Lots of Attention for Waukesha County Clerk After Report Confirms Election Violations
Newspaper editorials, bloggers call for punishment of Kathy Nickolaus, better system statewide and point out lessons learned.
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Waukesha County Clerk Kathy Nickolaus won't face any criminal charges for the Supreme Court election results mess caused when she failed to tell anyone about Brookfield's votes. This week, her actions are getting plenty of attention.
An independent probe into the situation found Nickolaus likely violated state elections laws in her bungled release of state Supreme Court election results in April, but her conduct was not willful or criminal. Read the report.
On Monday, the Appleton Post Crescent wrote in an editorial that Nickolaus should be punished. The paper said it believes her mistake was "an honest mistake," but that sometimes even those need to be punished.
Given Nickolaus' position as a public official, her previous problem with election tallies, the disregard of the law that led to her mistake in April and the result from it, punishment is necessary. … As the GAB report said, Nickolaus didn't have a system to check for errors; she didn't double-check her numbers before releasing them; she didn't post the results by ward, which would have revealed the problem immediately; she instead only posted a countywide total; once she discovered the problem, she wasn't initially transparent about revealing it; and when she did public announce the mistake, she didn't adequately explain how it happened.
Also Monday, the Sheboygan Press wrote the incident shows a "troubling" issue with Wisconsin election rules.
The paper said that while initial cries that the Brookfield vote discrepancy that gave the election to Prosser over Kloppenburg were the result of voter fraud or election stealing by a Republican county clerk were dismissed, it points to a bigger issue.
But the fact that an entire city's votes could get lost in the tabulation process is still troubling.
It is also troubling that there is not a single, uniform method for casting and tabulating votes in Wisconsin. Each municipal clerk — and there are more than 1,800 of them in the state — can decide how to conduct the election process in his or her municipality. This, it would seem, creates a high potential for mistakes.
This weakness in the process — more than the trumped up allegations of vote fraud that led to the passage of the photo ID law — should be of concern to lawmakers.
1. Slow down, be careful and double-check
2. If something goes wrong, ask for help - and come clean right away.
Come to think of it, those are good life lessons for anyone.
Dog Gone
2:41 pm on Wednesday, October 5, 2011
This woman has done her job badly; that should be the basis for her resignation.
As to her efforts to gain the confidence of voters, nothing she could do will accomplish that, for the simple reason that she has a very long history of dishonesty and 'mistakes' which are consistently partisan. It is not ONLY her competence - or lack of it - that is in question, it is her dubious integrity, coupled with her intense partisanship. People can be honest and highly partisan and competent; THIS WOMAN IS NOT. She does not deserve to continue in office and she certainly should never ever be elected to anything again.
Let her get one of those private sector jobs that the right is so fond of promoting; there should be no further place for her in the public sector, elected or otherwise, after her cumulative record.
Lyle Ruble
4:19 pm on Wednesday, October 5, 2011
@Dog Gone... You're making to much sense. On that note I am sure that Kieth Best will take you to task. I agree she should leave and never work in public service again, even if Scooter should reward her for loyalty with one of those new political appointments that he's so fond of. Nicklaus is a prime example of the "Peter Principle".
TOM
7:45 am on Thursday, October 6, 2011
YAH! AND DA ELECTION WAS GOOD TOO!!!!!!!!!!!!
Keith Best
6:35 am on Thursday, October 6, 2011
@Lyle Ruble....If you are going to use my name at least spell it correctly.
Once again, we will leave it to the voters to decide.
Since no criminal actions were found against Nikolaus, where are the apologies from democrats who accused her of all kinds of criminal acts???
Lyle Ruble
7:04 am on Thursday, October 6, 2011
@Keith Best...My apologies for misspelling your name. As far as Democrats apologizing, I don't think that is going to happen. I for one never accused her of criminality, just incompetency. Of course I'm not a Democrat either.
Gofaq Uurslf
1:50 pm on Thursday, October 6, 2011
What are you then Lyle, a moderate? People, remember - democrats even think they're name is poison to the ears, thus never claim to be them. I'll give Lyle the benefit of calling himself whatever he pleases though without further criticism.
Steve
2:11 pm on Thursday, October 6, 2011
Progressive! As in so much progress has been made destroying the USA in the last 3 years
Lyle Ruble
2:13 pm on Thursday, October 6, 2011
@Nate...I support and vote for what and who I believe in and it's not tied to any political party. I support business and free enterprise, especially entrepreneurship. What I don't support is "bad business practices" where personal gain is put ahead of the shareholders, employees and the consumer. I have held positions of importance in global corporate management, but I have also been a successful entrepreneur. to be successful in business you don't have to be a "bad actor".
For one, I don't view corporations as regular citizens with the same rights as individual citizens. We grant them special license to conduct business in regulated ways. Allowing any business entity, whether a corporation or not, to have super citizen status, is not only wrong constitutionally, but morally and ethically. That is why I do not support corporations and registered businesses from making campaign contributions.
Finally, concerning tax structures and tax rates; often I hear people go on that it's not fair to have a progressive tax system and that it is unconstitutional. What they don't understand is that to be wealthy is not a constitutionally guaranteed right but a constitutionally guaranteed privilege and the terms of that privilege can be and should be amended at any time to meet the needs of the greater whole. I look at it as a social opportunity cost. If I have been given the opportunity to succeed and I do succeed, then I am responsible for reimbursing for that opportunity.