2004 Ballot Recount: Observer Report

• December 19, 2004:
  Report by Green Party Observer

December 19, 2004:
Report by Green Party Observer

I am so sorry that I didn't stand my ground and have Mr. Rapp [Vice-President of Triad Systems, Inc.] sent out of the room. I am just now starting to feel like I can stop shaking (11:00 PM). Now I have to live with this.

When I learned he was in the room, as the recount was being started, I became extremely nervous and I did not feel like I could ask Mr. Rapp to leave the room.

It felt like all that was happening was way over my head, and at the time that my role as a witness was not to interfere with the recount, no matter how it was done.

Having said this I will start my report.

K and I came early and had to wait in the hall. We spoke to a very friendly person who was the Republican Chairwoman for Meigs County and so we were very relaxed before we went in the room.

I happened to see Mr. Rapp in the hall before the recount and I asked her who he was. She said that she thought that he was from the State, but little did I know that she was very wrong.

I was not allowed in the room until right before the re-count started. Only one volunteer could go in and since K did not go to the training meeting or had done a recount before, we insisted that I could go in the room because I had a signature sheet.

The Deputy Director considered our request and allowed me in the room after reviewing it with other parties at the recount. The recount started before I had a chance to figure out who all the people were in the room. And even then I had to do a Google just now to get all the names spelled correctly.

All following people were in the room.

• Rita D. Smith (R), Meigs County Board of Elections Director
• Jane M. Frymyer, Deputy Director
• John N. Ihle (D), Chairperson
• George Harris (R), Member (who was in and out of the room)
• Brenda S. Roush (R), Member
• Rita Slavin (D), Member
• Patty Pickens, Republican Chairwoman
• Pat Story, Attorney and Advisor for the Board
  and the Ohio Secretary of State
• Sarah B. Spence, Southeast Ohio Regional Representative for the Ohio Secretary of State
• Dwayne A. Rapp, Vice-President of Triad [Triad Governmental Systems, Inc., is a private corporation that supplies and programs voting machines in many Ohio precincts]

Please note that Sue Maison (sp?) — Democratic Chairwoman whom K had spoken to on the phone, said she would not be at the recount.

I had called the BOE with concerns about the random selection of precincts for the hand count and that appeared to go smoothly. A random sample of 10 precincts written on paper were put in a can and John Ihle-(D) on the board pulled the paper with the precinct for the three percent hand-count.

The precinct picked was Middleport - 3rd (0170).

The Board Members with the Director and the Deputy Director counted the ballots and stacked them by number and then counted the stacks. Brenda Roush (R) Board member tallied the results. The totals were:

During the hand-count, Ms. Frymayer asked Mr. Rapp about a "5" that she had and he stated that "he would show her what to do with it." Then when I realized that the hand-count did not really tally because of this ballot, I objected and stated that even though the card was considered not valid, the hand count was still wrong. Ms. Frymyer objected and in so many words stated that it was a simple matter and a hand-count was not necessary.

Please note that as the three percent ballots were starting to be tallied, Mr. Rapp handed me his card, as well as Ms. Spence. At this point, I realized what I was up against and why no one was up-front about who they were. No one seemed very concerned at all that Mr. Rapp and Ms. Spence were in the room, making me wonder what they had told the County Board.

Before the machine count began, Mr. Rapp created a test deck for 10 percent of 4 precincts as a computer test of the machine. I did not understand why this was necessary, but I did not object. Later, I was given a copy of this test run.

As the machine count was being done, I noticed that the ballot boxes did not have individual locks on them as they do in Athens County. The ballot boxes were stacked in a cabinet right by the tabulation machine and the computer, with one lock on the cabinet.

During the machine count, Rita Smith-R handed the ballots to Mr. Rapp who put them in the machine and Jane Freymyer-D was at the computer checking the printout sheet. They seemed very comfortable that Mr. Rapp was helping them with the machine. I tried to watch very carefully as the ballots were put in the machine and I did not see anything that raised my suspicion.

At about 3:30 pm I realized that the cross-reference of the signatures in the poll books had to be done and I became concerned about how this was going to happen.

We reached an agreement that I could come in on Monday when they had a poll worker who could come in as an observer. Having a poll worker present was not an issue in Athens County, so a red flag went up.

The absentee ballots have to be checked as discussed on the phone with [a member of the observer team].

I don't know if I want to go to the BOE in Meigs and I think maybe someone who is more confident should go.

Please note that as the final post-test was being run of the four selected precincts, that Ms. Freymyer made a point of saying that they only had one provisional vote in the whole county. The machine count totals were verified and confirmed by the Deputy Director and the Board approved the results. I was given copies of the computer results, so these are available for review.