As a citizen of Fayette County I have now reached the point of high disgust with our Fayette County Election Board and I have a very high tolerance for nonsense with our government officials.
First to provide a little background on our gloriously “professionally appointed” Board: The Chairman gets more comments from people in this county on his unprofessional dress than anybody I know in government. Is it too much, Mr. Chairman, to dress at the very least in khakis and a polo and remove your hat? I mean, I am sure your backwards baseball cap, flip flops and tank top works for some places but is a board meeting with the public really where this attire should be worn?
But, I digress. The real bigger issue is Assistant Chairman Gary Rower berating a citizen of our county at the July 29th election board meeting. When I jumped in to defend the citizen he told me I could not talk to him.
Excuse me, Mr. Rower, YOU are an appointed official working for the people and the minute you want to demean one of those people your board rules no longer stand. What I later learned was Mr. Rower has a history of being verbally abusive in email and in person.
This behavior is appalling. This man is an appointed official by the Commissioners. Is this the best we can do? He needs to be removed IMMEDIATELY. And I call on each and every Fayette County Commissioner to do just that.
At the June 26th meeting the Chairman let everyone know that he and the board will not correct election fraud for any current election, only for future ones. This is such a dangerous precedent to set. And as the public saw in the July 29th meeting Mrs. Otto presented a host of interesting items that need to be looked into including a code issue that was fixed by Dominion in 2021 that Fayette County Board of Elections never fixed, which causes ballots to go to a provisional state and not get counted in the closing poll totals. And then there was a date change to 2023 making 681 ballots results not searchable for the future.
With so many issues coming out, why did our board rush certification in 2 days when you had a week? It seems you really did not want to answer questions and be held accountable. This is why Georgia as a whole needs to uncertify the May election. The people of this county deserve to know for sure that their vote is secure, that every vote counted.
The ONLY way to know for sure is a hand recount. If there is nothing wrong then this should not be an issue. Match the images to the ballots cast and prove to everyone that our elections are above reproach. This should not be a partisan issue. This should not be a government verses the people issue. Everyone in this county should want to know that every vote counted and that there was nothing fraudulent done or the appearance of fraud.
Fayette County citizens need to demand a hand recount. They need to stand up for what is right and make their voices heard. This is our right, this is the right thing to do… just do right!
Lizzie Mullikin
Fayetteville, Ga.
There are several issues of concern in Fayette County over Election Integrity past and future, GA citizens distrust over Dominion oversight and problems during an election and absentee ballot hoarding in GA and locally our BOE not listening or respecting their constituents concerns. What BOE Chairman Wright and Assist Chairman Gary Rower seem to forget is that Fayette County citizens are educated, aware, concerned and independent thinkers who do their own research, investigate and reach out to those in charge. Shutting someone down as Mr. Rower did, evident in the video listed below, deserves attention from all Fayette County Commissioners who vetted and appointed this person to represent them. Commissioners Edward Gibbons, Charles Oddo, Eric Maxwell, Lee Hearn and Charles Rousseau should be held accountable for Mr. Rower’s inappropriateness.
Video: https://rumble.com/v1eeek9-fayette-co.-ga-boe-bombshell.html
Proverbs 29:2 ESV
2 When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people groan.
I attended the BOE meetings that the writer references. Her comments show us what her group is all about. The board members have been patient listening to this group of citizens who at every meeting for the last several months are determined to create doubt and chaos by making claims of voting discrepancies without one shred of evidence. The board members specifically told this group at the July 29th meeting that the group had failed to produce one piece of credible evidence for the claims they continue to make. It was revealed at the meeting that some of the group had entered the BOE office and interfered with the work there. This group didn’t want to listen as the board told them this interference could be charged as a misdemeanor and election fraud. The board members were not verbally abusive or demeaning. They were firm and clear. I applaud their patience and persistence in following the law.
BOE meetings are open to the public and now they are live streamed (and archived). Google: Fayette County, GA Board of Elections Minutes and Agendas
Well said, Lizzie. Things are not right in our elections and we as citizens need to stand up. I also agree with the chairman’s attire. Not professional which leads to people not respecting him and his word.
Before you complain, you can always run for the Board of Elections. As you know the Fayette County citizens on the board are task with a very difficult job of overseeing the election for the county. I am currently a poll worker and have been for over 3 election cycles. I can tell you that none of the precincts I have worked in have experienced any fraud or malpractices. Poll worker and election night officials work long hours on election days sometimes over 15 hours for very little pay. The system we have is by no means perfect but it beats what we had 5 years ago by a landslide. As I stated before if you want change run for office as a board member. I once read somewhere that change starts with me but in your case let the change start with you.
Dear Concerned,
Thank you for your civil comment, that is refreshing. So the board of elections is appointed, there is no running for it. The issue I have is the machine files show a lack of training with machines not being shutdown.