SOTS Candididate Engages Voters At Flea Marked

“We think too often that the way things are in Connecticut are the ways things are everywhere, but the truth is there are plenty of other states that have more progressive ways of doing it,” Garcia said.

New Haven Register: Secretary of the state candidate wants people to ‘engage the system’ <read>

“I would like to transform the Connecticut climate to be one where businesses chose to come. I’m tired of seeing people frustrated because they can’t find a decent job. I’m tired of seeing my friends move out of state,” said Garcia, who graduated from the Yale’s School of Management, and worked at the now-bankrupt Lehman Brothers in New York, before returning to New Haven to start his own business.

A graduate of New Haven public schools, Garcia was a city alderman from 1996 to 2001, where among other things, he co-sponsored the state’s first living-wage legislation, which was adopted in 1997.

“Voter equity and jobs you can build a family around are things that are values of mine,” Garcia said. He said he was inspired to get back into politics by Barack Obama and his nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court.

He is vetting a lot of ideas on how to increase voter turnout in the state, particularly around early voting.

“We think too often that the way things are in Connecticut are the ways things are everywhere, but the truth is there are plenty of other states that have more progressive ways of doing it,” Garcia said.

He said obstacles to voting affect a cross-section of residents from single parents, who may be choosing between an hourly wage and time to vote, to senior citizens, to people who are sick and Fairfield County commuters, who leave the state early and return late.

Garcia is looking at solutions that might leverage the statewide voter registry and use of driver’s licenses, which could allow greater flexibility about where people cast their ballots.

“I’m running to give voice and to inspire people to engage the system, to come out to vote because I believe that when more Democrats vote, we get better Democrats elected,” he said.

Potential SOTS Candidate Visits Hometown Town Committee

Secretary of the State candidate Representative James Spallone visited his hometown Democratic Town Committee in Chester

Representative James Spallone, with and exploratory committee for Secretary of the state visited his hometown Democratic Town Committee in Chester. Middletown Press <read>

Spallone has served on the General Assembly for the past nine years, including a current stint as chairman of the Government Administration and Elections Committee, where he passed legislation concerning how campaign money is used in elections.

He was a sponsor and advocate of the campaign finance reform bill that passed in 2005, which bars politicians from taking lobbyist money. Spallone said Wednesday night that he refuses to accept political action committee money as a candidate for statewide office. “I have the actual track record for fighting for clean elections,” he said.

Campaign finance reform, which passed in 2005, will face its first real test on the gubernatorial level in this year’s election, said Spallone. Democrat Ned Lamont, a Greenwich businessman, has formed an exploratory committee for his potential run for governor. Another hopeful, former Ambassador to Ireland Tom Foley, said he will take in money privately…

Fielding questions from Chester Democrats, Spallone was asked about his stance on absentee ballots and same-day registration, to which he said he supports both because it increases voter turnout. “A lot of people get engaged in the election in the end,” he said.

His legislative record also contains a bill that he authored protecting reporters from revealing their confidential sources.

Spallone said he doesn’t expect an endorsement from current Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz because she is currently exploring a contested gubernatorial run.

Rep Caruso: Senate Dems Against Campaign Finance Reform

Caruso maintains those senators opposed to the law labor under the belief they have inherent right to the positions they hold, and have no desire to create a level playing field

Norwich Bulletin article: Finance reform fine, as long as nothing is fixed <read>

Caruso maintains those senators opposed to the law labor under the belief they have inherent right to the positions they hold, and have no desire to create a level playing field that might allow an opponent to take from them what they already own. And he didn’t mince words.

When I asked Caruso if it was his contention the bill was sabotaged from the onset, his response was, “Yes.”

According to Caruso, it was the Senate Democrats who insisted on the provision that states if any portion of the bill is declared unconstitutional, the entire bill is null and void. After securing that compromise, Caruso said, they then insisted on the language regarding minor party and petitioning candidates — knowing full well that it would be likely declared unconstitutional if challenged…

The problem is a decision on the appeal isn’t likely until at least February — and it’s unlikely the state will prevail. With a short session coming up, and strong opposition to fix the measure, Caruso fears any effort to correct the problem at that stage would likely fail…

Among those Caruso identified as opposed to fixing the law are Williams; state Sen. Edith Prague, D-Columbia; and state Sen. Gayle Slossberg, co-chairman of the Government, Administration and Elections Committee — along with others…

Slossberg, Caruso said, may face a third party challenger in this year’s election, dividing the Democratic vote in her district — which could cause her to lose her re-election bid.

Finance reform fine, as long as nothing is fixed

As co-chars of the Government Administration and Elections committee Sen Slossberg and Rep Caruso had differing opinions on several issues.

Earlier coverage of campaign finance reform issues.

CT IRONY #4: Machine Errors Result In Recounting By Machine

What happens when an post-election audit discovers a large discrepancy in a race that could reverse the election result? A recanvass, defined as a modified optical scanner recount. Possibly some machine problems might be mitigated by such a recanvass, yet if there were an error in memory card programming or an error in the software it is quite likely the same discrepancy would be repeated.

In reviewing Connecticut’s post-election audit law, we discovered another irony, perhaps one of those unintended consequences. What happens when an audit discovers a large discrepancy in a race that could reverse the election result if that same error were present in other optical scanners?

(f) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 9-311, the Secretary of the State shall order a discrepancy recanvass of the returns of an election or primary for any office if a discrepancy, as defined in subsection (o) of this section, exists where the margin of victory in the race for such office is less than the amount of the discrepancy multiplied by the total number of voting districts where such race appeared on the ballot, provided in a year in which the Secretary of the State is a candidate for an office on the ballot and that office is subject to an audit as provided by this section, the State Elections Enforcement Commission shall order a discrepancy recanvass if a discrepancy, as defined by subsection (o) of this section, has occurred that could affect the outcome of the election or primary for such office.

For those not familiar with Connecticut law, a recanvass is our substitute for an automatic recount when election contests are close. It make sense to recount an entire race if an audit discovers errors in some districts and if those errors were common across the districts might change the election results. How does our recanvass work?

It is a modified machine recount:

(e) The new memory card shall be installed in the tabulator, the tabulator shall be installed on an empty ballot box, the pre-election testing procedures should be followed to prepare the new tabulator for use and a record shall be made. The test ballots shall be removed and packaged.

(f) After the tabulator is properly tested and those present agree that the tabulator is properly set, the tabulator shall be set in election mode. When the machine prints the election zero report, check that it identifies the town or voting district and the office and candidates being recanvassed. The report shall be signed by the moderator and registrars and left attached to the tape in the machine…

(l) The recanvass officials of opposing political parties shall remove all other ballots in the ballot transfer case (except any ballots marked “spoiled ballots” from a polling place in which the marksense machine was used for polling place voting). They shall examine all these ballots which were machine counted on election day to determine whether the markings for the office being recanvassed are sufficiently clear to be read by the machine. (See examples of properly and improperly marked ballots in this handbook as a guide) Also, if a stickered race is being recanvassed, make sure that early absentee ballots issued without the corrected name are not machine counted. If any such error or defect is found, the ballot should be set aside for hand counting of the races involved in the recanvass. If two recanvass officials of opposing political parties agree that such ballots are sufficiently clear to be read by the machine, such ballots shall be processed through the machine

Possibly some machine problems might be mitigated by such a recanvass, yet if there were an error in memory card programming or an error in the software it is quite likely the same discrepancy would be repeated.

It was not always this way. The recanvass procedures written in the fall of 2007 just after Connecticut purchased optical scanners statewide called for complete manual count for racanvasses. <Oct 2007 Recanvass Manual>

§ (e) The new memory card shall be installed in the tabulator, the tabulator shall be installed on an empty ballot box, the pre-election testing procedures should be followed to prepare the new tabulator for use and a record shall be made. The test ballots shall be removed and packaged.

§ (f) After the tabulator is properly tested and those present agree that the tabulator is properly set, the tabulator shall be set in election mode. When the machine prints the election zero report, check that it identifies the town or voting district and the office and candidates being recanvassed. The report shall be signed by the moderator and registrars and left attached to the tape in the machine.

Next week it will be Seven – Or more?

“Majority Leader Denise Merrill of Mansfield said Friday that she will be officially announcing her candidacy for Secretary of the State next week.”

Update: “Wild West” election year on top of “Wild West” election management?

According to CTNewsJunkie: Majority Leader Will Run For Statewide Office <read>

Majority Leader Denise Merrill of Mansfield said Friday that she will be officially announcing her candidacy for Secretary of the State next week.

“I’m not exploring, I’m running,” Merrill said Friday.

Merrill, who has served in the House of Representatives since 1994, entered politics through a League of Women Voters law and citizenship program, so running for Secretary of State is “going back to my roots,” she said.

Merrill also was once the vice chairwoman of the legislature’s General Administration and Elections Committee. She has also served as chairwoman of the legislature’s powerful Appropriations Committee.

We see multiple reasons why several Representatives and Senators are considering the office: 1) It is the only open constitutional office in addition to Governor. 2) It is a traditional stepping stone to higher office. 3) Perhaps some are tiring of the legislature. AND 4) A genuine interest in making a difference in the responsibilities and possibilities of the office.

See our last post for a list of references, current candidates, and those with exploratory committees.

Update: Chris Keating’s blog at the Courant: House Majority Leader Denise Merrill, Sen. Jonathan Harris Running For Secretary Of The State; To Replace Bysiewicz <read>

“Right now, it’s a game-changing time for the state of Connecticut,” Harris said in an interview. “We have our backs against the wall, and I don’t think we’re going to get a second chance. … It’s going to be a tough year for election – a volatile year. It’s a wide-open, Wild West kind of year.”

Merrill, a lawmaker since 1993, focused early in her career on many of the issues associated with the Secretary of the State’s office and served as vice chairwoman under Bysiewicz on the legislative committee that oversees campaign financing and elections.

Where have we head a reference to the Wild West before? It was from Rep Chris Caruso describing the election system as conducted by the registrars of voters. Iin a public hearing about two years ago in Danbury:

Representative Caruso again mentioned consistency. He mentioned previous testimony that registrars say they have violated the law. He said the “wild west approach” needs to end.

Majority Leader Will Run For Statewide Office

And now there are six

Another Candidate for Secretary of the State: Sen Jonathan Harris

Update: 12/29/2009: Interview with Senator Harris <video>

It’s about jobs and democracy

Another Candidate for Secretary of the State: Sen Jonathan Harris. CTNewsJunkie has the story <read>

Harris, who currently co-chairs the legislature’s Public Health Committee, said in a phone interview Wednesday that he wants to be in the mix during this “game changing moment” and do for the entire state what he was able to accomplish for his constituents in Bloomfield, Farmington, Burlington, and West Hartford…

“I want to be part of the team that will rebuild a strong economy, create good jobs and change the way we’re doing business,” Harris…

Harris, who is in his legislative office five to six days a week, said he hasn’t decided yet whether he will give up his senate seat. At the moment, “I’m just exploring other opportunities,” and will make a decision about the senate seat in the future.

This brings our list up to six candidates and exploratory committees:

Candidate: Richard Abbate (R)
Candidate: Corey Brinson (R)
Candidate: Gerry Garcia (D)

Exploratory: Jonathan Harris (D)
Exploratory: Kevin Roldan (D)
Exploratory: James Spallone (D)

State Elections Enforcement Commission list of candidates and committees.
Our draft list of questions we would ask candidates for Secretary of the State.
For all coverage of the 2010 race for Secretary of the State, click “2010” on our menu.

Miles Rapoport: Demos Leader and former CT Secretary of the State

A longtime friend profiles Miles Rapoport, former Connecticut Secretary of the State, and Demos.

A longtime friend profiles Miles Rapoport and Demos at the Huffington Post: Demos Promotes Participatory Democracy <read>

Coming of age in the sixties, Miles applied his smarts and competitive energy to community organizing and then electoral politics. He became a successful grassroots organizer in Connecticut, then served in the state legislature and as secretary of the state. But in 2001, he may have found his true calling when he was named president of Demos, a Manhattan-based non-partisan research and advocacy organization gearing up to oppose the myriad right-wing think tanks then dominating Washington.

Demos has done pioneering work on a wide variety of issues. One of its principal efforts has been expanding democratic participation, especially among people often left out of the process. The organization has championed Same Day Registration, which has increased voter turnout by 7 to 10 percent in the ten states that have it. And Demos has vigorously pressed states to implement largely ignored provisions of the 1993 National Voter Registration Act that require them to register people to vote when they receive social services.

Like the author, I consider Miles a friend, we were not schoolmates but we met when our sons were schoolmates. I suspect despite the following story, the President is also a friend:

With all the amazing work Demos is doing, it’s still comforting to know that Miles isn’t perfect. Early in his tenure, he had lunch with a Demos board member he felt needed to be more active. When it became clear the member just couldn’t devote the necessary time, they agreed it was probably a good idea that he leave the board. And with that, Barack Obama was a Demos board member no more. Holding a mock gun to his head, Rapoport explains, “as Hillary Clinton once said, ‘Based on the information I had at the time, it seemed like a good decision.'”

Demos Promotes Participatory Democracy

Secretary of the State Candidate Criticizes Exploratory Committees

In our view exploratory committees represent a loophole in the current public financing law. Candidates can collect and spend huge sums in the name of exploring runs for office. On the other hand, unilateral disarmament can be risky.

New Haven Register: ‘Unofficial’ candidates criticized <read>

Gerry Garcia, Democratic candidate for secretary of the state, said candidates who use exploratory committees, rather than candidate committees, are “gaming” the system by getting around contribution limits.

Garcia is among a handful of candidates who have officially declared interest in a specific statewide office. For governor, that group includes Democrat former House Speaker James A. Amann, and Republicans Lt. Gov. Michael Fedele, Scott Merrell and Tom Foley.

Democrats with exploratory committees looking at the gubernatorial race include Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz, former Stamford Mayor Dannel P. Malloy, state Sen. Gary LeBeau of East Hartford, Ridgefield First Selectman Rudy Marconi and Ned Lamont, the 2006 Democratic U.S. Senate candidate, while House Minority Leader Lawrence Cafero is also weighing his options.

Garcia, in a statement, asked that his fellow Democrats officially commit to the public financing system and declare their candidacies. An official candidate for governor who wants to qualify for public financing has to raise $250,000 in $100 increments.

Those in exploratory committees can accept individual contributions up to $375.

In our view exploratory committees represent a loophole in the current public financing law. Candidates can collect and spend huge sums in the name of exploring runs for office. We can see the need for a couple thousand for exploring a run for the legislature or perhaps a low six figure number in exploring a run for Governor, but in our understanding an almost unlimited amount can be spent “exploring”.

On the other hand, unilateral disarmament can be risky. At least on the Democratic side, the leading candidates or Governor are all doing it. Would Bysiewicz, Malloy, or Lamont be handicapped by individually choosing to end their exploratory committees? Or would they gain votes.

West Hartford: Mayor Supports Audits – Would Like State To Pay

“The audit is being done for the best of reasons to protect..to make sure democracy is being done accurately.”

Local Online News Video report on West Hartford post-election audit counting <video>

Featured in the video is West Hartford Mayor, Scott Slifka.

The audit is being done for the best of reasons to protect..to make sure democracy is being done accurately.

Like CTVotersCount, the Mayor believes that the State should pay for the audits:

Disappointing that we have been asked to pay for it. We have requested of the Secretary of the State that here office pay for it.

We believe that the 10% of districts chosen to be counted are checking the system for the whole State, not just their local community. The audits are a small investment to pay to provide confidence and deterrence to the voters that our system is protected from errors and fraud. The audits cost about 10% of the cost of the paper ballots printed for each election. Last year’s Presidential post-election audit cost about $72,000 state wide. West Hartford audited three districts out of the sixty chosen statewide for $2,300.

Of course, even thought the Secretary of the State supports the audits, they are mandiated by the legislature.

Update: Looking at West Hartford’s 2010 budget, the entire budget for the Registrar of Voters is $259,662 and for the town, 212,571,688.

More On Chain-Of-Custody

Last month we commented on reports of chain-of-custody problems in Haddam and on a Courant Editorial on the need for two people of opposing parties whenever ballots are accessed. The problem goes deeper. We sent the following letter to the Courant in the interest of using the breach in Haddam as an educational opportunity. I will post it here, since the time has passed for its potential publication (and the Courant will not publish letters previously published elsewhere) :

To the Editor,

The voters of Connecticut should be concerned with the chain-of-custody of ballots as stated in your editorial, “Only One Party Observed Haddam Vote Count” (Nov 23, 2009). Ballots are required to precisely determine the outcome of close elections and to provide credibility to post-election audits. This particular case is unique in that the breach became public and that it may be a violation of the law.

The law requires that ballots be sealed for fourteen days after an election. Ironically, the post-election audits cannot begin until the fifteenth day after an election. Audit observers have regularly reported violations of chain-of-custody procedures. In Connecticut, election regulations and procedures cannot be enforced.

For voters to have confidence there must be no opportunity for compromise; it is critical that ballots be protected from clandestine access. Ballots are usually sealed in bags or containers, however, more protection is needed. Los Alamos scientists have reported that such a seal can be defeated and replaced with a counterfeit in a median of 43 seconds. In Connecticut, ballots are often held in a room with single key access, with the key available to either registrar, frequently to any official in the Registrars’ Office. The storage is often a room in town hall, the Registrars’ Office, or a hallway cabinet. In other states, ballots are held in vaults, with video surveillance, and uniformed guards

Clearly stronger chain-of-custody protections for our ballots are required.

Luther Weeks

References:

Coalition Citizen Election Audit Coalition reports showing chain-of-custody lapses:
http://www.CTElectionAudit.orgIn particular: http://www.ctelectionaudit.org/?page_id=74

Los Alamos scientists’ report: https://ctvoterscount.org/CTVCdata/TamperIndSeals.mht