Charlie Brown has been one of Blue America's priority candidates for Congress for over 3 years now. We first got behind him when he was running an impossible race in one of California's most Republican districts-- the PVI is an astounding R+11-- against crooked right-wing extremist John Doolittle. In 2006 Charlie drew 97,217 votes (vs 104,746) and held Doolittle to under 50%. Doolittle and his wife have been indicted on corruption charges and he decided not to run again and the California GOP got behind an even more extreme right-wing fringe candidate, Tom McClintock, a carpetbagger from L.A.

Today, with around 50,000 votes left to count, this is a 50/50 race, the Secretary of State's website showing that just 889 votes separate Charlie and McClintock. If all votes get counted, Charlie will win. McClintock and his lawyers will do all they can to prevent that from happening. In a letter to supporters yesterday, McClintock admitted that when the bulk of votes from Nevada County show up on the board this week, he will have a deficit.

McClintock's legal team will challenge every vote for Charlie and these battles are costly. Blue America is working on the DCCC to help and we hope to make an announcement about that in a few days. Meanwhile we want to urge anyone who still has anything they can spare to chip in to Charlie Brown's campaign fund. Even $5 and $10 donations help and you can do it right here at the Crooks & Liars Blue America page. This isn't a race about just "more Democrats;" this is a race about a BETTER Democrat, a much better Democrat.

Seattle:

This election was the closest in state history. In the first count, Dino Rossi won by 261 votes. Under state law, this is considered "too close to call" and a recount is required. After this first recount, Rossi's lead was shortened to 42 votes. Because this was even closer, Gregoire and other Democrats raised approximately $800,000 to hold a statewide manual recount. She won this by only 129 votes, out of a total of 2.8 million.

To ensure fairness and accuracy in the hand recount, teams of Republican and Democratic counters worked together in the counting. They were watched over by observers, who were free to stop the count if they had a question or concern.

Rossi has threatened on several occasions to file a lawsuit in the state Supreme Court. He also has asked Gregoire to agree to a runoff election.

"This ain't golf," Gregoire's spokesman said. "No mulligans allowed here, folks."

State chairman says it's Gregoire by 8 votes

OLYMPIA, Wash. - The head of the state Democratic Party said late Tuesday that recount results from King County give Democrat Christine Gregoire an eight-vote victory in the closest governor’s race.Neither King County nor the Republican party could confirm the hand recount results on Tuesday night. But if the Democrats’ analysis is correct, it’s a stunning reversal in the gubernatorial race, which has been hotly contested ever since election day...

Judge blocks counting of recently discovered ballots

A judge Friday granted a state Republican Party request to block the counting of hundreds of recently discovered King County ballots in the governor’s race, which the GOP’s candidate is winning by just a few dozen votes. Even if the election workers wrongly rejected the ballots — 150 of which were discovered Friday — it is too late for King County to reconsider them now, Pierce County Superior Court Judge Stephanie Arend said...read on...

Just asking:  if a ballot is cast and someone misplaces it; is it really a ballot?