State Representative Mike Boland, announced
recently that he will introduce legislation to provide for automatic recounts
of election results in close contests and to outlaw the use of butterfly
style ballots in Illinois.
Boland, the chairman of the Illinois House
of Representatives committee on Election and campaign reform stated that,
'The situation in Florida has brought to the fore the need for reform in
Illinois.' Boland's proposed legislation would outlaw the confusing butterfly
ballot used in Florida in all executive, legislative, and judicial elections
with one exception.
That exception would be for judicial retention
ballots in counties over 1,000,000 population (Cook County). 'The legislation
would allow for an exception for Cook County because a change would greatly
lengthen the ballot and present social practical problems using the current
punch card system,' Boland said.
Boland's legislation would require a study
by the State Board of Elections of alternative methods to the current Butterfly
ballot for judicial retention. 'We need to make sure throughout Illinois
that we never have a situation where we have tens of thousands of citizens
being confused and marking their ballot incorrectly from their intention
as happened in Palm Beach County, Florida,'Boland stated. 'especially in
a critical election for the Presidency for state wide office.'
The legislation to be introduced in January
2001 would state clearly that on al ballots the name of the candidate would
have to be on the left with the punch holes or other means of marking to
the right.
Boland declared, 'There is also a need
for legislation to provide for automatic machine recounts in contests in
which the winning margin was 1% or less and allow for an automatic hand
recount if the winning margin was one-half of one percent or less.'
Under current Illinois law thee is no provision
for automatic recount of election returns. Boland pointed to the ultra
close gubernatorial election of 1986 between James R. Thompson and Adlai
Stevenson as a episode in which a full statewide recount was called for,
but was not granted by the Illinois Supreme Court.' Illinois law is still
confusing on this matter,' Boland emphasized.
Boland, a downstate Democrat from East
Moline also decried the current law that requires the candidate asking
for the recount to pay the cost. 'This puts democracy up for sale, saying
only those of personal wealth or with powerful backers are entitled to
a fair and full counting of the ballots.'
To those crying about manual recounts in
Florida, Boland said 'hand recounts are common practice in many states.
Governor George W. Bush signed a bill three years ago establishing hand
recounts as election law in Texas and was quoted at the time as saying
that hand recounts were the most reliable form of counting.'
'I'm sure he approves of the victory of
one of his Republican state legislators due to a hand recount in Texas
this month,' Boland added. 'Maybe he only disapproves of hand recounts
if requested by Democrats.' 'My bill would take this issue out of partisan
hands and enhance the political image of Illinois.