Ron Paul Radio is broadcasting live from Ames. They have 5 streaming channels to choose from.

Ron Paul supporters get noticed in Ames,... does that translate into votes in the straw poll? We shall see.

I'm hearing Mitt won with 4516 votes.... Ron Paul 5th with 1305 votes

Ron Paul beat Fred Thompson, Rudy Guiliani, and John McCain.

I know it's just a straw poll, but that's AWESOME!

Since this is about exceeding expectations, Huckabee and Paul are the big winners. Mitt Romney may have won... but he is definitely also the biggest looser.

Well...keep in mind that Giuliani and McCain didn't have much of a crowd there. They pretty much bypassed this event.

Thompson had some supporters there, but no formal campaign.

Make your copies of the early reports that there were problems with the voting machines. They are starting to disappeer and are being replaced with stories blaming the delay on rowdy Ron Paul supporters.

Daniel,

I got an e-mail the other from a Ron Paul supporter. They were already talking about vote fraud. It's kind of embarrassing that this kind of talk was happening even before the poll:
From: Angelo Serignese [mailto:America_Freedom@comcast.net]
Sent: Tuesday, August 07, 2007 11:34 AM
To: jason@jasonpye.com
Subject:

To Ron Paul Supporters:
Everything we are all doing is going to be brought to NAUGHT --- if the Diebold computers being used to “count” the votes by the Iowa GOP at the Iowa Straw Poll – are used to STEAL the Straw Poll Election from Ron Paul.
YES – despite a study from computer scientists at the University of California paid for by the Secretary of State of California – publicized in the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times LAST SATURDAY (July 28, 2007) – the Iowa GOP is STILL planning to use the easily rigged Diebold computers to “count” the vote at the Straw poll!
You see, the study showed that the Diebold computers were easily hacked, easily rigged, -- and totally unreliable for conducting elections. And this is old news, several authoritative studies have already shown this from MIT, Cal Tech, Princeton University, and numerous other sources.
Search “Diebold Princeton University” on YOUTUBE – and you can see a 9 minute demonstration. Add “FOX News” to the search – and there is another 3 minute demonstration by these scientists on FOX News.
Citizens for a Fair Vote Count and allies are conducting a verification EXIT POLL at the Ames Straw Poll. We’re asking all Ron Paul people who vote in the Ames Straw Poll in the official election on the easily rigged Diebold Machines – to cast a second “ballot” in our exit poll. IF WE COME UP with 5000 Ron Paul exit poll ballots – the Iowa GOP better not say he only got 2000 votes! Get the point?
WE NEED YOU! Did you see the movie BRAVEHEART??? We need the Highlanders to come down to the “battle” at Ames, Iowa on August 11, 2007 – by the hundreds – and the thousands. We need about 200 volunteers to work with our verification “exit poll” on the day of August 11 --- sign up at the election reform meetup, which is at this address:
http://electionreform.meetup.com/165/

We need 30 or 40 people donating an average of $100 to help us pay for the ballots, t-shirts, headquarters, banners, tables, chairs, etc. to make sure that Ron Paul’s vote is not stolen! Even $5 will help! Please email your contributions to paypal at: action@networkamerica.org – you can also find the donate button at the above election reform meetup address. We can confront the computer votefraud issue at Ames, Iowa in a big way!
Millions of our fellow Americans have fought and bled and died over the past 200 years for our freedoms --- let’s not let Diebold and the Iowa GOP spit on their sacrifice in Ames by conducting yet another SECRET VOTE “COUNT.” Let all of us HONOR the sacrifice of all our fallen soldiers over 200 years by ENSURING AN OPEN AND HONEST VOTE COUNT.
For more info, go to this web page for two stories: http://www.votefraud.org/ron_paul_stop_the_votefraud_page.htm
– one tells what happened at the Ames Straw Poll in 1995. One (A House without Doors) tells about the proven vote fraud against Pat Buchanan in the 1996 Iowa Presidential Caucuses, and how it was done. See you in Ames?

Jim Condit Jr.
Citizens for a Fair Vote Count; www.votefraud.org
votefraud@fuse.net

It's kind of embarrassing that this kind of talk was happening even before the poll

I don't think I would have used the word embarrassing. I think prophetic would be a better choice.

Unless they have something to back it up with, then it's a load of crap.

LOL, I agree. However, there was a delay in the results due to voting machines malfunctioning. We all heard the reports. And as for proof, try to get your hands on the actual ballots, won't happen. They'll verify the count or number of ballots and that's it, then off to the shredders. No validation of the actual votes. I'm just saying, it all smells a little fishy.

Here is something interesting:
The voting machine delay may have added fuel to the fire of some Ron Paul supporters who had sought to block voting at the event because of the machines. They filed a federal lawsuit on the constitutionality of the voting process this week and argued that the vote-counting machines had fundamental weaknesses.

A federal judge refused to grant an injunction Friday, and a U.S. Court of Appeals upheld the ruling Saturday.

The machines, the plaintiffs argued, are the same type that California's secretary of state placed rigorous security conditions on last week.

That's the kind of embarrassing stuff that I am talking about. This is a private affair. It isn't sanctioned by the state government. Why involve the courts at all?

Giuliani who?

You have to keep in mind that Giuliani didn't actively participate. I don't think this poll measures anything other than organization.

More suspicious activity from Ames:
This self proclaimed Iowa state republican party insider, Ted Sporer of Des Moines, nails his top 4 prediction approximately 30 minutes before the results are released. He switches 2nd and 3rd positions in an attempt to throw off the scent.