Fernley Council Splits On Actions To Fix Ward Two Election Snafu

The Fernley City Council agreed to disagree on what measures could be taken to rectify the fact that some voters in Ward 2 were denied their right to vote for a council candidate in last November's general election. Following a short, albeit divisive meeting Wednesday evening, the council called for a special election, of sorts, that would allow those voters in Ward 2 to cast a ballot for city council.
With the matter already on tap for a hearing in district court January 26, the council essentially had two options: go to court and defend the city's actions or authorize a special election that would give those voters who were denied the chance to vote. City Attorney Jeff McGowan told the council that based on his conversations with the Nevada Secretary of State's office, the special election option would be sufficient for Secretary of State Ross Miller to drop court action that was initiated last week.
As members of the council discussed the options and their positions on the matter, it quickly became clear that an unusual divide was forming. On one side, Cal Eilrich, Ward 5 and Kelly Malloy, Ward 1, were coming down on the side of letting the court decide the best course of action. Councilmen Curt Chaffin, Ward 4 and Monte Martin, Ward 3, pushed for a localized solution in calling for a special election.
The one point both sides agreed upon was that the issue revolves around voters who were denied their right to vote due to a computer glitch, and not about who actually wins the election between Donald Howard and Donald Parsons.
"Let's face it, this is a no-win scenario," Eilrich said. "No matter which way it goes, there are going to be losers."
Both Eilrich and Malloy suggested that there is some level of responsiblity on the part of voters to check sample ballots in advance of the election and bring problems to the attention of the city and/or county.
"There is ample opportunity to check sample ballots, ask questions and get informed before the election," Malloy said. "I have a hard time recommending a special election when it could be overturned by the court."
Shying away from letting the court mandate the city's actions, Chaffin suggested the simplest way would be to find those people and make sure they get to vote. "I'm leaning toward taking some action and letting them vote, and the county clerk can tally the results. Otherwise, we leave it to the state."
Martin concurred and said he believes it's important for the council to do what is right. "We have a lot of firepower telling us we need to do something. We have to take some action--allow these people to vote--let the chips fall where they may."
At that point, Malloy made a motion to move forward with the court proceedings, which was supported by Eilrich. The vote came down to a 2-2 tie with Malloy and Eilrich in favor and Chaffin and Martin dissenting.
Mayor Todd Cutler then commented prior to casting the tie-breaker: "I first learned about this seven or eight days after the election. I've received a lot of calls about it, and I do not want to appear as though I'm burying my head in the sand on this issue. I'm voting against and the motion dies 2-3."
Chaffin then motioned to move ahead with a special election, which gained a second from Martin. Once again, the council split with Mayor Cutler voting in support resulting in a 3-2 action to green light the election.
The actual date and mechanics of how the election will be conducted remain to be determined.
After the council session adjourned, Mayor Cutler said he envisions the election taking place fairly quickly and said he wants to see the vote occur in a controlled environment like city hall, as opposed to mailing ballots out to those voters who were impacted by the computer glitch.
The situation came to a head January 7 with just hours prior to the oath of office being administered, Third Judicial District Judge David Huff issued a temporary restraining order prohibiting the swearing in of the presumptive winner in Ward 2, Donald Parsons. The race between Parsons and Donald Howard came down to a razor-thin three vote victory for Parsons. However, rumblings of voting irregularities began to surface the day after the general election. Following an investigation, Lyon County Clerk/Treasurer Nikki Bryan said that some 47 voters along Winnie's Lane were incorrectly coded as being in Ward 5, instead of Ward 2 as they should have been.
Although the county readily admitted that the coding error was a problem with updates made to the county system, the remedy for the glitch soon became a political hot potato that was tossed back and forth between the county and city for a number of weeks. Ultimately, Nevada Secretary of State Ross Miller, whose office has the responsibility for overseeing all elections in the state, decided to intervene and seek an emergency injunction.
Some questions remain in terms of whether the city's actions will be enough to satisfy the Secretary of State and gain a dismissal in Judge Huff's court. There's also the likelihood of a court challenge being filed by Parsons, who believes the election should stand.