Barbara R. Kondylis Benicia News 10 January 2008
County Supervisor Barbara Kondylis is questioning the results of the countywide election that was held in November and wants all discrepancies discussed by the Board of Supervisors as an agenda item on a regularly scheduled agenda.
Dear Voters of Solano County,
Here in the United States we are told that every vote counts...................and it should. But what about when the same vote is counted again, and again?
This is what happened in Solano County in the November Election and no one seems concerned, least of all Mike Johnson-County Administrator and our immediate past Chair-Mike Reagan (Supervisor District 5) and immediate past Vice-Chair-John Silva (Supervisor District 2) who set the Board of Supervisor's agenda. I requested, in December, that a discussion on the election be placed on our agenda for last Tuesday.................and was denied (the first time, to my knowledge, that this has ever happened to a member of the Board).
What is it that they don't want you, the voters of Solano County, to know? The Board of Supervisors are ultimately responsible for what happens in every county department and the Registrar of Voters is no exception. We as the Board should be held accountable, just as all county departments should be accountable to the Board.
Consider this for just one "for instance"..............................according to the official results (machine count), 56,565 people voted county wide in a variety of elections from School Board in Vacaville to City Council in Fairfield and for Mayor in Benicia. 37,067 of you voted absentee (mail in) and 19,498 voted at the polls on election day either with a regular or provisional ballot, as counted by the voting machines. The "canvas" of the votes which accounts for the number of ballots (pieces of paper) used on election day totals 18,177 (199 votes less if you subtract the mail in ballots that were counted as election day ballots). If you do the simple math, 1,321 more votes were counted than ballots cast (even if every provisional ballot were counted). Hmmmmmmmmmmmm!
Is this acceptable? I think not.
There is another election coming up on February 5th. Don't you think a public discussion should be held to explain the mistakes of November and what steps are being taken to prevent it from happening again? Don't you think that the makers of the machines, ES&S should be held financially responsible and accountable?
If so, please help to ensure that this gets discussed by the Board of Supervisors by contacting your county representative and making your views known.
I am trying again for the meeting of the Board of Supervisors of January 22.
Sincerely,
Barbara R. Kondylis
County Board of Supervisors
