(Columbus) - Ohio Republican Party Deputy Chairman Kevin DeWine called again today on Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner to allow observers access to Ohio's early voting locations during the in-person absentee voting process.
DeWine criticized Brunner's claim that "the Legislature simply has not given me the authority to require that action." (Youngstown Vindicator, 10/05/08)
"She certainly hasn't deferred to the legislature on anything else this year," said DeWine. "We told her to reimburse counties for the cost of sending absentee ballots to every qualified voter, and she ignored us. We never said anything in the law about requiring voters to check a box to get an absentee ballot, but she disenfrachised thousands of Republican voters anyway. Jennifer Brunner is playing political games on this issue, and voters are starting to see through her partisan agenda."
DeWine accused Brunner of manipulating the law in an effort to keep public scrutiny away from Democrats who are engaging in questionable turnout activity. According to news reports from Palestra.net, voters cited frequent "electioneering activity" at early voting locations and virtually no effort being made to validate a voter's identification. "Anybody can come in here and sign up as Mary Poppins," said one voter. (Palestra.net)
"Secretary Brunner is coordinating with the Democrats to hide the early voting process from the watchful eye of the public," said DeWine. "Nowhere in the law is she prohibited from allowing observers, and she could have easily allowed them under a federal court ruling last week that declared them legal. She appealed to have that ruling overturned. Again, I ask what she's trying to hide."
Brunner previously stated in a directive issued by her office that "observers play an important role in assuring the public that election processes are open and transparent, affecting public trust of the process, and thus, the potential for future participation in the democratic process." (Directive 2008-29)
"I can't imagine why you'd want to keep them out," said former federal prosecutor and New York City Mayor Giuliani at a news conference near Columbus on Saturday. "I can't imagine why the Democratic secretary of state doesn't endorse that. I can't imagine why the Democratic Party doesn't embrace that. The only thing I can wonder is what it is that you think you're going to be doing that you don't want people to see."
# # #
Delicious
Digg
Technorati
