"I expected no less from you faithful voters. The election is over and you have done your duty and voted in the correct manner. We have heard the last of that criminal Hector Harapo..." I pressed the button and his image was instantly replaced with mine.
"The last? You treacherous little lying louse, the fight has yet to be joined! Do you think you can cheat the voters of this fair world by dropping their sacred votes out of the bottom of your crooked voting machines in order to substitute your own illegal results? It shall not be so. You are condemned out of your own mouth. Justice will be done! In your greed you have committed the serious crime that will lay you low. The world will now watch as we take you to the little town of Tortosa, The time, as you can see by the clock in the town hall, is just a few minutes after the polls closed earlier today..." My form did a slow dissolve to be replaced by the town square. James was doing the voice-over.
"The polls are now closed and the citizens of Tortosa are gathering to hear the results. For some reason, perhaps because they are Zapilote supporters, the mayor and the chief of police tried to slip out of town a few minutes ago when they thought they were not being watched. The chief of police is still unconscious, but the mayor is dying to talk to us." The mayor looked decidedly unhappy as he faced the camera, but Rodriguez's grim presence at his shoulder guaranteed his cooperation.
"Please tell us. Mister Mayor, was the voting orderly and were all the votes carefully recorded in the voting machine?" "Yes, of course, all was in order." He looked up in concern as the square behind him began to fill with people.
"Will you please tell us, since you are mayor of Tortosa, are these the citizens of your fine town who are gathering here?" "Yes, most of them I suppose. I can't be sure..." "You can't be sure? And you have been mayor-for how long?" "Twenty-two years." "Then you should know these people by sight." "I can't be sure of all of them." "You can't? Will you then point out any strangers?" "There are none that I'm sure of, that I can see." "Well, we must be sure. Ahh, here is the chief of police now. I'm sure that he can help us. Please tell the audience, chief, how long have you lived in Tortosa?" "Well... all my life." Most reluctantly. "Good. Then do you see any strangers here?" He looked around and even more reluctantly said that he didn't.
"Very good," James said. "We are just in time for the big event-the election returns are coming in. As a public service the loudspeakers will be turned on so that everyone present can hear the results." The mayor and the chief of police seemed to shrink inside their clothes when they heard the outcome of the election. When the vote for Tortosa was announced they stirred in panic, but Rodriguez stepped forward and they grew still again. Behind them the good voters of Tortosa roared in protest.
"Did you hear that?" James's voice asked. "Could something be wrong? Just two votes for Sir Hector Harapo-and every other vote for Zapilote. Let us find out for ourselves." A switch was thrown and his voice boomed from all of the loudspeakers. "Good people of Tortosa, this is the representative of Sir Hector speaking. He is of the belief that the repulsive swine of a general-president has thrown your votes away, that the voting machines are crooked, that Zapilote is cheating you out of your representation on this ballot. Let us discover the truth. Will every person here who voted for Sir Hector Harapo please raise his or her hand. Thank you." Silence filled the square as the hands went up. Slowly, firmly, proudly. A sea of hands. An uplifting demonstration of the truth.
"Very good. Thank you. Will you please lower your hands. Now I ask for the hands of those who voted for Zapilote." All of the hands dropped. Not one hand lifted. Yes, one, two hands, as the mayor and the chief hesitantly raised their palms. James's voice was jubilant.
"There you have it, people of Paraiso-Aqui. Proof positive of the crime of disfranchisement. All of the people of this town, with two verminous exceptions, have been deprived of their vote. We have positive proof that in Tortosa the voting was fixed. The wrong man won." I signaled and the camera came back on me. I pointed gravely at the massive tome beside me.
"A crime has been committed. A crime that you will find reference to on page nine thousand and three of the sacred constitution of this planet. The wording of clause seventynine on this page is clear, painfully clear. I will read it to you." I raised a copy of the clause and read from it in my most impressive and sonorous voice.
"Due to the nature of electronic voting and due to the necessity of assuring that the voting is always recorded with utmost accuracy and due to the invisibility of the votes once they have been recorded in the voting machine, it is hereby ordained that strictest controls and regulations must be observed as stated in paragraph nineteen, subsection forty of the voting act, and as further guarantee of the surety of the votes it shall be declared and enacted that if it be proven beyond doubt that the recoird of votes in a single voting machine during a presidential ballot be proven to be substantially altered, then that presidential ballot shall be declared null and void, and all of the ballots cast in that election shall be declared null and void. It is furthermore required that two weeks after this declaration of nullity there shall be another ballot and this ballot will be potentiated using the original system of paper ballots and ballot boxes and the winner of this election will be declared President and he shall instigate an investigation of the voting machines before their next use in any election." I placed the paper reverently back upon the constitution, then turned slowly to the camera. In a serious and ominous voice I spoke.
"I therefore declare this election null and void. In two weeks' time there will be another election. At that timemav thp hp. [it man win
Chapter 30
"Cut," Angelina said, and there were shouts of joy from all present.
"You have done it," she wid, and kissed my cheek above the fuzz line. "And you have taken care of all of the voters of Tortosa as well." "Absolutely. For our sake, as well as theirs, they are now settling down in their bedrolls in the tents outside. Safe from any retaliations from Zapilote's creatures. They will remain for the two weeks until the next election and will be handsomely paid for their little vacation. All of them seemed to enjoy the idea." "He will ignore us," de Torres said gloomily. "He will pay no heed to the demand for another election. He has the power to do this." "He dare not," I said. "It would ruin the planet's economy. Without the import of ofiworld currency his corrupt and incompetent administration would be bankrupt in a week. I have sent full details on the election to every planet supplying tourists to this world. They will be watching the result with close attention." "Then we have won!" de Torres said, striking a victorious pose, "Not yet," I told him. "We have still to fight the battle of the ballot boxes. But this time we will be ready. For every dirty trick he knows I know three. It will be a conflict every step of the way, but at least now we stand a chance.