Virginia settles military absentee ballot dispute

RICHMOND, Va. - Issue settled. All absentee ballots filed by military personnel will be valid and counted using federal rules, not a contradictory Virginia law.

The Virginia Board of Elections announced the decision Tuesday, after some guidance from State Attorney General Robert McDonnell.

The decision affects about 130 absentee military ballots statewide -- a half dozen in Fairfax County -- that did not have the address of the witness to the absentee vote, which is required by Virginia law to detect voter fraud.

McDonnell, a Republican and candidate for governor in 2009, told the State Board of Elections that federal law regulating military ballots trumped the state's authority.

Fairfax Registrar of Voters Rokey Suleman said on Monday that he had first alerted state officials to the contradiction in September, and was advised to follow state law.

When Fairfax County residents learned of the county's plan to disqualify about a half dozen absentee ballots because they lacked witness addresses, they began a nationwide protest.

On Tuesday, Suleman issued a statement saying he was happy the issue "which was created by the legislature" had been resolved, and that he would comply with the state board's ruling and count all absentee ballots.

Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine, appearing on WTOP's Ask The Governor program Tuesday, said the board's decision should clear up any ambiguity.

"The Fairfax registrar was very clear [and said,] 'if I can just get a legal green light, I'm going to count these votes,' so I think we got that straightened out.'"

The issue highlights the growing pressure to straighten out any voting problems in Virginia before Election Day.

Virginia is among a few swing states that are considered vital for victory in the presidential race.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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