NORTH CAROLINA: Who was watching? [View All]

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Who was watching?

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/news/opinion/10382663.htm

Inadequate oversight by local board another issue in Gaston voting woes

Fri, Dec. 10, 2004

Questions about what went wrong on Election Day in Gaston County
continue to demand answers. The need for a change of leadership in the
county's elections office remains urgent.

Yet questions must be answered, too, about the oversight provided the
elections office by the Gaston County Elections Board.

A state investigation into voting irregularities Nov. 2 pointed
directly to poor management by Elections Director Sandra Page. Those
irregularities are not minor matters.

The elections office failed to tally more than 13,000 votes in its
unofficial count. A recount produced an additional 75 votes. A review
showed discrepancies in the number of voters and votes in more than
half the precincts, suggesting that some people could have voted twice
and others might not have been counted.

Despite the state's findings, the members of Gaston's elections board
have taken no steps to remove Ms. Page. Now, county commissioners are
investigating why Ms. Page overspent by more than $100,000 the amount
the county promised to provide during the current fiscal year. The
elections board may or may not have approved those expenditures.

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