Woman claims Supervisor of Elections influenced her vote

Sarasota County Sheriff to look into complaint

GEORGE McGINN   Charlotte Sun Herald    02 November 2007

SARASOTA Sarasota County Sheriff William Balkwill said he is looking into a criminal complaint filed against Kathy Dent, Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections.

Winifred Rush, 55, who lives in North Sarasota County, filed the complaint recently after she said an incident she reported at the polls during the 2006 elections was never investigated.

"First, we have to make sure it is a legitimate complaint," Balkwill said. "And Kathy Dent will get to have her say."

"I felt it was my duty to say that my vote was influenced," Rush said in an interview.

In the complaint, Rush stated that on Nov. 7, 2006, she was handed two articles by a poll worker at the Temple Sinai on 4361 Lockwood Ridge Road, Sarasota.

On the November 2006 ballot was an amendment to switch from touch-screen voting to paper ballots.

The articles discussed the topic of touch-screen voting verses paper ballot voting, according to the complaint. Rush said both articles were favorable to touch-screen voting. One was written by Dent, and the other was written by Paul DeGregorio, who at the time was the chairman of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.

Rush told Sarasota County Sheriff Deputy Kaye Tritschler that the handouts influenced her vote, because on the ballot was a decision for voters to determine if the county should switch to paper ballots.

"They were laying right next to where I was signing in on the table," Rush said. "I understand that it is a class three felony, but it bothers me that (Dent) would influence my vote."

Rush said she is not affiliated with Christine Jennings, who lost a close congressional race to Vern Buchanan. Neither does she know who Levko Klos is. Klos has officially filed to run for Supervisor of Elections in 2008. And Rush is not familiar with Sarasota Alliance For Fair Elections. SAFE was responsible for putting the paper ballot amendment before the voters.

Rush said despite the screen not registering her vote twice, the third time it worked. She read both articles while she was waiting.

"It made me furious. I told the poll worker I wanted to file a complaint, and told her she had no right to influence votes," Rush said. "She told me that she was only doing what she was told."

When deputy Tritschler asked Rush why she waited almost a year file her complaint, Rush said Dent allegedly never investigated her complaint, and it did not appear in the Conduct of Election report.

"I waited for some answer to my complaint, some determination, but I felt it was ignored," Rush said.

Dent could not be reached for comment.

However, through a public records request, the Sun obtained copies of e-mails and the handouts provided to poll workers.

In an interview with Dent earlier this year, she said her Q&A and the DeGregorio articles were there to help voters with questions about how safe their vote is.

On the slip that was attached to both articles and sent to all precincts, Dent instructed poll workers to distribute the articles to voters "who have questions or concerns about the Sarasota County voting equipment security or chain of custody." The slip also said the DeGregorio article was designed to "shore up voters' confidence in electronic or touch-screen voting systems."

In an Oct. 27 e-mail Dent sent to all her staff and temporary election workers, she wrote: "I believe his (DeGregorio's) message is important to the voters and may instill confidence in them. This is not about voting systems but about people going to the polls and knowing their votes will count."

In a copy of the Conduct of Election Report obtained by the Sun, it does not mention the any complaints about the two articles.

According to the form, Dent was required to report "any additional information regarding material issues or problems associated with the conduct of the election."

Dent checked this box "yes," but the attached report reported only machine and power failures. The report was signed by Dent, Sarasota County Commissioner Paul Mercier, and Sarasota County Judge Phyllis Galen.

"We are looking into the complaint now, and may be contacting the State Attorney's Office," Sheriff Balkwill said. "If we have to, we will have the complaint looked at by FDLE (Florida Department of Law Enforcement) to eliminate any conflict of interest."

The complaint alleges Dent campaigned within 100 feet of a polling location, and neglected her duty or engaged in corrupt practices. Each item would be a class three felony, and with a conviction, each would be punishable by up to five years in prison.

You can e-mail George McGinn at gmcginn@sun-herald.com.

By GEORGE McGINN