01/26/12 The Marshall County Election Board elected a new chair on January 24 to replace former Chair Steve Harper. Nelson Chipman was elected to the position on a vote of 2-1.
Harper announced his resignation at the board’s last meeting on January 12. Harper had filed for a seat on the County Council and then indicated that he felt his position with the Election Board could be viewed as a conflict.
Harper’s resignation was effective as of the end of the January 12 meeting and Chipman was appointed by Marshall County Republican Chair David Holmes after the resignation of Harper was finalized.
The Board has been working for several weeks on finalizing their recommendations to theCountyCommissionerson polling sites. On Monday of this week, Marshall County Clerk/Election Board Secretary Julie Fox toured theLaPazCommunityBuildinginNorthTownshipalong with Commissioners Kevin Overmyer and Jack Roose to make sure that it would be suitable to serve as a polling site. A decision was made to use the building, but improvements/repairs need to be completed prior to the primary election. Fox said plans are to use the services of the County Highway Department to patch holes in the asphalt parking lot. It was also noted that an exterior door on the west side of the building would need to be replaced, lighting issues repaired in the corridor areas, and signage installed to designate handicap parking.
Fox said the Election Board will be applying for a HAVA grant for $5,000 or $10,000 after the estimates for the repairs/replacements are reported. The HAVA grant is a federal funded grant that is administered at the state level.
Fox indicated that the Commissioners would be handling both securing the estimates and the installation of the door and signage.
According to Fox, the contracts have not been signed as yet for the use of the building for elections, but are being drafted and there are verbal commitments for a period of 20-years.
Fox also indicated that they will be responding to the Union-North School Corporation’s request that the Election Board move the polling site off school property. Fox said they will notify the school corporation; however, the law states that school facilities can be used for elections and could be moved back to the elementary school building if needed in the future.
Designating polling sites is the responsibility of the Commissioners and they have final approval. Fox said the Election Board is on the agenda for the Commissioner’s meeting on February 6, when the recommended sites will be presented.
In other matters, the Election Board reviewed the contracts from Microvote. The company provides software, 24-hour technical service during election periods, ballot review and software upgrades for the county. The contracts are in the amounts of $9,500 and $500.
The Board also discussed the possibly of moving the Absentee Board to another location within the Court House and the number of workers need for Travel Boards. At the election held in 2008, some 4,000 votes were handled by the Absentee Board.
Shelley Brown of Voter Registration presented copies of financial reports from candidates to the Election Board. It was noted that here were five filings that were late. Three were filed after thenoondeadline on January 18; one was filed on January 19, and one on January 24. After the meeting it was discovered that a sixth filing was also late and had been filed on January 19. The Board voted unanimously to not assess any fines for late filings.
They also reviewed an amended financial statement of Karen Heim. Heim was elected as Town Clerk in Culver. The Board had received a letter of compliant concerning Heim’s original financial filing. Although the Board did not indicate that the original filing was not properly completed, they did accept an amended version that was filed by the deadline. According to Fox, the totals on both the first and amended filings were identical; however the amended version contained itemizations.
