Florida recounting votes, again

[Ron Burgundy]

AFP - Florida is recounting votes again, six years after the southeastern state gained international notoriety for holding up the outcome of the 2000 presidential election.

Authorities in Sarasota started a recount and an audit of ballots cast in the county in last week's mid-term US elections, after an unusually high number of abstentions were recorded.

The recount will be done electronically, as the punch-card system blamed for much of the 2000 debacle is now banned in Florida.

Ironically, the latest Florida recount was for the congressional seat left vacant by Katherine Harris, who as the state official in charge of the 2000 election in Florida was widely blamed for the electoral chaos at the time.

The recount was ordered following reports that 18,000 of the 140,000 people who cast ballots in Sarasota voted in local elections but not in the congressional race.

"This is a staggering number," said Democratic congressional candidate Catherine Jennings, who lost the disputed election to Republican Vern Buchanan.

Jennings and local media said hundreds of people reported having problems with the electronic voting machines.

"Given our level of concern about this race and the number of voters who did not chose a candidate, we are paying very serious attention to the matter," said Florida Secretary of State Sue Cobb.