OpEdNews - Page 3 of Article: Counting votes in secret - PHOTO

March 9th 2009
Mr. Brad Nelson
Pima County Elections Director

RE: Lockout of Democratic and other Party observers from polling places during forthcoming non-partisan municipal elections.

Dear Mr. Brad Nelson,

Mr. Jim March reports that at the poll worker’s training session on 4 March, you stated that poll observers are not permitted at the forthcoming Marana/Sahaurita town council elections because the election is a non-partisan race.

In your 5 March 09 email to the Pima County Democratic Party Chair, Jeff Rogers, you state:

" In the mean time I would suggest that a review of ARS 16-586 {corrected in a later email to 16-590) may be appropriate. This statute refers to the process of the political parties assigning party reps to the polls only when a political party is represented on the ballot.

Members of the public may be in the polling place exclusively for the purpose of voting. Once they have cast their ballot they are to retire outside of the 75 foot limit. ARS 16-515."

Your decision misinterprets ARS 16-515 and 16-590 with respect to the Party’s statutory rights as overseers of the election process. It discourages transparency and openness in election procedures to assure election integrity. It contradicts the spirit of Title 16 and recent law (see below). It find it disappointing that, after the substantial costs to the Pima County taxpayers, that you would not wish to reasonably accommodate efforts toward transparency and accountability.

You have no basis for claiming party agents or representatives must stay beyond the 75' limit line from the entrance to the polls during non-partisan. ARS 16-515 and 16-562, 16-590 draw no distinction between partisan and non-partisan elections. In partisan elections, party observers routinely watch, unless they threaten keeping order and the enforcement of law. And you have not identified, through any correspondence to the Parties that I know of, a specific threat to order appears in non-partisan races that has lead you to change your procedures distinct from that used for partisan.

Furthermore, ARS 16-570B states that the voting machine shall be placed and protected that it is accessible to only one voter at a time and is in full view of all election officers and watchers at the polling place." Similarly, 16-572 B requires the ballots must be kept within plain public view to watchers until the polls close. Your ad hoc advice and/or decision to require non-election officials, including watchers to stay outside the 75' line nullifies the public view provisions of these statutes.

Furthermore, on 5 March, in response to further questions on these issues from Chairman Rogers, you state that :

" I am not the chief election official for the upcoming municipal elections. The respective Municipal Clerk is. If a Clerk gives you permission to have observers in the polls; that’s their call, it’s their election."

I understand that you personally trained the workers for this election and have play an active role in interpreting state law, in your capacity as Pima County Election Director in the non-partisan elections taking place Tuesday. If, as you state, you do not have any jurisdictional authority on non-partisan, non-county elections, at the very least, the elected officials in non-county jurisdictions and the public merit being informed that you improperly trained and advised their poll workers on the above issues.

And I am hoping your training referenced recent changes in Arizona law (ARS 16-621) that clearly shows the Legislature desires a clear role for observers in non-partisan elections, a law that I brought to sponsor’s, Senator Chuck Gray’s (R-Mesa), attention and get passed.

Please take prompt, appropriate corrective action to cease the lock or advise to another jurisdiction to conduct a lock out in the polling places out of observers in this and future races.

I remain,

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Counting votes in secret - PHOTO - 'Let there be consequences'