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Candidate with no votes says he voted for self

By TIMES WIRES
Published November 12, 2006

Randy Wooten figured he would get at least one vote in his bid for mayor of this town of 80 people - even if it was just his own.

He didn't. Now he has to decide whether to file a formal protest.

"I had at least eight or nine people who said they voted for me, so something is wrong with this picture," said Wooten, who also voted for himself.

Poinsett County Election Commissioner Junaway Payne said the issue had been discussed but no action taken yet.

MIAMI

FBI destroyed records in Cuban exile case

A renewed federal investigation launched after Cuban exile militant Luis Posada Carriles sneaked into the country last year posed a serious challenge at first because the FBI's Miami office had destroyed crucial evidence in the fall of 2003. The evidence was part of a previous investigation of bomb attacks against Cuban tourist sites in 1997. The Atlantic Monthly, in its November issue, suggested the FBI destroyed the evidence to shield Posada from criminal prosecution and avoid angering the Cuban exile community where some view him as a patriot. The FBI confirmed to the Miami Herald that some case records were destroyed but denied there were any irregularities. "We routinely destroy evidence in cases that have been closed," said FBI spokeswoman Judy Orihuela. She added that the FBI has been able to rebuild the body of evidence.

GULFPORT, MISS.

N.Y. lawmaker offends Mississippi residents

Some Mississippi residents were unhappy Saturday over derogatory comments a New York congressman made about their state. Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., was quoted in the New York Times as saying, "Who the hell wants to live in Mississippi?" The article was about how New York's influence in Congress will grow after Democrats won control of the House and the Senate in Tuesday's elections. In a statement issued after his office received calls about the comment, Rangel said, "I certainly don't mean to offend anyone. I just love New York so much that I can't understand why everyone wouldn't want to live here."

Associated Press, McClatchy Newspapers

[Last modified November 12, 2006, 01:42:40]