COLUMBUS - Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas Moyer yesterday refused to take himself off a case in which a group of citizens claim election fraud handed President Bush Ohio's 20 critical electoral votes on Nov. 2.
Citing a lack of evidence of specific fraud, the chief justice also refused to grant a motion for an expedited hearing on the challenge, leaving the case on its current track carrying it at least into next week.
The allegations of fraud in the presidential election are similar to those made in a separate challenge to Chief Justice Moyer's election over Democrat C. Ellen Connally, a retired Cuyahoga County Common Pleas judge.
The challenge to the chief justice's election, currently being weighed by Justice Maureen O'Connor, suggests the Bush-Cheney campaign included him in its alleged pattern of fraud because it wanted the Republican in a position to rule on any subsequent challenges.
Chief Justice Moyer said he is "grateful" the motion to disqualify him does not claim he was personally involved in fraud.
"Their further statement, however, that it is possible that Chief Justice Moyer wittingly or unwittingly acquired knowledge of deliberate national and statewide election fraud is wholly without foundation and totally lacks any degree of veracity," he wrote."Its speculative and ungrounded nature does not constitute grounds for disqualification."
President Bush was officially handed Ohio's electoral votes on Dec. 13.
A recount showed Mr. Bush received 118,457 votes more than Democrat John Kerry.
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