Election board establishes policy for hearings
The Fayette County Election Board has established a policy requiring notification of any complaints or election irregularities to be reported in writing within 24 hours of their occurrence. In a report signed last month by board members Angela M. Zimmerlink, Joseph A. Hardy III and Thomas Frankhouser, the board gives six recommendations regarding future hearings.
In addition to providing written notification within 24 hours, the findings and recommendations of the election board include a directive to schedule a hearing as soon as possible and within 30 days. In the event a complaint is withdrawn or if the person who signed the complaint is not present for the hearing, the election board will have the discretion to determine if a hearing will be held. The recommendations also include stipulations that the election board may “sua sponte” schedule a hearing on its own, meaning without a formal complaint, and also may subpoena witnesses and make requests for production of written documentation to insure an orderly proceeding.
In a separate ruling, the election board recommended, “A judge of election shall not take any steps to close an election machine until the polls are officially closed.”
The ruling dealt with a complaint filed by Dana Sanders regarding a German Township voting precinct, alleging that votes were counted before the polls officially closed. Although Sanders withdrew the complaint prior to the scheduled hearing date, the election board previously heard informal testimony from Robert Belch in the matter before making the recommendation.
The election board also issued three findings and recommendations as a result of a hearing held earlier this year for North Union Township Election District 3 regarding reversal of the Democratic and Republican party labels on the now-obsolete lever machines the county recently replaced. During the hearing, testimony of which was spread out over two dates, voters, judge of election, inspectors of elections and election bureau employees testified.
Although the board ruled there was no conclusive testimony or evidence of “intentional action to tamper with an election machines and the incorrect placement of the party labels may have been an unintentional oversight,” the board made three recommendations.
The three recommendations include: the development of an inspection checklist for each machine by the inspectors for each election that must be signed, dated and returned to the director of the election bureau; a reminder notice to be sent to all judges of election that no person can make alterations to the machine and the recommendation that the judges of election must make a visual inspection of each machines when they are opened. Ironically, the machines for which the election board made the recommendations no longer will be used in Fayette County. The county’s lever machines have been replaced with smaller, electronic voting machines.
The eSlate voting machines provided by Hart Intercivic will be used for the May 16 primary. To use the machines, voters must turn a dial and push buttons to register their choices on the screen. A public education program prior to the primary is being finalized and the dates for it will be announced, according to Laurie Nicholson, director of the Fayette County Election Board.