Elections chief offers goals
Michael Ertel wants to expand voter outreach and meet federal rules while reducing spending.

   
By Robert Perez | Orlando Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted February 20, 2005

SANFORD Newly appointed Seminole County Elections Supervisor Michael Ertel wants to make the office more than just the place that runs elections.

The office should be where people can go for information on candidates and to learn about the issues. It also should be a place that is run more efficiently, he said.

Ertel vows to make that happen while meeting new federal and state requirements in the next two years.

"This office should be seen by the community as a source of information," he said.

"It should be more than just administering elections but promoting participation in the process."

But that may be easier said than done.

Ertel inherits the daunting task of meeting federal Help America Vote Act requirements by July 1. That means every election after July including early voting will have to have touch-screen voting machines available for disabled voters unable to use the county's current optical-scan system.

Ertel's office hasn't purchased the first such machine and would have to have them available at every precinct.

No countywide elections are scheduled for 2005, though Oviedo, Longwood, Lake Mary and Altamonte Springs all have elections this year after July 1.

Earlier this month, Seminole County received a $447,022 grant to buy equipment to meet Help America Vote requirements, but it likely won't be enough.

The only touch-screen machines currently certified by the state, made by Diebold, cost about $4,000 apiece, and federal law requires at least one machine for each precinct.

That means Seminole County will have to spend at least $600,000 to supply its 125 precincts. That could force Ertel to seek additional funding from Seminole County, which would conflict with his promise to cut costs.

Ertel was appointed by Gov. Jeb Bush on Feb. 7 to succeed Dennis Joyner, who resigned Jan. 10 for undisclosed health reasons. His departure came less than two months after winning a four-year term in November's general election.

The unexpected resignation set off a scramble for the office, ultimately drawing 13 applicants. Ertel and two others who ran against Joyner were among them. Joyner's deputy chief, Debra Garrambone, also applied for the job after receiving Joyner's endorsement.

In his campaign against Joyner, Ertel promised to create a voter do-not-call list similar to ones that restrict certain telemarketers from making unsolicited calls. He also made felon voting a campaign issue, pushing the slogan, "the cell block should not be the voting bloc."

He accused Joyner of wasting taxpayer dollars by having his name printed on everything from office calendars to promotional pens and letter openers. And he promised to cut the office budget.

But Ertel now says he will not carry out many of the changes he proposed.

"I'm coming in as an appointee," he said. "I want to make sure what I do is measured and reasonable."

The do-not-call list is dead, and Ertel is not so eager to vilify felons. He still wants to cut costs, but that won't be easy if the office has to pay for the new touch-screen voting system. Another budget challenge will be implementing the kinds of outreach Ertel wants to do.

He envisions giving candidates space on the elections office Web site, sponsoring meet-the-candidate nights and conducting aggressive voter-registration campaigns countywide.

Ertel won't have the luxury of settling into his new job over time. Early voting for the Sanford elections starts Monday.