Calif. recall may echo '00 debacle

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - The upcoming election to recall Gov. Gray Davis is raising fears of a Florida-style fiasco because counties have less than three months to get ready and are still in the middle of a switchover from punch ballots to electronic systems.

County elections officials brush aside any comparisons to Florida, but some observers say a close outcome among the numerous potential candidates could lead to chaos of the sort that plagued the 2000 presidential race.

The state's 59 county registrars have a long checklist for pulling off the historic Oct. 7 vote to decide whether Davis should remain in office. They are also simultaneously gearing up for the regular Nov. 4 election, less than a month after the recall vote.

Then there's the financial challenge. Counties are already dealing with spending cuts during the state's worst budget crisis since World War II, but now face $30-million in new costs, borne locally, to put together the election.

Counties have fretted about costs ranging from $13-million in Los Angeles County to an estimated $75,000 in Tehama County in Northern California. A lobbying group for counties has started pushing to foist the bill on the state, which faces a budget deficit that could reach $38.2-billion by July 2004.

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