The state Bureau of Elections head says Flint’s inability to recount absentee ballots from the November election here was “unfortunate and disheartening” and says the bureau will work with Clerk Inez Brown and her staff to ensure that training and written staffing plans are completed before the next election. Sally Williams, director of the Michigan Bureau of Elections Election Liaison Division, made the comments in a four-page letter to Genesee County Clerk-Register John Gleason, who had asked the state in December to review why the county Board of Canvassers could not recount absentee ballots from Flint’s Nov. 5 election.
“Briefly stated, the (absentee) ballots were not recountable because the number on the ballot container seal did not match the ballot container seal number as recorded in the … poll books or on the ballot container certificate,” Williams’ letter says. “Unfortunately, this type of mistake is a fatal flaw as it is applied to the concept of a precinct’s recountability …
“We conclude that the Genesee County Board of Canvassers made the appropriate decision to declare the (absentee) ballots not recountable.”
Full Article: State wants more training in Flint after election recount snafu | MLive.com.