Today’s the day, finally, when the Virginia State Board of Election certifies the state’s election results from November 5. Photo to the right courtesy of Del. Bob Brink’s Facebook page…posted 6 minutes ago. Updates as I get them…
UPDATE 10:21 am: Ed Sykes (@EdSykes29) of NBC29 tweets, “SBE Chair Judd & Secretary Palmer publicly reviewing #VAAG results from each Virginia locality” (Sykes later corrects to say it’s actually Judd and “Chris Piper, Mgr of Election Services”)
UPDATE 10:29 am: The State Board of Elections (@VirginiaSBE) tweets, “Certification of results of the November 5, 2013 general election is underway at the General Assembly Building.”
UPDATE 10:34 am: Markus Schmidt (@MSchmidtRTD) of the RTD tweets, “SBE members about to sign attorney general certificate for @SenMarkHerring #Vagov pic.twitter.com/WvxYGMYu31 ” (see photo below)
*UPDATE 10:34 am: Julian Walker (@PilotOnPolitics) of the Virginian Pilot tweets, “After certification count #vaag, @SenMarkHerring leads @MarkObenshain by 165 votes out of 2.2 mill”
*UPDATE 10:44 am: @EdSykes29 tweets, “Wow – SBE Chair Charlie Judd, in a personal statement, says he casts his vote ‘with question’ over the integrity of the election data” (note that Judd is a big-time Republican)
*UPDATE 10:47 am: @MSchmidtRTD tweets, “Wondering if Judd’s concern with integrity of election opened the door for @MarkObenshain to contest if recount won’t sway results.” Sure seems like it.
*UPDATE 10:51 am: OK, Senator Obenshain, since you’re such a “fiscal conservative,” why not save Virginia taxpayers some money and concede the race, since you were just certified by the SBE as having LOST it?!?
*UPDATE 10:56 am: @jeisrael of ThinkProgress tweets, “McDonnell’s SBE chair doesn’t trust own agency.”
*UPDATE 10:59 am: @QuentinKidd of Christopher Newport University tweets, “SBE Chair Charlie Judd calls into question the integrity of the election..”
*UPDATE 11:00 am: Check this out: “Charles E. Judd worked for Jerry Falwell’s Moral Majority from 1984 to 1988…was executive director of the Ohio GOP from 1977 to 1979 — when he became deputy finance director of the Republican National Committee and moved to Virginia.” Hmmm.
*UPDATE 11:02 am: Rep. Gerry Connolly’s Chief of Staff @JamesWalkinshaw tweets, “Congrats to Attny Gen-elect @SenMarkHerring. Election results are certified. Note to media…He is no longer ‘ahead by 165 votes.’ He won.”
*UPDATE 11:08 am: @chelyendavis of the F’burg Free Lance Star tweets, “In statement, @MarkObenshain lists Va recount history, says recount decision ‘not to be made lightly’. Is considering it, has 10 days.” That’s bizarre; I mean, he hasn’t been “considering” it for a couple weeks now?!?
*UPDATE 11:38 am: See Obenshain, Herring statements in the comments section of this post.
*UPDATE 11:49 am: Obenshain asserts – “There have been four statewide elections in the U.S. since 2000 that finished within a 300 vote margin. In three of those four statewide elections the results were reversed in a recount.” I found three statewide elections – Washington State Governor 2004; Vermont Auditor of Accounts election in 2006; Minnesota U.S. Senate race 2008 – that were reversed in a recount. Initially, the Republican was leading in all three, but after the recount, the Democrat won in all three. Interesting…
UPDATE 1:49 pm: Per the Daily Press, the Republican chair of the Virginia State Board of Elections says “he did not intend for his comments to encourage any legal challenge” and that “he had not been in contact with any of the campaigns or political parties about any problems they may have had with the count.” Hmmmm.
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