Madison hires Minnesotan as new clerk to run elections after year of turmoil
This article was originally published by Votebeat a nonprofit news organization covering local balloting administration and voting access Madison s mayor revealed the appointment of Lydia McComas an official from Minnesota as the city s new clerk Wednesday marking a fresh start for voting process administration in Wisconsin s state capital after the turmoil triggered by the loss of ballots in November McComas who will begin Sept previously managed the voter engagement division in Hennepin County Minnesota a jurisdiction with over voters that encompasses Minneapolis and a few of its suburbs Related Fact-checking Trump s latest suggests about mail ballots and voting machines I will work every day to uphold the values of accountability accuracy and accessibility that are essential to this office McComas reported in a announcement Madison is still working to rebuild its reputation after the November ballot snafu when electoral contest personnel lost track of nearly ballots The error led to the suspension and ultimately the resignation of Maribeth Witzel-Behl who was Madison clerk for over years and was recognized by other Wisconsin clerks as a leader and mentor Mike Haas the city attorney and former administrator of the Wisconsin Elections Commission has served as interim clerk for much of this year Beyond adjusting to a new set of ballot laws in Wisconsin McComas will have to ensure compliance with several specific orders that the electoral process commission imposed on Madison to keep such errors from happening again During her time in Hennepin County McComas oversaw compliance with vote laws and developed training for poll workers She managed several aspects of the voting process from registering voters to certifying polling results She ll be able to offer a valuable fresh perspective to our Clerk s Office operations while building on the multiple areas of strength the office has established over the years Madison Mayor Rhodes-Conway mentioned in a message She has strong communication skills and has led voter schooling campaigns with both society groups and the wider residents McComas has a political science degree from the University of Minnesota and a certificate in electoral process administration from the university s Humphrey School of Inhabitants Affairs Alexander Shur is a reporter for Votebeat based in Wisconsin Contact Alexander at ashur votebeat org Votebeat is a nonprofit news organization covering local poll integrity and voting access Sign up for their newsletters here The post Madison hires Minnesotan as new clerk to run elections after year of turmoil appeared first on MinnPost
