The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday refused to acknowledge the
results of the March 2 election as unblemished.
The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday refused to acknowledge the results of the March 2 election as unblemished.
Required to certify election results this week, the Board denied the county clerk’s resolution, then approved its own version of a certification that includes a notation denoting allegations of improper voting in District 5.
The state will receive a certification from San Benito County – but one that points out the two ongoing investigations and an active lawsuit attempting to nullify the District 5 result.
An inspector hired by District Attorney John Sarsfield and an investigator from the Secretary of State’s Office have been examining the claims for two weeks.
The Board’s privately hired attorney Nancy Miller – who drafted the alternative resolution – said the probes will take at least “another few weeks.”
Miller advised the Board to approve the modified resolution, she said, for the benefit of public knowledge. Though the added information has no legal ramifications, she said.
Only if the Board had refused to formally certify the results, she said, would the county have faced a likely court challenge.
“So that while the results are certified, there is a potential that it will come back to you for an amendment,” she told Board members.
Challenger Jaime De La Cruz, who defeated incumbent Bob Cruz by 10 votes, was carried to victory by a 72-vote absentee ballot advantage. De La Cruz encouraged such voting during his campaign; Cruz did not.
Cruz’s wife, Marian, however, filed the suit March 26 challenging 13 ballots, including eight returned improperly by residents to the Elections Office.
Tuesday, Supervisor Reb Monaco was the only dissenting vote on the five-member Board. Cruz, the chairman, abstained with a conflict.
The public, Monaco said, is already aware of the issue without such an official stand. Plus, he said, the allegations have not been confirmed.
“What we do have, whether it’s valid or invalid, is hearsay information of possible things that happened,” Monaco said.
During the discussion, Miller made it clear that either of the two resolutions, legally, would do.
Though she did mention in response to Monaco’s contention, “You (supervisors) have some knowledge that’s not hearsay.”
She was referring to the eight District 5 ballots that all parties have acknowledged as being improperly returned. It is unclear, however, how those residents voted because the voting process is anonymous.
Prior to the Board’s vote, Clerk John Hodges presented his resolution. Twice before that happened Hodges had been ready to speak, but acting chair Ruth Kesler refused to let him.
Kesler questioned the Elections Office during the meeting, saying “we seem to have mistakes” every year. She has also previously called the District 5 results fraudulent.
The first time Hodges arose to talk, she requested that Miller, instead, present the modified resolution.
The second time Hodges came to the podium, Kesler interjected, “I don’t want to hear your statement yet.”
“I’ll wait,” Hodges replied.
Immediately following, a resident seated to the back of the gallery raised his arms high and pointed his thumbs down in disapproval. It was Dennis Madigan, who was removed from the Planning Commission in September. He has since formed a government watchdog organization.
Kesler asked Madigan if he wanted to speak.
“I just wanted to give my opinion of your comment by giving thumbs down,” said Madigan, who remained seated.
Steve Lujan, who represented the local branch of the Mexican American Political Association (MAPA) which has supported De La Cruz’s candidacy, said his organization was concerned whether the Board would certify the election.
“We as (MAPA) request a certification by the Board,” Lujan said.
Then Hodges finally spoke, and kept it brief.
“Any resolution other than the one submitted, I do not agree with and recommend that it not be adopted,” he said.
After the meeting, Hodges said the Board’s approval of the modified certification “won’t have any effect.”
“I feel they’re just making a mountain out of an anthill,” he said. “It’s not necessary.”
De La Cruz, meanwhile, continues to question the current Board, and other county departments, over their handling of the issue.
“Do I have the same option as Marian Cruz – the resources, the taxpayers’ money, the Board of Supervisors – to support her complaint?” De La Cruz asked. “If I submitted that complaint, would the (Board), the DA and everybody else come and support me?”
