Linda Lemone Resigns
Linda Lemone, long-term supervisor of the Maryland State Board of Elections recently announced her retirement, after some 25 years in the saddle. Over that time, she has been allowed to wield enormous power over elections and voting in the state, characterized by many as a non-responsive attitude towards accountability to assure fair and honest practices and policies in the voting system here.
So, with Lemone's departure, there is an opportunity to bring in some clarity and resolution to Maryland election procedures, more compatible with fair, honest voting. For example, perhaps now, the State Board will look into ending its long-term relationship with ERIC, a private voter data collection agency, which has held such a controlling influence in adding and removing names on the state voting rolls.
Even in ideal circumstances, however, election integrity is hard to assure in Maryland as elsewhere, since the evidence of wrongdoing, fraud, mismanagement, and digital manipulation is hidden behind a cloak of secrecy, under the guise of "Privacy" and concern for "voter suppression". Mail-in ballots, long, extended period of early voting, drop boxes, and questionable tabulating machines, are an open invitation for fraud and corruption.
Robyn Sachs, head of non-partisan "Election Integrity Maryland" has been conducting research that has uncovered a number of troubling anomalies that point to error and possible corruption in the voting system that calls for true accountability and correction. So far, she has been unable to have an audit of some specific voting anomalies to find out what is going on.
In my own experience, both primary and general election voting in Prince George's County, I was handed the wrong ballot, and had to go through a corrective process to finally cast my vote.
What about New Voting Laws?
The Maryland General Assembly just closed its 2023 session, and many bills are on the Governor's desk for signing. Some will doubtless affect the election laws. As bills emerge as new laws, a further summary will be provided to see just where we stand now.
Much of the blame for lack of voter confidence in the voting system lies with laws that have removed logical restraint of voter fraud, such as allowed through the influence and involvement of outside "ballot harvesting" agencies during the long, extended time for voting. The logical solution is to return to single day voting with voter ID. However, recent actions by the current General Assembly seem to be moving in the other direction to expand even easier, less accountable voter registration and mal-in voting.
In Prince George's County, the local board of elections has been alerted to possible abuse in the voting system. And, in Anne Arundel County and elsewhere, serious issues of irregularities have been brought to the attention of the state board. Unless resolved, these issues will only promote the growing sense that Maryland elections are indeed "rigged" to achieve some particular political outcome.
I know that Robyn Sachs is always looking to expand her state-wide network of volunteers in each county to help her work for integrity in Maryland voting. Help in Prince George's County is especially needed. Contact Robyn to help in her research. Website on facebook: Maryland Voter Integrity Group
Lee Havis - April 2023
