Politics intrude on county board of elections appointment

My Margaret Witt Newton - Politics and elections go hand-in-hand. Candidates campaign and votes are cast - a practice most people find completely acceptable. What is less acceptable to some is the politicking involved with finding the right candidate for an election appointment. Earlier this year, Sussex County Board of Elections Administrator Joanne Williams announced she would be retiring from her position on June 1. The board commissioners began interviewing people for the position, meeting with a total of 17 candidates, four of whom were interviewed a second time. June 1 arrived, with still no decision made as to her replacement, and Williams agreed to stay on until the end of the month. It isn’t for lack of qualified candidates that the position has not been filled; rather it comes down to the two political parties not being able to reach a consensus on the best man, or woman, for the job. “I have been on this board for almost six years, and this is the first time it’s happened, but there’s an awful lot of politics going on here, and politics should not play a part in this office,” said commissioner Joseph Keslo, a Democratic appointee. Keslo claims Sussex County Republican Chairman Rich Zeoli was bragging that he was able to trick Democratic commissioners Keslo and Francesca Sanderson into “getting his guy.” On June 6, all four commissioners met to discuss the administrator position and a compromise was reached, in the spirit of nonpartisanship, to forego each party’s top candidate choice and instead lend mutual support for candidate Margaret Lake McCabe, former president of the Newton Chamber of Commerce who is currently with the Newton-based CPA firm of Murphy and Company. Last week, however, all deals were off, and what was to be a compromise returned to a stalemate. The call to vote to hire McCabe, effective July 31 at an annual salary of $48,000, was met with two “yes” votes from Republican commissioners Linda Fountain and Dave Mortimer, but was unsupported with surprising “no” votes from Sanderson and Keslo. Sussex County Democratic Chairman Howard Burrell and Democratic commissioners Sanderson and Keslo pulled their support from McCabe at the last minute, and instead backed the candidate of their choice, Abigail Kluska, a manager of technology for the board of elections, and former Democrat now undeclared. After voting down the hiring of McCabe, Keslo called for a vote to approve Kluska for the position, with both he and Sanderson voting in favor, but with Mortimer motioning to table the vote. Commissioner Chair Sanderson said she had planned to support the previously reached compromise and vote for McCabe, but given Zeoli’s alleged comments, she felt it was “such a Karl Rove approach,” that she could not “vote to support this compromise with this political bragging.” Mortimer said Keslo’s comments were “way off base,” saying the decision “should be a nonpolitical one.” Mortimer reminded the other commissioners that the lengthy interview process undertaken by all, which was believed to have come to an end at the June 6 meeting, found everyone in agreement that McCabe was the candidate best suited for the job. “(This is a) disservice to the county, to the personnel of this office, and to Mrs. Williams,” said Fountain in response to the commissioners’ indecision. She went on to express concern over the apparent staffing shortage during an election period. Fountain pointed out that until the position is filled, the election board will continue to operate with a 20 percent reduction in personnel at a time when manpower is needed, given the upcoming Sept. 26 special election in Sparta. “To go on and do the election without proper staffing is a travesty,” said Fountain. Keslo and Sanderson both claimed the office is running smoothly without Williams, and that Election Board Deputy Carol Webster was trained to take over Williams’ responsibilities in the interim. The two commissioners said the upcoming elections will not be affected. In a public statement, McCabe said she was shocked at the accusations in front of her. “I am no party’s puppet. I am an independent thinker,” she told the board. McCabe said she was upset at the implication that either party thought they could benefit from her appointment. “I will be nonpartisan. I helped Howard win the Burrell for Freeholder campaign, I’m a former Republican, now undeclared, and I’m married to a Democrat. I’m incredibly nonpartisan,” she said. “I hope to be evaluated on my skills … Give me the opportunity to prove myself.” The commissioners plan to meet again this week to resolve the matter. Fountain said she hopes the next meeting will be a more successful one. McCabe said she plans to attend the next meeting as well.