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Ballot inspection bill likely to die in House
CONCORD —An attempt to allow citizens to inspect ballots is likely to be killed today by the House.
House Bill 1548 would repeal the right-to-know exemption for ballots passed in 2003 after groups began asking the Secretary of State’s Office to review ballots when the retention period ended but before they were destroyed.
Deputy Secretary of State David Scanlan said, “After we started getting requests like that, the Legislature passed the exemption to place in statute what had been long-standing policy.”
Ballots were always considered private after an election, he said. Ballots were always sealed and held and only opened for a recount or a court order, Scanlan said.
The bill’s prime sponsor Rep. Seth Cohn, R-Canterbury, said he introduced the bill on behalf of groups looking into election fraud such as Black Box Voting.
“They raised their concerns and I thought they had a right to be heard,” Cohn said. But no one appeared at the public hearing to support the bill, except him, Cohn said.
Deborah Sumner of Jaffrey said the provision exempting ballots from the state’s right-to-know law was approved in 2003 without a full public discussion. This takes away the possibility of citizen oversight, she said, which could help prevent mistakes and protect against voter fraud.
“It’s all hidden from the public,” Sumner said. “There’s no valid reason for it.”
Sumner said her concern is electronic voting, which really shuts out the public.
Under the bill, the right-to-know provision would be repealed in voting statutes covering bribery and intimidation.
If the provision were repealed, Scanlan said, any citizen would have access to ballots before a recount or a court order, or before the Ballot Law Commission acts on an appeal or before a court could rule.
“This would open a whole new avenue of voter fraud that had been shut down many years ago,” Scanlan said.
If it were repealed, there would be no process in place for someone to view the ballots, he said, adding someone could place a mark on the ballot or change a vote unless there is very close supervision.
“(Currently) there are mechanisms for ballots to be reviewed,” Scanlan said, noting any candidate can request a recount, a precinct moderator can order a review if something unusual happens and any citizen can go to court.
Scanlan said some ballots are preserved because they can be identifiable such as those cast by disabled voters, military voters, or overseas citizens or those voting by absentee ballots.
“Clearly there are ballots that clearly identify how a voter cast (his or her) vote,” he said.
The House Election Law Committee voted 14-2 to recommend the bill be killed, saying every voter has a right to keep his or her ballot secret and private.
House Bill 1548 would repeal the right-to-know exemption for ballots passed in 2003 after groups began asking the Secretary of State’s Office to review ballots when the retention period ended but before they were destroyed.
Deputy Secretary of State David Scanlan said, “After we started getting requests like that, the Legislature passed the exemption to place in statute what had been long-standing policy.”
Ballots were always considered private after an election, he said. Ballots were always sealed and held and only opened for a recount or a court order, Scanlan said.
The bill’s prime sponsor Rep. Seth Cohn, R-Canterbury, said he introduced the bill on behalf of groups looking into election fraud such as Black Box Voting.
“They raised their concerns and I thought they had a right to be heard,” Cohn said. But no one appeared at the public hearing to support the bill, except him, Cohn said.
Deborah Sumner of Jaffrey said the provision exempting ballots from the state’s right-to-know law was approved in 2003 without a full public discussion. This takes away the possibility of citizen oversight, she said, which could help prevent mistakes and protect against voter fraud.
“It’s all hidden from the public,” Sumner said. “There’s no valid reason for it.”
Sumner said her concern is electronic voting, which really shuts out the public.
Under the bill, the right-to-know provision would be repealed in voting statutes covering bribery and intimidation.
If the provision were repealed, Scanlan said, any citizen would have access to ballots before a recount or a court order, or before the Ballot Law Commission acts on an appeal or before a court could rule.
“This would open a whole new avenue of voter fraud that had been shut down many years ago,” Scanlan said.
If it were repealed, there would be no process in place for someone to view the ballots, he said, adding someone could place a mark on the ballot or change a vote unless there is very close supervision.
“(Currently) there are mechanisms for ballots to be reviewed,” Scanlan said, noting any candidate can request a recount, a precinct moderator can order a review if something unusual happens and any citizen can go to court.
Scanlan said some ballots are preserved because they can be identifiable such as those cast by disabled voters, military voters, or overseas citizens or those voting by absentee ballots.
“Clearly there are ballots that clearly identify how a voter cast (his or her) vote,” he said.
The House Election Law Committee voted 14-2 to recommend the bill be killed, saying every voter has a right to keep his or her ballot secret and private.