Gore Vidal Introduces First Print Edition of Congressional Committee Hearings into 2004 Presidential Election in Ohio

What Went Wrong in Ohio (ISBN 089733-535-X, May 05) is the official record of testimony taken by the Democratic Members and Staff of the House Judiciary Committee, presided over by Rep. John Conyers of Michigan, the Ranking Member. Originally released online in January, 2005, it has been edited and re-designed for maximum readability. Both a riveting and alarming report on the status of our ailing presidential election process, this book provides new insights into the abuse and manipulation of electronic voting machines and the arbitrary and illegal behavior of a number of elected and election officials which effectively disenfranchised tens of thousands of voters in order to change the outcome of an election. The material in this report should be used as a guidebook to fixing our federal elections.

(PRWEB) May 28, 2005 -This is a report, now available in book form for the first time, of the hearings conducted by the Democratic Members and Staff of the House Judiciary Committee, of which Rep. John Conyers is Ranking Member.

What Went Wrong in Ohio: The Conyers Report on the 2004 Presidential Election (Academy Chicago Publishers, 154pp, paperback, $10.95, 0-89733-535-X) is the official transcript of these hearings-not theory, not speculation-but the testimony of elected and election officials of both Democratic and Republican parties; representatives of the Triad voting machine company; poll watchers and observers and innumerable voters. It is a record of massive manipulation of the law and massive manipulation of electronic voting machines, which created long lines in Democratic precincts, where too few machines were allocated, while Republican precincts received more machines than were needed.

It is a record also of the public statements and actions of election officials and others involved in the Ohio election process, especially those of Ohio

Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell who was, during this same period, also co-Chair of the Ohio Bush re-election committee. Mr Blackwells application of the law before, during and after the election, involved, according to the Committee, a series of deliberate violations of the Ohio Revised Code which, in turn, led to countless violations of voters rights.

In the books Executive Summary, the Committee states:

We have found numerous serious election irregularities in the Ohio presidential election which resulted in significant disenfranchisement of voters. Cumulatively, these irregularities, which affected hundreds of votes and voters in Ohio, raise grave doubts about whether it can be said that the Ohio electors selected on December 13, 2004, were chosen in a manner conforming to Ohio law, let alone Federal requirements and constitutional standards."

Anita Miller, editor of What Went Wrong In Ohio, said: These are facts, not theories or speculations and they demonstrate all too clearly the need for electoral reform. As Bob Kerrey has said, this report '...should be required reading for all who believe the right to vote is fundamental to freedom and the spirit of democracy."

The Committees report was released in early January of 2005 and some of its findings were fleetingly mentioned in the press. This volume, however, is the first book publication of the reports complete text.

# # #