A special committee reviewing the close election of state Senator Charlotte Burks agreed Monday to a modified complaint – one that alleges the Putnam County Election Commission didn’t hold a fair election.
Republican Gary Steakley lost the November election to incumbent Charlotte Burks by less than 200 votes. He protested, claiming Burks had acted improperly. This week Steakley’s attorney, Gary Blackburn, changed that complaint.
“The complaint alleges improper or incompetent performance of the election itself.”
The Steakley campaign still contends that Charlotte Burks improperly entered two polling places while voting was underway – a violation of election law. But now Steakley says the Putnam County Election Commission dropped the ball and says the election was so bad that it should be re-held.
Meanwhile Burks’ attorney, Craig Fickling, says the election results are clear.
“There is no such thing as a perfect election. There were errors and mistakes in every election, in every county in this state, and it’s been that way since the state was founded, and will always be that way.”
Fickling says Steakley still hasn’t produced any proof of any of his allegations.
The special Senate committee reviewing the appeal of the election is scheduled to have a full hearing on March thirty-first.
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Steakley originally argued that the election was accompanied by misdeeds and fraud. But the amended complaint substantially softens those claims.
His attorney, Gary Blackburn, says the local election commission in Cookeville blew the call.
“And basically through a whole series of things that the commission says were inadvertent errors, human errors, we contend that it casts such doubt on the election that it ought to be re-held because the public cannot have confidence in the outcome.”
In general, courts leave such appeals up to the political body affected. The Senate is the judge of who shall be seated in the Senate, under this theory.
Most recently, Senator Ophelia Ford was unseated in 2006, following evidence that the special election was marred by misdeeds by election personnel. She had been elected by a margin of 13 votes, and 12 votes were found to be improper.
Ford was re-elected in the following regular election.
Fickling says the mis-steps would have to total more than the 185 votes that carried Burks into office before it would be put aside.
“The election that was held back in November of 2010 was a fair election, and it reflects the will of the people, and it reflects that the people of the 15th Senate District want Charlotte Burks to continue to be their senator.”
The results of the November election is on the second page of this PDF file on the state Secretary of State’s website.
The total shows:
Gary Steakley- R 22,615
Charlotte Burks-D 22,800
Joe B. Wilmoth-I 8,779
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