Washoe County Commission certifies results of primary election recount after initial rejection

The Washoe County Commission on Tuesday voted 4-1 to certify results of a recount of two primary election races.

Commissioners Clara Andriola and Mike Clark voted for certification after voting no last week, which caused the certification, called a canvass, to fail and sowed chaos among state officials.

Commissioner Jeanne Herman voted no last week, and again on Tuesday.

Chair Alexis Hill and Commissioner Mariluz Garcia voted to approve the canvass both times.

Andriola said that since last week's vote, her concerns were addressed and she received the clarified information that the canvass is a requirement for commissioners.

“From my perspective, the action is really a declaration of the election results, including any errors noted, all of which are sent to the Secretary of State. Our responsibility is to follow the law,” Andriola said.

Andriola had requested the commission reconsider the certification at Tuesday's meeting.

“A clear understanding based upon the legal clarification provided by the DA’s office further cements my readiness to move forward today," she said. "Today is about certifying the results which I stand ready to do.”

Commissioner Clark also switched his vote to certify the recount, but he apologized to his constituents for being “forced” to vote this way.

“It's with a heavy heart today that I change my vote," he said. "I understand that many of you will lose faith in me and it's with a heavy heart that I make this — but I’m not going to call it a vote because it isn’t a vote, we’re compelled and we have to do something. I’m not allowed to vote on this.”

Herman stayed with her no vote because she believes she is protecting the rights of her voters.

“There are hills to climb on and there are hills to die on and this might be one of those,” Herman said.

Community split

Public commenters spoke for over three hours, the majority about the recount certification.

Bruce Parks, chair of the Washoe County Republican Party, urged the commission to recount the ballots by hand. Parks said he was familiar with the logistics of hand counts because the Republican Party did one for their caucus, claiming they had full transparency.

“I am here today to ask you in the upcoming general election, we want a parallel hand count in addition to the machine count." Parks told the commissioners.

He also urged the commission to not certify the recount.

"You owe your constituents. Stay the course, stand your ground," Parks said. "You showed backbone last week. Don't lose it now."

Reno resident Stephen Hatch urged the commission to certify the vote totals, saying that they should take all the public comments with “a grain of salt.”

“Anyone who seeks to cast doubt on the legitimacy of our elections either fundamentally does not understand the complexities of running an election or are purposely working to dismantle our nation’s fundamental democratic principles,” Hatch said.

“I am someone who is concerned for their community and wants to ensure legitimate votes are not being dismissed.”

There were several interruptions of applause, cheering and shouting from both sides.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Mary Kandaras and Hill stopped public commenters a handful of times because of disruptions.

“What I would ask is because this is a meeting to conduct the business of Washoe County, that people please listen and not interrupt the speakers,” Kandaras said.

“There’s nothing wrong with agreeing or disagreeing, but it cannot disrupt the meeting. A disruption is if it prevents the board from doing its business, and it is a misdemeanor.”

Drew Ribar said the pressure on commissioners to certify the recount was concerning.

“People are talking about how our elected representatives have to vote,” Ribar said. “ Why would outside influences from the executive branch threaten our commissioners, our legislative branch?

“If we can’t question the elections, are they truly free and fair? Shouldn’t we as the people be able to question things? Isn’t that why we have a representative form of government? It just blows me away.”

Washoe resident Alanna Fitzgerald believed certifying the votes would honor the intent of the voters and the commissioners had an obligation to certify them.

“I am dismayed that any one of our elected officials would find that it would be possibly fun to disrupt the voting process through their personal choices that affect our well being, and our community,” Fitzgerald said.

Tension on the commission

During his initial comments, Clark discussed being upset about the amount of unrest regarding the recount information.

“Seems like we’re at it again. Every time we turn around we see the same issue,” Clark said. “It would just be a lot better if we could have some resolution to this.”

During the agenda item, Kandaras told the commissioners that the board does not have the authority to determine whether ballots cast were invalid in a canvass. She said the remedy is determined by statute.

“The legal advice of the district attorney’s office is to follow the Nevada law and canvass the recount,” Kandaras said.

Clark and Andriola both reaffirmed that they were going to comply with the statutes. However, Clark also asked that a new process be created for elections.

What were the recount results?

The recounts were conducted for candidates Mark Lawson in Washoe County Commission District 4 and Paul White in Washoe County School Board Trustee District G, at a projected cost of about $50,000 each. The recounts were paid for by Republican donor Robert Beadles.

The new results showed almost no change from the initial primary vote . White and Lawson’s totals differed by only a single vote each.

White came in fourth in his District G at-large race for school board. Perry Rosenstein and incumbent Diane Nicolet, who received 35% and 18% of the vote respectively, will move onto the general election in November.

Lawson had 1,700 fewer votes than the winner, incumbent Andriola.

Last week, a Washoe County District Court judge denied a motion for a preliminary injunction in White's legal case seeking a hand recount and physical inspection of ballots. It appears his case will be consolidated with Lawson's lawsuit seeking the same thing.

Neither case has been decided. A judge still needs to rule on the heart of their arguments. If White and Lawson lose in district court, they can appeal to the Nevada Supreme Court.

Reno City Council candidate Lily Baran had also requested a recount but later withdrew it, along with her lawsuit against interim Registrar of Voters Carri-Ann Burgess and others, demanding a hand recount.

Why was the recount not certified before?

Andriola’s vote against the recount results swung the initial vote into a 3-2 rejection at the July 9 meeting, alongside Clark and Herman’s no votes.

Her reasoning: Assistant District Attorney Nate Edwards told the commissioners “vote your conscience” depending on the evidence presented, which pushed Andriola to say no, citing concerns raised by public commenters over a lack of confidence in the process.

“I'm basing my vote on the fact that you used the word ‘conscience’ and the fact that we have had, not just today, an ongoing concern,” Andriola said at the last meeting.

After the certification failed, state officials heavily criticized the commissioners for voting against approving ballot totals in the recounts and petitioned the Nevada Supreme Court to force the board to certify the recounted election results.

“This week, three county commissioners refused to canvass accurate election results as required by law,” Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar said in a statement.

“This vote has the potential to set a dangerous precedent for elections in Nevada. It is unacceptable that any public officer would undermine the confidence of their voters.”

Clark argued the state officials' criticism goes against what Edwards said about voting their conscience.

“They told us we had to vote but also that we have to vote our conscience, so I followed the rules,” Clark said. “And now the rules have changed.”

Mark Robison contributed to this story.

This article originally appeared on Reno Gazette Journal: Washoe County Commission certifies results of primary election recount after initial rejection