Volusia County results may be attributable to computer error.

[Andy Martin]

The Daytona Beach News-Journal indicates that the big discrepancies in the 
Volusia county vote were actually the cause of a disk error in a 
computer.  It looks like these votes were nonexistent, as opposed to 
missing Gore votes as I initially suspected.
http://www.news-journalonline.com/2000/Nov/9/AREA1.htm

I think there are still questions about the accuracy of Volusia's 
recount:  There are a number of discrepancies from the original count to 
the recount that the news-journal story doesn't answer on point:

11/7:  Total Votes= 198,320 
(http://elect.cbsig.net/campaign2000results/county/county_flop-0.html)
11/8:  Total Votes= 183,256 (http://volusia.org/11-8c-00.htm)

7%V= percentage won in Volusia county (as reported 11/7).
7%S= percentage won in the rest of the state (all counties excluding 
Volusia).  (as reported 11/7).
8%V= percentage won in Volusia county (as reported 11/8).
MISSING VOTES=15064

         GORE            BUSH            BUCHANAN                NADER 

      BROWNE

11/7:   97,063          82,214          396                     2,436 

     3,211

7%V:    48.94           41.45           .20                     1.23 

     1.62

7%S:    .4708           .4735           .284                    1.581 

     .0262

11/8:   97,063          82,214          496                     2,903 

     442

8%V     52.96           44.863          .2707                   1.584 

     .2412

         HAEGLIN 
HARRIS  MCREYNOLDS              MOOREHEAD               PHILLIPS

         33              9,888           3                       59 

              2,927

7%V:    .0166           4.99            .0015                   .0297 

             1.48

7%S:    .0375           .00973          .02124                  .0295 

             .0227

11/8:   36              8               5                       69 

             20

8%V:    .0196           .0044           .00273                  .03765 

             .0109

The final result of Volusia county may be clear upon a hand recount 
demanded by Gore officials.  I believe that will occur this weekend.  It is 
curious that there is no official explanation given by the county officials 
in charge of overseeing the recount.  They reported that

                     "The Canvassing Board for Volusia County's general 
election

                           completed the state mandated recount of the 
Presidential vote

                           at 8 p.m., Wednesday, November 8. There were no 
changes in

                           the unofficial returns in the Presidential race.
There are changes from the unofficial returns - the above numbers make that 
clear.

I'm wondering about the validity of the numbers in this county if there are 
changes in the vote totals of _every single candidate_ other than Gore and 
Bush from the original vote to the recount.

It unfortunately looks like my theory was wrong.  There is still something 
going on in Volusia county, but it is not as significant as it initially 
looked.

Andy Martin
University of Chicago

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