Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Live Today

Will Random Candidate Listing, Long Ballots Scare off Voters in California?

Aired August 12, 2003 - 11:08   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Now to the California recall. The vote may boil down to the old real estate adage "location, location, location."
The state is finalizing the ballot, randomly determining the order of names. And with 247 potential candidates the top of the ballot could turn out to be a prize piece of political property. Let's talk with national correspondent Bob Franken on duty in Los Angeles this morning. Hi, Bob.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well hello, Heidi. The only problem with that premise is that Arnold Schwarzenegger's name will not be at the top of the ballot. The movie star turned politician, just the latest in the line of people to do that out here, is the man to watch, the man we all have been watching as he campaigned quickly by allowing his name recognition to propel him to the favorite spot.

But, of course, there are an awful lot of other candidates to replace Gray Davis, the current governor, in case Davis is voted out in the recall. And because of the way California law operates their position on ballots is determined by a lottery, one like you've never seen before. They put all of the names, and they're about 200 of them at this point, subject to certification, put them in a barrel and had a lotto-like drawing that we saw on television yesterday.

And by the new alphabet the letter that won in the drawing was the letter "R." It's the one that replaces the letter "A" in this new California alphabet. And they did this for all 26 letters. What they do, however, it on ballots in each of the counties to continue the effort of fairness, they then rotate them. So "R" goes to the bottom. etc., etc.

But the problem is that the most principle of the candidates are all in the middle. That would include Schwarzenegger, that would include Arianna Huffington, Bill Simon, Peter Ueberroth, all of those look like that they're going to be in just about the middle. And, of course, the one who is really the one in the middle, so to speak of all of this, is the current governor, Gray Davis. The vote will first be should he be recalled? He still argues that it's totally unfair.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. GRAY DAVIS (D), CALIFORNIA: The recall is a bad idea. It's a waste of $70 million. And it, in my judgment, is an insult to the 8 million people who went to the polls last November to decide who was going to govern for the next four years.

I may be old-fashioned, but I come from the school where once an election is cast, and someone is chosen to be the leader, everyone gets behind that leader and does the people's business for the next four years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FRANKEN: There is the fatal flaw in the argument, Heidi, is he made the argument that he is old-fashioned, and that the old-fashioned ideas should prevail. And as we all know, nothing is ever old- fashioned in California, ever.

COLLINS: That's probably the case. Bob, also wondering, you know, the people of California now and this process that we are starting to learn about even today with putting the actual candidates on this random list, do you think that as far as the voters go that they are going to be scared away by how complicated this thing has become? Or will this actually bring them out to the polls?

FRANKEN: It could happen either way. Of course, people are laughing about it right now but it is going to be a mess. The elector -- election officials -- I'll get it out, yet -- the election officials are saying that there are going to be such huge ballots in their counties that it could take days to count things if things go as well as they can possibly go. So that might scare a few people away.

However, for the first time in a long time television stations are paying attention to an election. So that might bring people out. Who knows?

COLLINS: If the recall happens. All right.

FRANKEN: If the recall happens, yes.

COLLINS: Bob Franken, thanks so much today. Appreciate it.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Voters in California?>


Aired August 12, 2003 - 11:08   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Now to the California recall. The vote may boil down to the old real estate adage "location, location, location."
The state is finalizing the ballot, randomly determining the order of names. And with 247 potential candidates the top of the ballot could turn out to be a prize piece of political property. Let's talk with national correspondent Bob Franken on duty in Los Angeles this morning. Hi, Bob.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well hello, Heidi. The only problem with that premise is that Arnold Schwarzenegger's name will not be at the top of the ballot. The movie star turned politician, just the latest in the line of people to do that out here, is the man to watch, the man we all have been watching as he campaigned quickly by allowing his name recognition to propel him to the favorite spot.

But, of course, there are an awful lot of other candidates to replace Gray Davis, the current governor, in case Davis is voted out in the recall. And because of the way California law operates their position on ballots is determined by a lottery, one like you've never seen before. They put all of the names, and they're about 200 of them at this point, subject to certification, put them in a barrel and had a lotto-like drawing that we saw on television yesterday.

And by the new alphabet the letter that won in the drawing was the letter "R." It's the one that replaces the letter "A" in this new California alphabet. And they did this for all 26 letters. What they do, however, it on ballots in each of the counties to continue the effort of fairness, they then rotate them. So "R" goes to the bottom. etc., etc.

But the problem is that the most principle of the candidates are all in the middle. That would include Schwarzenegger, that would include Arianna Huffington, Bill Simon, Peter Ueberroth, all of those look like that they're going to be in just about the middle. And, of course, the one who is really the one in the middle, so to speak of all of this, is the current governor, Gray Davis. The vote will first be should he be recalled? He still argues that it's totally unfair.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. GRAY DAVIS (D), CALIFORNIA: The recall is a bad idea. It's a waste of $70 million. And it, in my judgment, is an insult to the 8 million people who went to the polls last November to decide who was going to govern for the next four years.

I may be old-fashioned, but I come from the school where once an election is cast, and someone is chosen to be the leader, everyone gets behind that leader and does the people's business for the next four years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FRANKEN: There is the fatal flaw in the argument, Heidi, is he made the argument that he is old-fashioned, and that the old-fashioned ideas should prevail. And as we all know, nothing is ever old- fashioned in California, ever.

COLLINS: That's probably the case. Bob, also wondering, you know, the people of California now and this process that we are starting to learn about even today with putting the actual candidates on this random list, do you think that as far as the voters go that they are going to be scared away by how complicated this thing has become? Or will this actually bring them out to the polls?

FRANKEN: It could happen either way. Of course, people are laughing about it right now but it is going to be a mess. The elector -- election officials -- I'll get it out, yet -- the election officials are saying that there are going to be such huge ballots in their counties that it could take days to count things if things go as well as they can possibly go. So that might scare a few people away.

However, for the first time in a long time television stations are paying attention to an election. So that might bring people out. Who knows?

COLLINS: If the recall happens. All right.

FRANKEN: If the recall happens, yes.

COLLINS: Bob Franken, thanks so much today. Appreciate it.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Voters in California?>