Montgomery County will be issuing its official report on the November election this Thursday morning.  But considering that the county's new year's press release congratulated itself for running two "incident-free" elections in 08 (we'll debate that point any time), we remain wary.  Of course, until the Election Reform Network pressed for regular post-election reports to the voters and began issuing its own in 2006, there was a virtual information black-out when it came to the quality of election administration.

This time around we're hoping for a more constructive report.  We urge you to show up, if you can make it, and listen carefully and speak your mind, if you're inclined to, at the Board of Commissioners/Board of Elections meeting in Norristown Thursday morning, April 2.      

The county report will come on the heels of the Election Reform Network study, General Election 08 Report: An Overview of Operating Problems at the Polls in the 08 General Election in Montgomery County.  In it we report on specific incidents divided into a range of categories: provisional ballots; emergency ballots; machine problems; poll worker problems; long wait-times; inadequate signage; voter registration problems; intimidation of poll watchers; and the certification of write-in votes.  Issues are discussed and recommendations are made.

Unfortunately, recent county election reports have been used as a platform for taking pot-shots at the efforts of citizens to foster greater accountability around and spark improvements in our elections.  The fact is that elections officials tend to get their backs up when citizens identify issues, document problems and go public with them.  That may be understandable, but it's past the time that officials can credibly fend off legitimate concerns.  Not when national studies just released to the Congress show that four to five million voters were unable to cast ballots due to registration problems or the failure to receive absentee ballots in last November's election.  And not when an additional two to four million registered voters are reported to have been discouraged from voting due to administrative hassles, like long lines and voter ID requirements.  These sorts of problems were evident in Montgomery County and across the Commonwealth in 08.  Click here and here to learn more.  Read the Election Reform Network report here.

We're realists, of course, but we'd like to get past the sniping.  We've requested that the Board of Elections/Department of Voter Services sit down with us for a constructive exchange of data and our respective views on how to move forward with improvements.  We can go tit for tat in a public forum, but the truth is it's a lot more constructive to sit down and look at what we know and where we might agree to focus next steps. We have made some progress in talks with the Board before, so this is possible. (One example is their decision for last November to produce emergency paper ballots - separate from provisionals.) 

The point is that we're not seeking election nirvana, but it's time that officials acknowledge that significant obstacles can be overcome and improvements made.  The stakes for democracy are too high for anything less.

Can we get past the blame game?  Find out.  Come to the Election Board meeting in Norristown on Thursday, 9:30 at One Montgomery Plaza, 8^th floor.  Talk briefly about your election day experience or just come to lend your support for meaningful citizen oversight of our elections.