thompson will be in Iowa next week and we'll wait to pass judgement on his chances here until he has been in the race for a month or two,

Thanks for sticking with us through this great week in Iowa. That's all folks!

Source: http://www.jonesreport.com/articles/140807_romney_joke_cheating.html

I thought 5th place was a decent finish for the moment, considering Romney spent way mroe money on the event. Paul still managed to beat out Guiliani and Mccain.

Nice that Romney's guy is running the POS diebold machine to begin with...

Your more of a conspiratist than I am. I don't really buy the whole Romney rigged the poll. Even if he did what would it accomplish? To demotivate the supporters of Ron Paul and other candidates? If anything this should motivate us more to spread the message even farther to make up for the lacking in the poll and increase our overall support. Majority of Ron Paul supporters truely believe in this cause and aren't going to give up over a poll. We should only find motivation to try harder because of the poll numbers.

This thing was pure bullshit, the candidates paid the people's tickets to attend in hopes of supporting them. Anyhow this means nothing....come Nov. '08 is when votes really mean something.