VotersUnite!

State impounds town's voting machines

By: B.J. O'Brien

11/14/2003

The state is impounding the town's voting machines, and First Selectwoman Judith Novachek, who lost her seat in the Nov. 4 municipal election, said yesterday she is still considering whether to go to court to seek to have the results overturned and re-elections held.

Town Clerk Sheila Zelensky said she received notice yesterday from the state Elections Enforcement Commission that 15 voting machines will be impounded as a result of problems that occurred at the polls and complaints that had subsequently been filed with its agency.
"I have received innumerable phone calls, letters and visits from citizens complaining about the election process, fearful that their votes were recorded wrongly or not recorded at all," Mrs. Novachek, a Republican who lost the election by 183 votes to Democratic challenger Alice Hutchinson, said in a prepared statement that was dated last Sunday. "What the Town of Bethel needs are the facts regarding the actions of all the election officials. Did they follow the election laws, and if not, did their actions result in the will of the people not being known?"
In response to questions about the statement, she told The Bethel Beacon, "No one is questioning the intention of who was concerned with the election but how the election was conducted."
When asked whether she considered it voter fraud, she said, "No. Fraud intimates deliberate intent."
The town's top official added, "It's not about winning or losing, but things were so poorly done, across the board, it needs to be looked into. There needs to be some closure for the town."
Mrs. Novachek said in an interview yesterday that she has hired counsel and is working to familiarize herself with the legal process she would have to go through to file a suit in court. She said that the rest of the Republicans on the ticket who were defeated could join her in a suit.
She said that she would seek this action in order to assure that something like this would never happen again in the town.
"This is very serious," she said yesterday.
"If the people have spoken and Republicans, including me, have lost, we graciously accept the choice of the electors," she pointed out in her statement. "This is democracy at work. The problem is, at this juncture, I am not sure that anyone knows the will of the electors and there is so much confusion surrounding the voting process."
Melanie O'Brien, the town's counsel, said yesterday that she has been looking into the concerns expressed by the public to the town clerk's office and that if she found anything that needed to be reported to the state she would do so.
"She was responding to an Election Day complaint for the town clerk," Mrs. Novachek said earlier this week. "She acted as town counsel, and it will be used by the election enforcement officers. ... It is normal procedure."
Resident Matthew Paulsen made a complaint to the state agency, as reported in last week's Beacon.
If Mrs. Novachek, or anyone else, is to file a lawsuit, it must be done by Nov. 18.
Robert Crnic, the chairman of the Pro Bethel Party ticket, who also ran unsuccessfully for the town's top position, has filed a complaint with the state commission because his is concerned about what happened on Election Day.
"A lot of people that voted for me are concerned that their vote didn't count," he said.
Although he would like to see another election held, he said he would settle for having fines levied against election officials.
On the morning of Election Day, it was determined that there was a problem with the voting machines. Voters weren't able to split their votes in some of the board races. In other words, voters could not pick candidates from different parties for some boards, such as the Board of Finance and the Board of Education.
The voting machines were then shut down and emergency paper ballots were distributed. The machines were then fixed and put back into use again, but the Secretary of State's office said that this was not allowed and only spare machines could be used in the districts that had them. Districts II and IV each had one spare machine.
Paper ballots were used in the other districts (I, Municipal Center; III and V, Berry School) from noon until the polls closed.
By the end of the day 8,000 paper ballots had been distributed.
Because districts II and IV had only one voting machine in service, some voters had to wait in line for an hour or longer. Many residents left without voting when they realized how long they might have to wait to do so.
Albert Lenge, deputy director of the Elections Enforcement Commission, said the state would be looking into complaints that it has received by trying to find out why the voting machines didn't work properly.
He pointed out that no matter what conclusion the commission comes to, it does not have the authority to call for a new election. That decision must be made by a judge.
The commission does, however, have the authority to fine election officials who were involved with the voting.
The town's Registrars of Voters have said that the machines did not work properly due to human error, but Mr. Crnic believes ignorance also had something to do with it.
"Ignorance is not an excuse," he said.
In his complaint, Mr. Crnic expressed concerns about how the voting machines were set up and some of the actions that allegedly took place Election Day and in the succeeding days.
He stated that head moderator Cliff Hurgin, a Democrat, was seen behind a machine trying to fix it. Mr. Crnic claimed it is illegal to "tamper" with a voting machine once votes have been cast on it.
Mr. Hurgin said in an interview this week that the only part of the machine that was opened was a compartment that allows parts to be changed on them. This is something that is done routinely during elections. He added that opening this compartment does not have any affect on the votes that have been cast on the machine.
"It's done time and time again," Mr. Hurgin said.
The complaint also stated that Mr. Hurgin was seen at Democratic headquarters during Election Day and talking to one of his fellow party members.
"We're entitled to breaks," Mr. Hurgin said, adding that he went to the Food Bag to buy some cake and cigarettes and then stopped to talk to somebody outside of the Democratic headquarters.
The complaint also alleged that Mr. Hurgin asked Mrs. Zelensky later in the week to get rid of "petitions" that asked residents to share their personal experiences of difficulties when they had gone to vote. The form, which Mrs. Zelensky has said is "non binding," appeared in The New-Times last Friday, was a paid political announcement by Citizens for a Legal Bethel Municipal Election.
Mr. Hurgin said he had suggested that Mrs. Zelensky keep the petitions, which she said she has done.
Mrs. Zelensky also said that Mr. Hurgin never suggested to her that they be destroyed.
Mrs. Hutchinson, who won the first man's race, said that the incumbent has the right to take the matter to court if she thinks there was wrongdoing on Election Day.
"Judy feels that something inappropriate has happened here," she said. "She certainly has every right to pursue what she feels is necessary."
Mrs. Hutchinson noted that she has kept in contact with the secretary of the state's office and has been told that the election results will stand.