By challenging the electoral vote this week, a small group of Democrats in Congress wanted to call attention to irregularities in Ohio that might have tainted November's presidential elections. They did not contend that the problems cost John Kerry the election, nor did they expect to stop George W. Bush from being certified as the winner. But it was a worthwhile gesture that underscores the need for new election standards.

Bush won nationwide, with 286 electoral votes to Kerry's 251, and Ohio was pivotal to his victory. Bush won the state by 118,000 votes amid questions about the allocation of voting machines, handling of provisional ballots, reports of voter intimidation and a slew of alleged irregularities. For example, more than 92,600 votes for president weren't counted, disproportionately affecting minority and Democratic voters, because either no vote was recorded for the race, or too many. In one county, improperly calibrated electronic machines transferred an unknown number of Kerry votes to Bush. Election officials say the problem was fixed, but there was no indication of how many votes were affected.

Ohio Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell initially directed that voter registrations not printed on paper with a certain thickness be rejected. The number of registrations rejected before Blackwell reversed this order was not disclosed.

In a joint session, the House and Senate on Thursday overwhelmingly affirmed Bush's triumph. But only after the Democrats staged a rare challenge against an entire state's electors - for only the second time since the 19th century. A few hours of debate ensued in each chamber.

Election reform might as well begin with Blackwell. As secretary of state, he supervises Ohio elections. Meanwhile, he headed the state Bush-Cheney campaign. New regulations should disallow such a clear conflict of interest.

Sen. Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey said he will introduce legislation to ensure that federal election campaign officials are not linked to a particular party or candidate. We also urge Congress to amend the 2002 Help America Vote Act to require computer voting systems to leave paper records. In addition, the use of provisional ballots should be standardized across the states. In Colorado, voters who file provisional ballots can only vote for president, not for other federal offices. That makes no sense. Voters deserve to have confidence in America's election system.

© Denver Post

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