This year was the first time I got involved with the caucus process, and I am very upset at the way Charlie Webster and the Maine Republican Party handled the straw poll announcement.

The straw poll itself is nonbinding and basically irrelevant to how local delegates will vote at the state convention in May. The issue is that the media use the poll to declare the “winner.”

After having the Washington County caucus canceled over a few inches of snow in a state that can handle a minor dusting, most media outlets reported that “95 percent” reported and echoed Webster’s claim that Mitt Romney was the winner.

Google estimates that only 84 percent of the precincts reported, and it is worth noting caucuses in Waterville and Belfast are not included on the official tally at the Maine GOP website.

If Webster supports the concept of American democracy, he has a moral obligation to see to it that the incoming votes are added to the totals and that Waterville and Belfast’s votes are included.

Romney’s margin of victory, 194 votes, is very small, and the citizens of Maine and the rest of the nation deserve to know the final count.

In the end, if every vote is not counted, then every citizen of Maine should be outraged that our voting process was turned into a mockery.

Seth Baker

Smithfield


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