Candidate asks federal court to preserve evidence

Associated Press   24 December 2004

COLUMBUS, Ohio - One of two minor-party presidential candidates who paid for a recount of the Ohio vote has asked a federal court to control access to voting machines and election records used in the recount.

Green Party candidate David Cobb made the request in U.S. District Court in Columbus on Thursday.

"It is time for the federal judiciary to step in and ensure the integrity of the recount in Ohio," Cobb said in a statement.

Ohio and its 20 electoral votes were the difference in the presidential race. On Dec. 6, Ohio Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell declared President Bush the official winner in the state by 119,000 votes over Democrat John Kerry.

The recount, for which Cobb and Libertarian candidate Michael Badnarik paid $113,600, began the week of Dec. 13. With 87 of 88 county boards of election reporting, Bush had picked up another 346 votes and Kerry an additional 494. Lucas County was expected to release its recount totals next week.

The court filing claims that "voting machines in multiple counties may have been tampered with during the recount."