Indiana Secretary of State calls for Porter County officials to be fired after election mess
Chicago Tribune
March 13, 2019
https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/post-tribune/news/ct-ptb-porter-election-report-st-0314-story.html
In a scathing report on Porter County’s chaotic November general election, the Indiana Secretary of State noted toxic behavior and dysfunctional relationships created a wide swath of problems for voters and poll workers alike, placing the blame squarely on three people involved in election duties.
“Porter County voters deserve better,” Secretary of State Connie Lawson said in a report on the election released Wednesday.
Lawson blamed the problems on former Clerk Karen Martin; Democrat J.J. Stankiewicz, now president of the county election board; and Kathy Kozuszek, Democratic director in the Porter County Voter Registration Office. She called on Kozuszek and Stankiewicz to resign.
She also noted Stankiewicz’s treatment of current Clerk Jessica Bailey before the March 8 election board meeting, which was captured on video.
Martin, a Republican, is no longer in office; she lost a bid for auditor in November.
“The three individuals each contributed to the dysfunction, miscommunication, and administrative incompetence that plagued the election process in Porter County,” Lawson said. “Even though each was aware of potential problems leading up to the election, personality conflicts, vindictive behavior, and personal pride prevented any action from being taken.”
Lawson goes on to say that while the trio put a heavy burden on “dedicated employees within county government” who were trying to do their jobs, “they failed to meet the expectations and needs of Porter County voters.”
Neither Kozuszek nor Stankiewicz returned a call seeking comment, nor did Porter County Democratic Party Chair Jeff Chidester. He is Kozuszek’s husband and appointed Stankiewicz to the election board.
Lawson’s investigation into the election noted myriad problems on Nov. 6, including 13 polls opening late; Martin’s failure to have enough people to work the election; Martin’s failure to have 18,000 absentee ballots delivered to the polls to be counted; a makeshift arrangement for securing unprocessed absentee ballots; and election results that were more than two days late.
Lawson’s office was called in to investigate by county commissioners in the wake of the election problems.
“It is unfortunate that Clerk Martin allowed her personal pride to prevent her from executing her duties properly,” Lawson wrote, adding that Martin “contributed to an ongoing, bitter feud between herself and Ms. Kozuszek, and engaged in unprofessional and uncooperative behavior, even during public meetings.”
Martin, the letter said, “placed a higher priority on proving Ms. Kozuszek wrong than in serving the voters of Porter County, and refused help even when it was clear that the county was ill-prepared for Election Day.”
Kozuszek, Lawson said, “participated in a prolonged, deeply bitter personal feud with Clerk Martin, going so far as to actively prevent official business from taking place in order to prove a point.”
During an interview with Lawson’s office, the letter said, Kozuszek “laid the entirety of the election issues at the Clerk’s feet, while admitting no wrongdoing or unprofessional behavior of her own, despite multiple witnesses speaking to the contrary.”
Kozuszek, said Lawson, “seemed to relish the negative consequences experienced by the county on Election Day, unable to separate her extreme dislike of Clerk Martin from her responsibilities as a public servant.”
Kozuszek contributed to “a wildly chaotic environment” during the entire election and is a key figure in the issues experienced by the county, Lawson said.
As far as Stankiewicz, who served last year as the election board’s only Democrat until Bailey was elected and took over presidency of the board this year, Lawson said when local police officers were assigned to secure ballot delivery in the county building, “he wrongfully accused department officers of leaving ballots unattended.”
Lawson also notes Stankiewicz, “in a series of evasive and puzzling emails,” ultimately did not participate in an interview with her office about the election.
“Over the course of those emails, and in phone calls with the Secretary of State’s Executive Assistant, Mr. Stankiewicz proved to be disrespectful, rude, toxic, and combative,” Lawson wrote, adding his “representative behavior” can be seen in the video before the start of the March 8 election board meeting.
“Mr. Stankiewicz’s condescending, disrespectful and possibly discriminatory treatment of Clerk Bailey is appalling,” she wrote. “There is a reason why elections in Porter County are different than those experienced by the other 91 counties, and until changes are implemented, I fear future elections may suffer.”
Lawson notes that she has “the utmost confidence in Clerk Bailey’s ability to execute the responsibilities of her office in an efficient and competent manner,” but as evident during the March 8 meeting, “it is clear that she has already come to experience the dysfunction plaguing the county.”
Lawson also throws full support behind House Bill 1217, proposed by State Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso. The bill would restructure how elections are handled in the county, including centralized counting for absentee ballots and requiring that appointed members of election boards could not be a relative of any individual with appointment authority.
County officials applauded the results of Lawson’s investigation into the election and the calls for resignation.
“Porter County deserves better. Although the council has no direct oversight of the election, we had to witness the train wreck that was the election. It was an embarrassment and a failure,” said Council President Dan Whitten, D-At-large.
“What transpired at the election board meeting (on March 8) merely demonstrates future problems. Those identified in the report as ‘having negative impacts,’ to put it mildly, should take note and step aside.”
A clean election process is central to the success of a free society, said Commissioner Laura Blaney, D-South, adding the stakes don’t get any higher.
“The two reports lay bare the worst example of public service failure I have ever seen — ego, nepotism, lack of accountability, self over service, and a general lack of respect for others,” she said, adding the county needs to take the report very seriously.
“This is not the time for duck and cover. This is a problem that has been brewing for years, and there are no signs of willingness from a few of the more seasoned players to put down swords and work together. It’s still an incredibly toxic atmosphere,” Blaney said.
She hopes to see the resignations suggested in the report and the passage of Soliday’s bill, which has cleared the house and awaits passage in the senate.
“I look forward to being part of the bipartisan effort of true public servants, and we have many good ones, led by Clerk Jessica Bailey, to restore voter confidence and fix this monumental problem,” she said.
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