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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-04-22 Board of Registrars MinutesaTown of Reading Meeting Minutes Board - Committee - Commission - Council: Board of Registrar IrilT.fi'bY#II�LbiI Building: Virtual Time: 8:30 AM Location: Zoom Address: Session: Open Session Purpose: Select Board and Board of Library Version: Final Trustee(BoLT) Recount Attendees: Members - Present: Town Clerk Laura Gemme (Chair), Kris Holmes, Nancy Ziemlak, David Zeek (temporary) Members - Not Present: Donna Brewer, Maurica Miller Miyares and Harrington LLP Others Present: Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Topics of Discussion: TOWNIzlvku !1?! OCT -5 pH Select Board Candidate Melissa Murphy represented by Attorney Brian Gaff, Salem, NH Select Board Candidate Karen Herrick represented by Dennis Newman, Reading, MA Select Board Candidate Carlo Bacci not represented by counsel BoLT Monette Verrier - neither present nor represented BoLT Christian Popp - neither present nor represented BoLT Michael Terry - neither present nor represented BoLT Candidate Brian Curry represented At 7:00am, registrars Ziemlak and Zeek observed the transfer of the ballots by the Reading Police from Reading Town Hall to the RMHS Field House. At 8:30am Laura Gemme, Town Clerk, gave opening remarks and guidance to the town staff, the candidates, candidate counsels, callers, tallyers, runners and volunteer observers. All callers, tallyers, registrars, runners, town staff were required to be in attendance for the entire recount. Observers were allowed to work in shifts. Everyone was required to wear name tags within the cordoned off area in which the recount took place. Cell phones were not allowed in the area. The recount area was cordoned off and only those registered (per the Town Clerk) to actively participate in the recount were allowed in this area. The public was allowed to enter the building to observe in a designated area but could not enter the recount area. No camera's or cell phones were allowed in the recount area. Page I 1 First Order of Business was a Motion to Discontinue Recount of Select Board Race in Precincts 1 thru Precinct 7. Dennis Newman, on behalf of Karen Herrick, submitted a motion to the Board of Registrars to stop the recount of votes for Select Board in precincts 1-7 based on the failure of Melissa Murphy to meet the statutory requirements for requesting a recount for those precincts. Specifically, she failed, in the time allowed, to get a notarized signature of someone from each of those precincts who had signed her petitions. Town Counsel Donna Brewer argued that Melissa had corrected the deficiency in a time and manner acceptable to the town and the state. The Board of Registrars voted 2 (Holmes & Zeek) to 1 (Ziemlak) to continue the recount with 1 abstention (Gemme). Note that the motion affected neither precinct 8 nor any of the votes for the Board of Library Trustees. The recounts for the races for Select Board and the Board of Library Trustees got underway The ballots were sorted by the election volunteers into packets of 50 at the Field House to be distributed to the counting tables. There were 5 counting tables set up for the Select Board recount each with one caller and one tallyer.. Each table received an envelope with 50 ballots all from the same precinct. One person read the names aloud from the ballot and the other person kept a tally on the tally sheet provided by the Town Clerk. The tally sheet had to total up to 50 ballots otherwise the recount had to be repeated for that packet of ballots. All blanks and write-ins were recorded on the tally sheet. Once finished, the ballots were then taken by a runner over to the one of the 5 tables set up for the Board of Library Trustees recount with a similar set up as described above. The caller and tallyer could not leave the table during the count of the 50 ballots.. All participants were given name tags to be worn at all times. In addition, each candidate was allowed two observers at each table. The observers could be switched out throughout the day after the pack of 50 ballots was tallied correctly. If an observer felt that they observed an error in the process they were required to indicate this Immediately by calling out OBJECTION. Counting was stopped at all tables during this occurrence and resumed once a resolution was made. The representatives/counsels for each candidate were then required to review the objection. If the representatives/counsels were able to come to an agreement then the objection is resolved. If the representatives/counsels could not agree or chose not to make a decision the matter was then brought before the three registrars for a final decision which is not debatable. Each counsel stated their opinion as well as the Town Counsel to the Registrars. The Registrars then discussed the objection and made a finding. The Board of Trustees was asked to adjudicate an objection for just one ballot for Select Board. Objection 0-1 Precinct 3 Block 8. The Board of Registrars voted 3 (Holmes, Ziemlak, Zeek) to 0 with 1 abstention (Gemme) that one vote should be counted for Karen Herrick and another for blank. The issue was that the bubble was marked sloppily, but the marking was clearly on Karen's line of the ballot including most of the bubble on her line. Melissa's representative Brian Gaff filed an objection to the vote of the Registrars without further comment. Page 1 2 After the recount, Laura Gemme announced these unofficial results: Total ballots was 4639, one fewer than the 4640 reported from the April 4, 2023, election Official Results. For Select Board Karen Herrick* 2439 (down 1) Carlo Bacci* 2394 (up 2 from the April 4, 2023, election Official Results) Melissa Murphy 2386 (down 1) *elected 1468 (unchanged) For Board of Library Trustees Monette Verner* 2875 (unchanged from the April 4, 2023, election Official Results) Brian Curry 1686 (unchanged) Christian Popp* 2254 (unchanged) Michael Terry 1468 (unchanged) *elected The recount finished and the meeting of the Board of Registrars was adjourned Page 1 3