The Missouri left wing blogoghere is in an almost orgasmic frenzy over this piece by McClatchy newspaper reporter Greg Gordon. The story alleges that the “vast right wing conspiracy” is alive and well in Missouri, although the story offers no smoking gun or at least anything new.

For those who still have their heads in the sand regarding St. Louis and Kansas City’s long history of election shenanigans. Below is a few examples from a quick internet search:

* “St. Louis became the spotlight of scandal on the night of November 7, 2000, when polls were open three extra hours because thousands of registered voters were turned away from the polls. It had been found in St. Louis that people voted twice, and as crazy as it may be, fourteen dead people in St. Louis County voted. In an absurd event, a dog named Ritzy Meckler was registered to vote by mail, and in another incident, a dead man, who had already voted earlier that day, demanded that the polls stay open longer because he wanted to avoid the long lines. To make matters worse, an exact duplicate of the St. Louis incident occurred in Kansas City fourteen minutes earlier.”

* “Since last fall, (2000) “Operation Big Vote” has been active in the St. Louis area as part of a national campaign — promoted by Democrats — to register more African-American voters and get them to the polling booth. This effort delivered 3,800 voter registration cards to the St. Louis Elections Board on the February 7, 2001, the deadline for the March mayoral primary in that city. A cursory check of the registration cards turned up questionable names. Shortly thereafter, election board workers spent an entire day calling the names listed on the cards and found that nearly all of them were fraudulent. Many of them sought to register prominent people, dead or alive – as well as at least three deceased aldermen and a dog.

The media have reported that close examinations have turned up cards that attempted to register prominent businessmen using their childhood addresses, a former deputy mayor using an old address for an alderman, and a former alderman who has been dead for years. They also found cards for convicted felons and for residents who did not seek to register themselves in the primary. The woman at the center of this vote fraud investigation “doesn’t deny” that some of her canvassers may have turned in bogus voter registration cards. A grand jury convened by St. Louis Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce has begun interviewing witnesses regarding the 3,800 bogus registration cards. St Louis police have obtained a warrant and searched the house of the Operation Big Vote director for evidence.”

* “Ald. Jeffrey Boyd got a belated Christmas gift from the St. Louis Election Board today when Board Chairman Ed Martin, a Republican, announced that the recall petition submitted against Boyd fell short of the required number of valid signature. What’s more, Martin announced that even more forged signatures of dead voters or voters who have stated that they never signed the petition have been found. He said that it appears that deliberate fraud has been committed and after the Board concludes its investigation, the matter will be turned over to local and federal prosecutors.” – Pub Def 12-3-05

* “St. Louis City 1st Ward Alderman Freeman Bosley, Sr., who was facing a recall effort, can breathe easier today. The St. Louis City Board of Election Commissioners determined that over 60% of the 2,000 some signatures turned in calling for the recall plebiscite were fraudulent.”

* “Four people have been indicted on charges of voter fraud in Kansas City, officials said Wednesday. Investigators said questionable registration forms for new voters were collected by the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, a group that works to improve minority and low-income communities.”

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