UPDATE 2: If you watch today’s informational meeting (at beginning) you will see the city clerk give her ‘reasons’ as to what happened election day.
Just like clockwork, one of the local TV stations responded to blog posts by Jen Holsen and I. Aguilar reassures us she was only delivering unmarked ballots;
City Council Chair Sue Aguilar has drawn fire this week for delivering ballots to some voting centers.
Aguilar said she was dispatched to deliver blank ballots to both Whittier Middle School and Lincoln High School. She also went to Harvey Dunn to deliver tape for the machines.
“I didn’t have any contact with any of the marked ballots, the ballot boxes, or did I talk to any of the voters or any of that,” said Aguilar.
I will start by saying, with only a 14% turnout in a municipal election, it is unacceptable that any polling place ran out of ballots. The Litz-Hogstad-Chase-Gant team have proven to make this past election look like a botched elementary school science project. What if this would have been a presidential election? Florida all over again. I’ll give Gant and Litz a pass on this one (I don’t think either one of them know what is going on) but Hogstad who touted her years of experience in the clerk’s office as an assistant clerk should have handled the situation better. All I can say is that we should have never gotten rid of Debra Owen to begin with, and now there is one more mark on the chalk board of how dumb of a decision it was to terminate her.
While I thank Sue for wanting to help, she should not have. Hogstad could have summoned many other people to deliver unmarked ballots. Secondly, the assumption of impropriety is there. Â I will admit, I never suspected anything illegal was done by Aguilar, but when your fellow councilors are up for re-election, you should probably stay as far away from polling places as possible except to vote.
Duh.
Interestingly, on election day, Kermit escorted his wife to the auditors office to pickup an absentee ballot for someone. When they saw Kermit they barked at him and told he wasn’t to be within 100 feet of the office. But the council chair? Apparently she has free reign.
UPDATED; Cory at Madville has an excellent post about this.
Interesting how the rules apply to Kermit…but magically apply to no one else…
Debra we want you back. We’ll soon have Huether in jail and you can be the mayor who will introduce a new charter. I’d say no but you’ll not be given that option.
Just as I predicted!
Not that it excuses anything but – Sue Aguilar wasn’t on the ballot – Kermit was. Thus her not being chased away from a polling place.
Now – should she have been running ballots anywhere?
No. That would have been a job for someone where there wasn’t the possible appearance of impropriety. But with the ballot clusterfuck that was happening – I’m just happy that they didn’t have De Knudson running ballots…
From Urban Dictionary….I’m just sayin’…..
“turkey neck”
a turkey neck is simply when an elderly person (usualy female) has loose flab around her neck which tends to wobble when she/he moves. Often women of a certain age wear alot of turtle neck jumpers to cover their sagging necks.
“I get turned on by turkey necks, they’re just so fun to slap about when we’re making love.”
Didn’t know ‘turkey necks’ were sexy. I’ll have to start paying attention. Sports Illustrated might come out with a Turkey Neck Edition.
Maybe I’m old fashioned. I consider between the neck and knees most sexy. If you kiss extra curvature, marks, and irregularities a woman makes for a better lover. Some women are sexy for how they use what’s between their ears. Sarah Palin excepted.
Just Saying
How’d this get started.
Let’s not go there.
Anyhoo. Would agree, I don’t think Sue’s intentions were for impropriety, but she should have known better.
Good post. All I can say is that I’m glad Kermit won.
As far as Gant goes he should be held accountable simply because he is the guy who wanted to implement this technology. It’s a first go so he should know what is needed.
Second he hired a 24 year old to be election supervisor for the state who had NO real experience to replace Kea Warne.
So yes he does deserve some of the blame.
As I understand it, and I may be wrong, if they ran out of a precinct ballot (for example NW district) they could have used a general ballot and wrote in their choice for that district. Like I said, I may be wrong.
Amazing. Is there anyone in charge in Sioux Falls? Does teh buck stop anywhere; or does it just flow down the Big Siouxer?
I was thinking about going to the council meeting tonight and commenting about it during public testimony, but I have a feeling others will rear their heads.
If you want the city’s explanation of last Tuesday’s Gant-Hogstad-Aguilar debacle, try “sitting through” our new City Clerk’s explanation to her bosses (all Sioux Falls residents and their Council representatives) at siouxfalls.org…..Informational Meeting, April 16, 2012.
One would think a city the size of Sioux Falls would be run by competent professionals.
…apparently, one would be wrong to think so.
First of all, why were the extra ballots locked in someone’s car. Secondly, why did it take 5 hours to get a hold of her. And lastly, if they knew where she worked, why didn’t they just drive there and ask her to unlock her car. I just scratch my head.