Monday, February 24, 2014

Committee on Open Government: Give Mantello access to ballots (DOCUMENTS)


MANTELLO
In an five-page opinion, the state Committee on Open Government said former Troy Council candidate Carmella Mantello can look at the 2013 election results secured at the Rensselaer County Board of Elections.
Mantello had questioned the razor-thin results of her At Large bid last year but the third and final spot went to Lynn Kopka by 65 votes out of nearly 7,000 cast after the absentee ballots were counted and a judge denied Mantello’s request for a recount.
Since, Mantello has maintained there were abnormalities in some Election Districts and wanted to conduct a manual recount herself but was, inexplicitly, denied access to the ballots by Rensselaer County Commissioners Ed McDonough, a Democrat, and his Republican counterpart Larry Bugbee.
She did request the ballots under the state Freedom of Information Law but it too was denied. The Committee on Open Government, however, said access to ballots did fall under the FOIL statute and while it’s only an opinion, said she should have access.
 “In sum, based on the preceding analysis, I agree with your contention that “the electronic ballot images and cast vote records created by the ballot scanners used to conduct our elections” are accessible to the public pursuant to FOIL and in accordance with subdivisions (1) and (3) of the Election Law,” said the letter written by Bob Freeman, executive director of the Committee on Open Government and the state’s well-respected FOIL guru.
The committee’s decision and Mantello’s statement can be read below.
There are the facts as they stand now. Here are some questions and observations that immediately come to mind:
-While I don’t agree keeping any ballots from public inspection, especially from candidates who ran for office, I can see why McDonough would deny her access since he is a Democrat and Mantello is a Republican.
-But, why would Bugbee, a Republican, sign off on not granting her access? Here’s why: Some in the GOP don’t like Mantello. Plain and simple. And Bugbee takes his marching orders from those same operatives. It’s one thing not to like a candidate but part of Bugbee’s job, in addition to ensuring elections run fairly and properly, is to help Republican candidates and protect their interests whoever they are. McDonough does the same thing for Democrats – that’s why there is one commissioner of each party.
-Regardless of the public – and at least one time physical – confrontation between Bugbee and former commissioner Tom Wade, who is now the Rensselaer County Democratic Party chairman, they at least kept an eye on each other. Bugbee and Wade have too cozy a relationship in that they can easily turn a blind eye towards each other’s activities – like minor party ballots – or turn go so far as back each other up in the Mantello case. (Notice I didn’t mention voter fraud because Bugbee told other operatives about the inordinate number of Working Families Party absentee ballots that came in at the last minute but if they trickled in as they have in years past the two commissioners would likely have let each other’s party get away with whatever they wanted to get away with.)
-What happens now is anyone’s guess. If Mantello does get her hands on the ballots and has evidence she did win it’s too late to do anything about it but it would justify any attempted run at future office.

-And it means that people are watching the BOE and the commissioners, who ultimately work for the them and not the political parties.
-Despite all the political inside baseball, not giving a candidate, or anyone else, unfettered access to ballots is shameful. It’s just another scar on an already tainted BOE.
-Bugbee did not immediately return phone calls for comment.     
 


25 comments:

  1. Mantello is a vote getter and the Republican pushback on her is just another example of the leadership idiocy that costs them Troy seats, year after year.

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    1. Vote getter--i she got fewer votes than freakin Wayne Foy did at large. Just go away u pihony

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    2. Yeah ok. You just keep running those dynamos like John Cubit and keep the Dems laughing.

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  2. Jeezus..she lost..move on..we knows she needs time in the state retirement system so she'll keep running. How many times do you have to lose before you figure out the people of Troy do not want you in elected office? Same goes for Mayor Harry. Stop feeding your ego's at taxpayer expense.

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  3. Mantello is all hot air, if she was paying attention on election day she might have had an argument. I hope the Board of Elections tells her to come in this week. The problem she has is she has no plan and doesn't even know what she wants to look at.
    She's lost her last three elections, for all of us it's time for Carmella to move on. Good stuff.

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  4. This is more about the BOE - McDonough and Bugbee - denying her access than it is about Mantello specifically. Ballots just should not be hidden from the general public let alone a candidate. It's not right and while it likely will not have an impact on last year's election maybe it will set a precedent and send a message to the BOE.

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    1. A message was sent to the BOE when we had voter fraud. The impact was the BOE is worse now and everyone involved in voter fraud then still works there.
      As they say if nothing changes nothing changes.

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  5. Franco: Any Board of elections can not cave to every obsessed candidate who will not accept a loss. The issue is not the Board of Elections whose hands are tied on this matter. they can not legally allow a candidate or ordinary citizen to view every ballot. If they did, every wannabe would be demanding access to ballots as an alternative to boredom. You know some of them from your time covering elections in Troy where overzealous politicians pop up every year.

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    1. This was about electronic access to the scanned ballots, not the originals. Maybe read the opinion first before giving us your dumbass interpretation.

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  6. She really needs to get a new hobby other than trying to suck off the public tit, She was and is a terrible candidate and comes off as a phony. This as bad as when she wasted campiaign funds taking jack cox jrs to court over a few phony signitures.What a jackass. Just go away

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  7. Well congratulations to Rodney Wiltshire as he was cleared by the new ethics committee of any and all accusations. Also it's a new day for Rodney has announced his candidacy for mayor against Mark McGrath? (Isn't he gone) Did Mayor Lou announce he wasn't running again? Maybe the ethics board should look into this social media phenomenon.

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    1. What about the sand and salt he took from dpw in salt shed because he's a taxpayer. I didn't get my 5 gallon. Pails of sand and salt mix? I'm a taxpayer.

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    2. Funny, I must have missed the report that Mayor Rosmilia wasn't running for a second term. Very disrespectful Rodney.

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    3. Is Cubit going to be gracious and announce the end of the investigation? He needs to be investigated for his part in all of this!

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    4. Really? Why would Rodney run for Mayor? If he announced please provide proof or are you the ethics committee now?

      All of these anonymous bloggers have totally lost their minds....the only thing the ethics committee did was make them feel like their opinions mattered for about three days. Move on. jesus.

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  8. Funny people have vary short memory's up in the Burgh Mirch literally had a Printing Press running fraudulent absentee ballots and Vito was involved in it up to his eyeballs too his Buddy Joe The Guitar Player who works there.

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    1. That's the old dems line about Mirch but they never proved a thing in 30years, in fact there was testimony from voters about Mirch bringing them ballots that they sat at their table and voted. Ironic.

      I hope John Brown enjoys his days in jail, and John have fun with Bubba.

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    2. Short memories huh? Who could forget the ZBA meeting when Cox showed up wearing a stinky diaper? Uh, uh, uh.
      I'm a welder, uh uh I did body work uh uh. I moved up Florida after 30 years uh uh..

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    3. Bobby was a chef and worked for sonny doin too! Funny thing no one remembers this cox but he ha so many stories

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  9. http://www.elections.ny.gov/NYSBOE/download/voting/absentee06152010.pdf

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    1. I don't see what an application for an absentee ballot has to do with this discussion. Perhaps you can enlighten us?

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  10. She looks like an ass. Let it go.

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  11. Since Ed McDonough and Bugbee failed to do their jobs and cost the county taxpayers half a million why are they still there? Anyone?

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    1. They have to protect all the other employees of the board that swore in court they were forging ballots.

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  12. So as a home owning taxpayer I can expect a recycling bin full of rocksalt left at my door?

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