Christine Gregoire on Principles & Values Democratic WA Governor

2004 recount battle determined by absentee ballots

There was a presumption in the Franken camp that Coleman would engage in the same sort of absentee-ballot pursuit. But in years past, absentee voters, often older, tilted toward the Republicans.

The next day, the absentee-ballot universe was raised in a conference call of the still-forming Franken legal team. [One attorney] recalled how absentee ballots helped Christine Gregoire, Washington's governor, in her 2004 recount and election contest. The absentees flipped Gregoire's results and her reelection over Republican Dino Rossi. "Go for the absentees," he told his colleagues on the call. "Trust me, they screwed it up. People's signatures change. They get strokes." Stuff happens. Voters mess up. So do election officials.