Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Government Accountability Board Finds Few More Anomalies With Waukesha County - Still Investigating

Today, the Government Accountability Board announced that after speaking with Waukesha County Clerk Kathy Nickolaus and reviewing documents, they have found only a few more minor anomalies with the 2011 vote count in Waukesha County. However, the report says, "The G.A.B. will continue to review additional documentation and correspondence from the Waukesha County and Municipal Clerks' offices relating to all issues identified for investigation." So, it doesn't appear as though they have completed their investigation. They say a more "detailed report will be completed in the next 60 days."

Since the GAB's investigation into the vote counts in Waukesha County has barely touched the surface and they won't look at the actual ballots, none of us can be sure at this point that all of the numbers are correct. We have more than enough reason to suspect that votes in Waukesha County could have easily been lost or changed. There's so much reason that the decision to request a recount shouldn't be based on the latest vote counts without a full bipartisan investigation. However, it seems we're on that path.

Waukesha County Clerk Kathy Nickolaus should have given us many more details by now out of duty to her office, and that's why I've called for her resignation. We should be able to trust a county clerk's word, and if there are doubts, such a clerk should be willing to help us understand. We can't have open and transparent elections when county clerks behave as Nickolaus has.

I put together a bit of a timeline of the events after Nickolaus's press conference here.

Yesterday, the Prosser campaign said that they plan to "vigorously" prevent any recount, even though they were previously open to a recount. Prosser is only ahead now because of the controversial vote counts from Waukesha County. So it's imperative that we express our doubts and get answers now.

Here are some easy and effective ways you can do that:

Tens of thousands of Wisconsinites have already signed a petition for a bipartisan investigation into the vote counts in Waukesha County started by One Wisconsin Now. I urge you to add your name to the petition here and tell your friends and family about our request for a bipartisan and impartial investigation.

Wisconsinites can file a complaint with the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board regarding issues with the processes and security of the Waukesha County election system, the delayed explanation we were given for the missing votes, and Nickolaus's refusal to give a clear explanation for over a week. The GAB has a complaint form here: http://gab.wi.gov/node/1282. The election official in this case is Waukesha County Clerk Kathy Nickolaus.

You can join the wave of rallies across Wisconsin happening every day. Wisconsin Wave is a non-partisan effort to unite Wisconsinites together in support of democracy, workers' rights and other fundamental Wisconsin values. They have a list of their events here. Many other events are listed at Defend Wisconsin. There are probably many other events not included in those two lists, but they're good places to start.

We must demand real solutions to problems with our elections. Unlike pseudo-solutions such as the Voter Distraction Bill (Senate Bill 6), which requires an ID to vote and only seeks to stifle valid voters, there are solutions that would noticeably improve our elections.

The most important thing you can do right now is help us push Kathy Nickolaus to answer our relevant questions before the recount deadline. Spread the word. Tell your friends and family about the questions you have, why you think Nickolaus should answer those questions before a recount is conducted, and how they can help. Contact the press and your state representatives, and demand a clear explanation before a recount.

Contacting the press may prove to be most effective, and Facebook and Twitter are effective as well, so don't forget them.

Finally, don't forget to email Scott Walker, because I'm sure he'll tell us how many supporters have emailed him: govgeneral@wisconsin.gov. All you need is a brief message stating that you don't have confidence in the vote counts from Waukesha County and a full bipartisan investigation should be conducted.

Rinse and repeat as necessary.

Time is of the essence.

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