After the 2000 Bush v. Gore recount debacle, governors and secretaries of state across the country vowed they didn't want to be the next Florida.

With a huge focus on hanging chads, voting machines and recount procedures, everyone understood how broken the system was in the Sunshine State.

Well, here in the Golden State, nearly 14 years later, we still don't have it right, as the current recount in the race for state controller demonstrates. In fact, we have a mess: recount rules that favor wealthier candidates and can drag out tallying for months.

Since lawmakers are usually reactive rather than proactive, now is the time, while our own little debacle plays out, to institute a system that's fair and timely.

As a refresher, Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin, a Republican, finished first in the June primary for state controller. At issue is which candidate finished second and will face her in the November general election.

According to the official results, Board of Equalization member Betty Yee beat fellow Democrat and former Assembly Speaker John Perez by 481 votes, or about 1/100th of 1 percent of the ballots cast in the race.

Perez has demanded a recount, and in doing so, has exposed horrible flaws in our state's system:

  • Any registered California voter can ask for a recount -- but must pay the cost. That opens the system to abuse by wealthy people or well-funded candidates while shutting out legitimate requests by others.


  • A recount request can specify individual counties rather than the entire state. Thus a candidate can cherry pick those counties where he or she did well and stands a better chance of picking up votes.

  • The request can specify the recount order, determining which counties and even which precincts are checked first. Thus the tallying can be conducted sequentially from county to county, rather than concurrently.

  • During or after the recount, another individual or candidate can seek a recount in the remaining counties. In this case, if Perez picks up votes in the counties he strategically selected, Yee could then ask for a new tally in counties that might favor her -- assuming she manages to find money to pay for it.

    This system is absurd. Eighteen states require publicly funded, automatic recounts for very close races. California lawmakers should establish the same rules here.

    Razor-thin elections like this are rare. But we should be prepared for the day when all eyes are on California.