Tavares, FL - Nov. 4, 2012
The Orlando Sentinel Lake Section published an article today about the race for Lake County FL Elections Supervisor between 86 year old incumbent Emogene Stegall and opponent Margie Eaton, 48. Read or skim this document to get my perspectives on this race.
We support Margie Eaton for the reasons described below.
Scroll down to find the link to my entire Voting Guide for Lake County and send it to anyone who has not voted yet.
Here is today's Orlando Sentinel "Lake Sentinel" section article - if you have the print version, also look at page 3 for more information on the two candidates.
This is the comment I posted about the article - and why you should vote for Margie EatonUnfortunately, this is a "spot news" article quoting just the two candidates and ignores what is happening in the elections "industry". All over the country, efforts to corrupt the voting process are going on, and I track them, as well as FoxNews and True The Vote. The reason why Lake County needs Margie Eaton is that incumbent Emogene Stegall is not energetic and educated enough to develop computer analysis solutions to detect and prevent sophisticated efforts by any party to modify voting results. Emogene never issues notices explaining a ballot manipulation case like in Palm Beach County, and does not explain specific, verifiable steps why it can't happen here. She always says they have the most modern computers but never explains any specifics, only vague generalities. As a former Certified Information Systems Auditor, I have talked to Emogene and she is NOT pro-active to run tests to examine possible duplicate voters, etc. For instance, True the Vote recently compared only 10% of New York voters to Florida voters and found hundreds of duplicate registrations. Did we read where Emogene investigated any in Lake County and publicly said what she found? No. That is why we need a more energetic, educated and non-partisan Elections Supervisor. We need someone thinking about 2012 and future election problems, not 1980's issues.
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Below is what I wrote in my FiscalRangers.com Voter Guide about why voters should support Margie Eaton:
Here is the source for my entire Voter's Guide, including tips to ensure your ballot and specific votes are not denied due to mistakes you might make. SEND this to anyone you know who has not voted yet, but will vote on Tuesday:
Supervisor of Elections: Vote for Margie Eaton (not incumbent & Democrat Emogene Stegall)
Reasons: Eaton is the ONLY candidate to receive a FULL endorsement by the Lake County Republican Party. In MY opinion, Stegall has been in the elections department for 54 years, which is too long. Even though most people believe she has operated the department in a well operated and non-partisan way (she is a Democrat), she seems to focus on just what is required by regulations, and not being a leader in developing new laws, procedures or policies to reduce risks of illegal voters.
She participated in the DROP program which basically paid her both a full retirement and a full salary, which some people don’t like. She agreed to retire around 2010 in a 2005 document, but has not.
Based upon my conversations with her, she does not understand computers, the website is 10 years out of date, candidates go to other County Election websites to get advice, staff is not consistent in giving advice to candidates, and the office won’t initiate computer routines to detect double voting, illegal voters, etc.
Additionally, earlier this year, Governor Scott issued a report ranking all 67 County Elections Departments. Emogene’s Lake County Elections department was in the bottom TWELFTH of all 67 counties for things like meeting deadlines and other factors (I have the report, and the Tampa Bay Times article about it.)
We cannot keep operating the elections department like in the 1990’s or 1980’s because too many groups are trying to manipulate the vote counts and a more pro-active Supervisor of Elections is needed. That is why we need NEW blood running the office. I think the existing staff is hard working, but need new and more assertive direction.
Vote for Margie Eaton, who has a degree, fifteen years in the judicial (legal) field and understands the need to develop computer matching and other procedures to detect illegal voters.
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