The results for the machine vote for he November Special Election are in and it has Tim Occhipinti leading Mike Lenz by 50 votes 841 to791 or 51.8% to 48.2%. Hoboken 411 declared this margin a romp. Since when is a 3% margin of victory a romp, unless of course embedded blogger Perry Klaussen already knows how the absentee ballots will go? And how would the not so dynamic duo of Perry and Lane know how the absentee ballots go? That would imply that whoever distributed or mailed in those ballots knew the results ahead of time and reported the out.
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| The Machine votes for Lenz vs. Occhipinti 4th Ward City Council |
With the machine totals clearly in Tim's favor the election outcome is fairly certain. Tim appears to have won on the machines but the vote by mail process employed by Tim's camp still raises questions. Based on my reading of the Hoboken Patch article the Lenz campaign is evaluating his options not in hope of overturning the election but in getting to the bottom of these alleged irregularities.
Operation Bounty still remains in effect and was never designed to suppress the vote or to get one candidate elected over another as Tim Occhipinti's campaign insinuated. Operation Bounty was created independently to give a financial incentive to those who may have witnessed untoward activities regarding vote by mail procedures and the paying of campaign workers for their votes. When 78 out of 79 vote by mail ballots turned in are all paid Tim Occhipinti workers that is more than simply an anomaly! So far there are 4 people who have sworn testimony that they were paid for their vote by Tim's campaign. Will there be more who come forward? Email me at kurt.gardiner@gmail.com if you would like to come forward and claim your reward. Remember there is only payout upon conviction but Roman Brice and I still stand behind our pledge of $2000 in total reward(s) to be given out.
It would appear that the election could be certified in time not for tonight's City Council meeting but the next one after that.
http://hoboken.patch.com/articles/occhipinti-win-shifts-power-on-city-council#c ◦
