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Saturday Morning News

Could Legal Issues with the Ballots Compromise the Election?

Aired November 11, 2000 - 9:05 a.m. ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Now for some legal perspective on the vote count and recounts, we're joined live by CNN legal analyst Greta Van Susteren. She's in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Good morning, Greta.

GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Good morning, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Why don't we begin with New Mexico? They were talking about the damaged ballots that were thrown out as, quote unquote, "spoiled ballots." What are the legal issues here with these ballots?

VAN SUSTEREN: Well, let me tell you what's happened in New Mexico. Last night in two counties, people who ran for office sought to have the ballots impounded because they want to make sure they want to protect the integrity of the ballots. We are expecting later today that maybe more counties, people running for office, will also seek to have the ballot impounded. That has not happened yet, but it may happen today.

But what is happening in New Mexico is, because of the problems with the ballots and all the suspicions associated with it, is that different candidates are seeking to have them impounded, which simply means to change the custody, or to change the guard. While before it was with the clerk of courts, what they want to do is to move it to the state troopers.

That's so that if there are recounting of the ballots that they can be done in a secure fashion and that so people are satisfied. But that's what's going on in New Mexico.

PHILLIPS: OK, so let's take New Mexico and let's take what's happening in Florida. Could these discrepancies compromise the election, Greta?

VAN SUSTEREN: Oh, absolutely. And in fact the law even recognizes that, that when you have substantial irregularities -- and the key word here, Kyra, is substantial. What does it mean to have substantial irregularities?

But when there's substantial irregularities, under the election law -- and here the Florida supreme court has spoken directly to that issue -- what then happens is the judge then makes a determination, after finding that there are substantial irregularities, the judge then makes a determination whether or not it undermines the will of the people, whether or not the vote really, truly does reflect the will of the people in the voting area.

If it does, the judge then has several remedies, which can be as far as even to toss out the election. But again, that's the extreme, and we're -- at this point we simply don't know. That's only the state of the law. That may not be the state of the facts. This is an investigative procedure. This will be in court, and people are going to take a look at it and make a determination from them.

But I'm just merely telling you, the Florida law allows for it. I'm not necessarily saying that it's going to happen.

PHILLIPS: So Greta, you said -- I want to make sure you said it, toss out the election.

VAN SUSTEREN: Well, in the county. Let's say that, let's say a voter has brought a lawsuit in the county of Palm Beach and says, Look, there's substantial irregularities, and the judge takes a look at all the evidence during the course of the proceedings and concludes that there's substantial irregularities. Then the judge will make a determination whether it undermines the will of the electorate in Palm Beach County.

And the judge can then throw out the election in Palm Beach County. That's the extreme. I'm not saying it's going to happen, that's the extreme.

PHILLIPS: All right, we'll definitely be following all this with you, Greta, and all the court action going on.

Greta Van Susteren, thank you very much.

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