Mr. Rick Desmond of the Jefferson County (OH) Republican Party made this statement regarding 171 voter challenges in Jefferson county:
"Columbus went behind our backs. We were never notified," he said.
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As mentioned in my
previous diary entry, a person named Edward (Ed) Pankus filed 171 voter challenges in Jefferson County. The legal notice appeared in the Steubenville Herald-Star on October 25, 2004.
A hearing was held yesterday at the Jefferson County Board of Elections. Mr. Pankus did not bother to appear at the hearing as a witness, resulting in the dismissal of all 171 challenges. He did, however, send a statement to the Herald-Star:
"The hearing challenging the voter registration of 171 voters shows that the Board of Elections in Jefferson County is following state procedure," Pankus stated.
The Board of Elections properly followed the prescribed protocol in alerting the voters who were named and conducting a hearing to verify their resident status.
In addition, the 10 or so voters who did show up to verify their residency at the hearing proves that a majority of those named must continue to be monitored.
This exercise furthers the confidence of all voters in Jefferson County that our voter registration rolls are closely monitored and accurate," he concluded.
Oddly enough, Mr. Pankus' statement did not address why he didn't appear at the hearings.
Who exactly is Edward Pankus and what is his affiliation with the state Republican Party? Is he just another dupe filing challenges on behalf of the GOP? What are the ramifications of filing challenges in the county and then failing to appear at the hearings? Not only have the challenged voters lost time and money, but also the County Board of Elections.
Perhaps more importantly, what does Mr. Desmond mean by "Columbus went behind our backs"?