A local company that prints the state’s election ballots is calling on the state Inspector General’s Office to conduct an independent review of the procurement and management policies of the Elections Division of the Office of the Secretary of State. One key issue: Bradford and Bigelow President John D. Galligan says the state owes his company about $575,000 for forcing it to reprint 3.4 million ballots. Galligan charges that the problem is not with the ballots he printed. He says the problem lies with the majority of voting machines used in the state, which he said are an out-of-date technology that is prone to suffer problems. The machines, known as Accuvote, are used in 218 of the commonwealth’s 351 cities and towns, including nearly every local community.
Galligan also accuses the state of printing many more ballots than required, wasting tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars.
Brian McNiff, a spokesman for the office of the Secretary of State, yesterday said top officials there would not be commenting.
Bradford and Bigelow finds itself in a contentious situation: It is a fast-growing, remarkably successful company, yet it is threatening to bring legal action against one of its major clients. “If we can’t settle this,” said Galligan, “we’ll go to court.”
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