Look for this in local newspapers tomorrow, but it was announced today that Hillsborough Co. (FL) failed to count 245 votes during the primary election due to an error with the setup of one of the touch screen voting machines. The machine in question was sent into the field still in "test mode", so it appeared to be running correctly, but in fact none of the votes cast on the machine were counted in the certified tally after the August 31st election.
My campaign released the following statement tonight. More information to come.
CANDIDATE ROB MacKENNA REPONDS TO NEWS OF LOST VOTES IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PRIMARY ELECTION
TAMPA - Rob MacKenna, Democratic candidate for Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections, issued the following statement in response to the news that the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections failed to count 245 votes cast in the August 31st primary election:
"When Hillsborough County's votes were not counted until more than ten hours after the polls closed on August 31st, Supervisor of Elections Buddy Johnson stated that accuracy was more important than speed. Now we have learned that our vote count was neither accurate nor speedy. Today's revelation that the Supervisor failed to count 245 votes is both shocking and extremely disappointing. Of all the duties of the Supervisor of Elections, certifying an election without counting every vote is among the worst possible mistakes."
"This failure underscores the need for a paper trail so that in future elections every vote will be counted. Mr. Johnson should cease his shameful efforts to place blame on his staff and accept full responsibility for this lapse. In the business world, this is the kind of error that gets people fired. The voters of Hillsborough County should keep Mr. Johnson's record of lost votes, delayed returns, and the multiple lawsuits filed because of his office's actions in mind when it comes time for his performance review on November 2nd."