Tick, tick, tick

Three days from now, we should know who is to replace Lane Evans on the ballot. John Beydler files an update providing the details of the process.

The committeepeople are mailing their filled-out ballots to a post office box in Rock Island. On Tuesday, at 11 a.m., a committee of five county clerks -- from Rock Island, Henry, Mercer, Hancock and Macoupin counties -- will open the box and collect the ballots, along with a letter from the postmaster certifying that the box had not been previously opened.

The committee of clerks will take the ballots to the the county board room in the Rock Island County Office Building, open them and count them.

The person who gets the biggest number of the 30,000-plus votes to be cast will replace Lane Evans on the general election ballot.

Thus will end what likely has been the strangest congressional nomination in Illinois history; unless, of course, an unhappy loser seeks to appeal the process.

Hope Tuesday comes and goes without any Hare supporters running amok. God help us all if Hare isn't selected. The psych wards will be overrun.