GOLDEN — The Jefferson County Clerk and Recorder’s Office has filed a request for the Colorado Secretary of State to reconsider the decertification of the county’s voting equipment.
Today’s filing echoes similar appeals filed by Mesa County and the vendor of both counties’ voting system, Election Systems and Software Inc.
Jeffco Clerk Pam Anderson said the appeal contends the state testing board was unable to complete testing due to inexperience and a communication breakdown with the manufacturer but that does not justify the ballot-counting equipment decertification.
The appeal also questions claims by the Department of State that a magnet can disable the electronic voting equipment. Anderson said repeated efforts to recreate the tests could not duplicate the board’s findings.
The state’s testing also did not involve the tests and audits the county does for each election.
“With less than six months before we are to have primary election ballots in hand, the state has told us to throw out our equipment and start over from scratch,” Anderson said. “This is not an option at this point, and I feel it would be irresponsible and may result in the disenfranchisement of Jefferson County’s voters to do so.”
