Borough assembly bans vote-counting devices but delays action on election procedure reform

The Matanuska-Susitna Borough Assembly worked through what was largely a routine business agenda at its Tuesday, Feb. 18 meeting. One item that has drawn attention, a revamp of voting procedures, was put off until March 18 for a final vote.

The proposed measure, in OR 25-012, was largely a cleanup of election procedures at polling places along with approval for candidates to have 200-word statements rather than being restricted to 100 words on election materials. It was sponsored by assembly person Dimitri Fonov.

However, there was criticism on part of the original measure that would have allowed some results of hand counts to be known before polls closed. Assembly member Stephanie Nowers proposed the amendment removed, which was adopted. Now results will only be released after polls close at 8 p.m.

A number of people showed up at the meeting expecting to testify against an earlier provision in the election code, since changed, that would have allowed devices to count paper ballots, like tabulators, to verify hand-counts.

At the start of the meeting Tuesday, Mayor Edna DeVries explained that the matter had been dealt with earlier in another piece of legislation.

While there was no hearing, DeVries invited people to speak to concerns during the “Audience Participation” part of the meeting, which is when citizens can express an opinion on any subject. Several did speak, many addressing Fonov’s ordinance that was before the body that night and others voicing objections to voting machines or even tabulators to be used even in addition to hand counting of ballots.

This was a continued echo of the earlier controversy over the borough’s use of Dominon voting machines in elections that had become a target of attack by conservative groups in the Lower 48, and then Alaska, over claims the machines could be tampered with.

There has never been evidence that this has happened in Alaska or even elsewhere but amid the public outcry the borough banned the machines and returned to required hand-counts. Those are labor intensive, and subject to human errors. Election volunteers were working past midnight in recent elections in the hand-counting.

In other matters the assembly approved sales of real property acquired through tax foreclosure for property tax years 2018 and 2019 and not needed for public uses.

A 2025 schedule for road service area improvements was approved along with a number of amendments and changes on other contracts. More significant items among those was a contract with CGC Services, LLC for $267,444 to replace boiler at Palmer High School; a contract for $113,311 to supply steel waste containers with BSI Equipment, LLC; and a $236,068 purchase of a 6-wheel Drive Semi-Truck from Trailer Craft.

A number of items were also approved under the Assembly’s Consent Agenda, where a number of minor approvals are grouped. These involved various permit fees, stretchers for ambulance services and veterinary clinic equipment replacements.