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Date Published: August 10, 2004
Voting machines divide delegation
Republicans, Democrats take different views on whether to
use new system
By LESLIE CANTU
Item Staff Writer
lesliec@theitem.com
Sumter County's legislative delegation voted 5-2 on
Monday to stick to its original recommendation that the election
commission continue using the punch-card voting system in this
November's general election.
Reps. Marty Coates, R-Florence,
and Murrell Smith, R-Sumter, changed their previous positions and
dissented, primarily because of the $185,000 in federal incentive
money the county will lose if it doesn't use electronic voting
machines this year.
Reps. Grady Brown, D-Bishopville, Joe
Neal, D-Hopkins, and David Weeks, D-Sumter, and state Sens. John
Land, D-Manning, and Phil Leventis, D-Sumter, voted to recommend
that the commission stick with the punch-card system this year,
mostly because of the local election commission's concerns about its
ability to conduct a fair and efficient election with the new
machines on such short notice.
The legislative delegation has
no authority over the election commission, but the delegation
appoints members of the commission.
The election commission
plans to meet Thursday and vote again on whether or not to use the
electronic machines this November. The commission voted July 27 to
reject the new machines based on the recommendation of the
legislative delegation.
The legality of the vote has been
questioned, however, because it was reportedly taken during a
closed-door executive session, a violation of open meetings law.
Thursday's meeting was called in the interest of public meetings,
commission Chairman Goliath Brunson Jr. said.
Since then,
Sumter County Council has stated its support for abandoning the
punch-card system for electronic machines because of the federal
incentive money.
Brunson; Carol Ann Rogers, the election
commission vice chairwoman; Pat Jefferson, executive director of the
election commission; and Louvenia J. Dinkins, a member of the
commission, attended Monday's delegation meeting.
After the
delegation's vote, Smith asked the commission to consider the effect
losing $185,000 in incentive money will have on the taxpayers of
Sumter County.
Leventis immediately asked the commission to
consider only its ability to conduct an election, not any related
money issues.
During the hourlong meeting at the Sumter
County Courthouse, most members of the delegation seemed to stick to
their opening statements. Only Land said he came to the meeting to
get information.
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LEVENTIS |
| Leventis passed out summaries
of newspaper articles from Florida, North Carolina and Texas about
failures of ES&S's machines in elections as recently as January.
ES&S is the vendor South Carolina chose to supply machines for
the state.
"I think the bottom line is the voters and only
the voters, and not the Sumter County Council and not the Sumter
County delegation," Leventis said. "I don't believe that we can
guarantee the voters of this county an election that's
verifiable."
Coates said there have been problems even with
the old punch-card system, including during a 2000 election in
Florence County.
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SMITH |
| Smith told the commission he
sympathizes with the position it has been placed in and doesn't
approve of the way the State Election Commission has handled the
change. But he said the issue of the money is what swayed him to
change his mind.
"Come 2006, we have no choice," he said.
"Come 2006, we're going to pass off $185,000 to the taxpayers of
Sumter County."
Land suggested that the delegation contact
members of the state's congressional delegation to see if they could
put in place a retroactive waiver for Sumter County, since the State
Election Commission didn't apply for a waiver.
After the
meeting Sumter County Councilman Carol Burr said there's no way the
congressional delegation would approve such a waiver. The counties
that have agreed to make the change this year would "raise the
devil" if the delegation made a special waiver for Sumter, he
said.
Currently, 11 counties in South Carolina use the
punch-card system that has been ordered phased out following the
problems with punch cards in Florida that called into question the
2000 presidential election. The other 10 counties have agreed to
switch to the electronic system in November.
After the vote,
Weeks told commission members he believes they have the best
perspective on the matter.
"If you have the concerns you've
expressed today, then I have the same concerns," Weeks said.
The dozen people watching the meeting laughed when Brown
closed by saying he didn't think that politics should play a part in
the decision.
"I don't think this is funny," Brown
said.
"Neither do we," a member of the audience shot
back.
The State Election Commission has ordered enough
machines to cover Sumter County if the county election commission
decides to use the electronic voting machines after all. However,
Jefferson noted that the state's training day is Aug. 24, the same
day as a bond referendum for the county library in Sumter. She said
the State Election Commission is looking at setting up another
training time for Sumter County.
Contact Staff Writer Leslie
Cantu at lesliec@theitem.com or
803-774-1250.
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August 10, 2004 
