Parties Gird for Battle If Election Ends Up in Court

Six weeks before Election Day, the two major political parties are skirmishing over election laws, practices and vote counts while building up war chests and hiring platoons of lawyers for a possible replay of the 2000 recount battle.

Already, a judge in New Mexico has rejected Republican efforts to require some voters to bring identification to the polls, while Democrats in Missouri are trying to quash a law they claim would keep some votes from being counted. Democratic Sen. John Kerry's campaign has asked the Federal Election Commission for guidance on funding a recount operation under the 2002 law overhauling campaign-finance rules. And both parties have lined up special teams of lawyers in at least five pivotal states to be ready to conduct recount fights.

Not again . . . . Details here from The Wall Street Journal (free).