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Economic Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Economic Times
Kamala Harris voters ‘erased' in Rockland? New York lawsuit says ‘check the paper': What we know so far
TIL Creatives Kamala Harris election result sparks legal review of Trump's 2024 win after a lawsuit claims vote count errors in New York's Rockland County. With a recount possible, the case could impact election laws and voting machine transparency across the U.S. A New York Supreme Court judge has allowed a lawsuit challenging the accuracy of the 2024 election results in Rockland County to move forward. The case, filed by SMART Legislation—an election integrity group—alleges that both the presidential and U.S. Senate vote counts show irregularities serious enough to warrant a full hand recount. Justice Rachel Tanguay ruled in May that the evidence raised in the suit was sufficient for the discovery process to begin. This legal step will allow plaintiffs to subpoena records, question election officials under oath, and analyse original paper ballots. The lawsuit names SMART Legislation, the advocacy wing of SMART Elections, as the lead plaintiff. The core of the lawsuit revolves around vote totals that, on paper, do not match what voters say happened at the polls. In some districts, hundreds of people reportedly voted for Democratic candidates like Senator Kirsten Gillibrand but not for Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee. In several of these same districts, Harris received zero voters in District 39 swore in affidavits that they had voted for independent U.S. Senate candidate Diane Sare. The Rockland County Board of Elections recorded only five such votes. In District 62, five voters reported casting ballots for Sare, but only three were counted."This is a nearly 50% shortfall in one case," said Lulu Friesdat, founder and executive director of SMART Legislation. "There is clear evidence that the Senate results are incorrect, and there are statistical indications that the presidential results are highly unlikely. If the results are incorrect, it is a violation of the constitutional rights of each person who voted in the 2024 Rockland County general election." Also Read: Kamala Harris won the U.S elections: Bombshell report claims voting machines were tampered with before 2024Another key focus of the lawsuit is the "drop-off rate"—a term used to describe when voters cast a ballot for one race but leave others blank or vote across party lines.A drop-off of 1–2% is considered normal. In Rockland County, however, analysts found figures that were anything but. Harris received 9% fewer votes than Gillibrand—a negative drop-off rate—while Donald Trump received 23% more votes than the Republican Senate numbers are statistically rare. According to Max Bonamente, a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, 'These data would require extreme sociological or political causes for their explanation, and would benefit from further assurances as to their fidelity.'Bonamente, who authored Statistics and Analysis of Scientific Data, will publish a forthcoming paper based on the Rockland data. His findings suggest that the results in four of the five towns in the county are 'statistically highly unlikely' compared with data from 2020. Also Read: 2024 US Presidential election is under scrutiny as lawsuit claims discrepancies in Rockland County, New York Though election anomalies have been reported elsewhere, Rockland is the first county where they are being formally challenged in court. Similar issues surfaced in Clark County, Nevada and parts of Pennsylvania, where bomb threats and machine malfunctions disrupted makes Rockland stand out is the level of documentation and voter testimony. Beyond the affidavits, many Democrats in the area have reported being turned away from polling places, being told they had already voted, or checking ballot tracking systems only to find their vote was marked as 'not cast.'Friesdat emphasised the need for a transparent recount: 'The best way to determine if the results are correct is to examine the paper ballots in a full public, transparent hand recount of all presidential and Senate ballots in Rockland County. We believe it's vitally important, especially in the current environment, to be absolutely confident about the results of the election.' Also Read: Kamala Harris election result: Trump's victory under scrutiny as lawsuit filed - here's what could happen next Costas Panagopoulos, a political science professor at Northeastern University, welcomed scrutiny but urged against assuming foul play.'Statistical irregularities in elections should always be investigated, but the sources of such inconsistencies, which can include error or miscalculation, are not always nefarious,' he said. 'Scrutinising election results can strengthen confidence in elections. Mistakes can happen.'He added: 'In any case, it does not appear that any of these inconsistencies would be sufficient to change the outcomes of any of the elections in question in New York state. That does not mean they should not be scrutinised.'A court hearing has been scheduled for 22 September. Plaintiffs are expected to request a manual recount of every presidential and Senate ballot cast in Rockland County. Depositions and forensic analysis of voting systems may also the lawsuit cannot overturn certified results, it may expose deeper vulnerabilities in local election systems—and prompt reforms ahead of future elections. As Friesdat put it, 'It's about protecting each voter's voice, and ensuring the vote they cast is the vote that counts.'
Time of India
2 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Kamala Harris voters ‘erased' in Rockland? New York lawsuit says ‘check the paper': What we know so far
Voter reports and unusual numbers trigger alarm Live Events Drop-off data and statistical red flags Why this county, why now? Experts urge caution, not alarm (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel A New York Supreme Court judge has allowed a lawsuit challenging the accuracy of the 2024 election results in Rockland County to move forward. The case, filed by SMART Legislation—an election integrity group—alleges that both the presidential and U.S. Senate vote counts show irregularities serious enough to warrant a full hand Rachel Tanguay ruled in May that the evidence raised in the suit was sufficient for the discovery process to begin. This legal step will allow plaintiffs to subpoena records, question election officials under oath, and analyse original paper ballots. The lawsuit names SMART Legislation , the advocacy wing of SMART Elections , as the lead core of the lawsuit revolves around vote totals that, on paper, do not match what voters say happened at the polls. In some districts, hundreds of people reportedly voted for Democratic candidates like Senator Kirsten Gillibrand but not for Kamala Harris , the Democratic presidential nominee. In several of these same districts, Harris received zero voters in District 39 swore in affidavits that they had voted for independent U.S. Senate candidate Diane Sare. The Rockland County Board of Elections recorded only five such votes. In District 62, five voters reported casting ballots for Sare, but only three were counted."This is a nearly 50% shortfall in one case," said Lulu Friesdat, founder and executive director of SMART Legislation. "There is clear evidence that the Senate results are incorrect, and there are statistical indications that the presidential results are highly unlikely. If the results are incorrect, it is a violation of the constitutional rights of each person who voted in the 2024 Rockland County general election."Another key focus of the lawsuit is the "drop-off rate"—a term used to describe when voters cast a ballot for one race but leave others blank or vote across party lines.A drop-off of 1–2% is considered normal. In Rockland County, however, analysts found figures that were anything but. Harris received 9% fewer votes than Gillibrand—a negative drop-off rate—while Donald Trump received 23% more votes than the Republican Senate numbers are statistically rare. According to Max Bonamente, a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, 'These data would require extreme sociological or political causes for their explanation, and would benefit from further assurances as to their fidelity.'Bonamente, who authored Statistics and Analysis of Scientific Data, will publish a forthcoming paper based on the Rockland data. His findings suggest that the results in four of the five towns in the county are 'statistically highly unlikely' compared with data from election anomalies have been reported elsewhere, Rockland is the first county where they are being formally challenged in court. Similar issues surfaced in Clark County, Nevada and parts of Pennsylvania, where bomb threats and machine malfunctions disrupted makes Rockland stand out is the level of documentation and voter testimony. Beyond the affidavits, many Democrats in the area have reported being turned away from polling places, being told they had already voted, or checking ballot tracking systems only to find their vote was marked as 'not cast.'Friesdat emphasised the need for a transparent recount: 'The best way to determine if the results are correct is to examine the paper ballots in a full public, transparent hand recount of all presidential and Senate ballots in Rockland County. We believe it's vitally important, especially in the current environment, to be absolutely confident about the results of the election.'Costas Panagopoulos, a political science professor at Northeastern University, welcomed scrutiny but urged against assuming foul play.'Statistical irregularities in elections should always be investigated, but the sources of such inconsistencies, which can include error or miscalculation, are not always nefarious,' he said. 'Scrutinising election results can strengthen confidence in elections. Mistakes can happen.'He added: 'In any case, it does not appear that any of these inconsistencies would be sufficient to change the outcomes of any of the elections in question in New York state. That does not mean they should not be scrutinised.'A court hearing has been scheduled for 22 September. Plaintiffs are expected to request a manual recount of every presidential and Senate ballot cast in Rockland County. Depositions and forensic analysis of voting systems may also the lawsuit cannot overturn certified results, it may expose deeper vulnerabilities in local election systems—and prompt reforms ahead of future elections. As Friesdat put it, 'It's about protecting each voter's voice, and ensuring the vote they cast is the vote that counts.'
Newsweek
2 days ago
- Politics
- Newsweek
2024 Election Results Under Scrutiny as Lawsuit Advances
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A legal case questioning the accuracy of the 2024 election is moving forward. The lawsuit, brought by SMART Legislation, the action arm of SMART Elections, a nonpartisan watchdog group, filed the lawsuit over voting discrepancies in Rockland County, New York. Judge Rachel Tanguay of the New York Supreme Court ruled in open court in May that the allegations were serious enough for discovery to proceed. Newsweek has contacted SMART Elections for comment via email. People cast their ballots on the last day of early voting for the general election in Michigan at the Livingston Educational Service Agency in Howell on November 3, 2024. People cast their ballots on the last day of early voting for the general election in Michigan at the Livingston Educational Service Agency in Howell on November 3, 2024. Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images Why It Matters The lawsuit could renew debate about the 2024 election, though it won't change the outcome since Congress has certified the results declaring President Donald Trump the winner. It comes amid unconfirmed reports that voting machines were secretly altered before ballots were cast in November's election. The federally accredited testing lab, Pro V&V, that signed off on "significant" changes to ES&S voting machines—which are used in over 40 percent of U.S. counties—"vanished from public view" after the election, according to the Dissent in Bloom Substack. What To Know According to the complaint, more voters have sworn in legal affidavits that they voted for independent U.S. Senate candidate Diane Sare than the Rockland County Board of Elections counted and certified, contradicting those results. The complaint also cited numerous statistical anomalies in the presidential election results. They include multiple districts where hundreds of voters chose the Democratic candidate Kirsten Gillibrand for Senate, but none voted for former Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate for president. Max Bonamente, a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Alabama in Huntsville and the author of the Statistics and Analysis of Scientific Data, said in a paper that the 2024 presidential election results were statistically highly unlikely in four of the five towns in Rockland County when compared with 2020 results. What People Are Saying Lulu Friesdat, the founder and executive director of SMART Legislation, said in a statement: "There is clear evidence that the Senate results are incorrect, and there are statistical indications that the presidential results are highly unlikely. "If the results are incorrect, it is a violation of the constitutional rights of each person who voted in the 2024 Rockland County general election. The best way to determine if the results are correct is to examine the paper ballots in a full public, transparent hand recount of all presidential and Senate ballots in Rockland County. We believe it's vitally important, especially in the current environment, to be absolutely confident about the results of the election." Max Bonamente said in a paper on the voting data from Rockland County: "These data would require extreme sociological or political causes for their explanation, and would benefit from further assurances as to their fidelity." Costas Panagopoulos, a professor of political science at Northeastern University, told Newsweek: "Statistical irregularities in elections should always be investigated, but the sources of such inconsistencies, which can include error or miscalculation, are not always nefarious. Still, scrutinizing election results can strengthen confidence in elections. Mistakes can happen. "In this case, the drop-off inconsistencies could reflect the idiosyncratic nature of the 2024 presidential election cycle. Alone, statistical comparisons to previous cycles cannot provide definitive proof of wrongdoing. "In any case, it does not appear that any of these inconsistencies would be sufficient to change the outcomes of any of the elections in question in New York state. That does not mean they should not be scrutinized, and any errors, if verified, should be corrected for the historical record. But there is not necessarily any need to invalidate any of these elections in these jurisdictions." What's Next The lawsuit is seeking a full, hand recount of ballots cast in the presidential and U.S. Senate races in Rockland County. A hearing has been scheduled for September 22.
