Latest 'Bush' spam alleges rigged election

The latest hoax email purporting to come from George W Bush has the US President this time admitting to a series of election frauds - after previous spam emails also claiming to come from Bush had him offering a litany of reasons why he shouldn't be re-elected.

At the heart of the latest hoax email campaign is the suggestion the counting and e-voting processes put in place were geared towards guaranteeing a Bush victory.

The spam email is addressed from 'George W Bush', though it is unlikely to convince anybody that it really comes endorsed by the President - especially once it begins raising questions over the validity of his victory.

The email begins: "The first thing I did to steal your election was to make friends with ALL the manufacturers and code-verifiers of the electronic voting machines. They were really nice, especially Diebold who gave me $600,000 for my campaign."

While few would regard spam email as a credible source of political commentary, that comment would appear to refer to the fact Walden W O'Dell, chairman and CEO of Diebold, has been criticised in the past for his Republican fundraising activities.

Inviting guests to a $1,000-per-plate dinner, he once said he was "committed to helping Ohio deliver its electoral votes to the president", according to a report in USA Today - which for some may take on extra relevance given the role Ohio played in deciding the outcome of the election and the role his company played in providing election technology, having won the tender in that particular state.

Whether this is the same spammer as was behind the previous hoax email from George W Bush is unclear, but it would appear other spammers with an anti-Bush bent refuse to be deterred by the outcome of the election and continue to plague email users with their messages.

One organisation, Truthout.org, which sends large numbers of unsolicited email has continued to send out its messages despite the fact Bush secured his job for another four years.

The latest Truthout emails also draw attention to alleged discrepancies in the number of voters turning out for Bush, this time in the key state of Florida.