Categories: Blog Central, Capital Read, Inside the Queensway

UPDATED: Vancouver South Recount: Reports of its completion are greatly exaggerated

by kadyomalley on Monday, November 3, 2008 11:26am - 31 Comments

There was a brief moment of panicked confusion at the ITQ RecountWatch desk this morning after Commenter (and blogger in her own right) Joanne noticed that Elections Canada had upgraded the status of the Vancouver South recount to “completed”. But if you check the date, it seems that those are the results as initially certified by the judge on October 24, 2008 — the day of the original (and, at the time, ostensibly finalized) “partial” recount of rejected and special ballots (plus a dozen or so handpicked ballot boxes) that sparked the original controversy over whether the Conservative candidate, Wai Young, had, in fact, conceded, and eventually led the judge to reverse his decision and go back to counting the remaining ballots by hand.

According to ITQ’s source on the ground in Vancouver, the hand count will resume today, as scheduled. The numbers that currently appear on the Elections Canada site were, indeed, certified by a judge, but have not yet been validated, which, as far as ITQ understands the process, will not occur until everyone in Vancouver South is satisfied with the results of the recount.

(Incidentally, we’ve been told – unofficially, of course – that there has been almost no movement in the numbers since the recount got back underway on Friday – by the end of the day, the margin had changed by just one vote– in Ujjal Dosanjh’s favour, no less. Oh, if only we were in British Columbia to chronicle the hijinx in realtime, although I bet the judge wouldn’t look kindly on a liveblogger in his counting room.)

For the full Vancouver South Recount backstory – well, the ITQ version thereof, anyway – start here.

UPDATE: According to the Vancouver Sun, with more than 80% of the boxes counted, the margin has shrunk to 21 (from 22). They’re hoping to finish up tomorrow.

Tags: elections canada, i hope they get lunch, Ujjal Dosanjh, vancouver south recount, wai young

More by kadyomalley

http://www.macleans.ca Kady O’Malley

MYL – I think I agree with you on removing it as an option for a mandatory recount, but I do think it should be available for a second candidate who successfully applies for a recount, but realizes after the process has gotten underway that there is no chance he or she will be able to make up the difference.
dan in van

Again, it appears that Young either misunderstood the judge’s question or didn’t have her Harper approved marching orders while in lock-up. But if the CON army wants to paint this as part of a big conspiracy, justice denied, don’t let reality get in your way MYL.
madeyoulook

Kady, the option of abandoning something that is mandatory makes a mockery of the word mandatory.

Dan, check your meds. I am part of no army, and I see no conspiracy. If one must be a CON soldier for wanting the will of the people to carry…
http://www.macleans.ca Kady O’Malley

MYL – But requested recounts *aren’t* mandatory — they’re purely elective, provided that the applicant convinces a judge that there may have been procedural errors or miscounted votes. That’s why I don’t necessarily think the same rules should apply as far as requiring a full ballot by ballot to take place even if the applicant has conceded. (Vancouver South is, of course, a mandatory recount, so would not be affected.)
madeyoulook

Sorry, Kady, I was agreeing with you. On re-read, I was agreeing with you awkwardly. We are on precisely the same page, I think, about mandatory recount vs. candidate’s elective challenges.
http://www.bluelikeyou.com/ Joanne (T.B.)

…great minds think alike!

Heh. And Kady, I’m going to agree with you on your reply to MYL. There is a huge difference between a mandatory vs. requested recount, and the latter may even be subject to costs being assumed by the applicant, depending on the circumstances (as I understand it).

So it only makes sense for the applicant to call off the process once he or she realizes that pursuing the situation even further is futile (as was the case in Esquimalt-Juan de Fuca when the number of disputed ballots was less than the spread between the two candidates.)