With more than 1,000 wrong ballots cast in Shelby County Democratic Party Chairman Chip Forrester urged state election officials Thursday to review early voting ballots across the state.
"Republicans have spent the last two years talking about the importance of pure elections and yet they have failed over and over again to protect our voting rights," Mr. Forrester said. "Their far-reaching incompetence and mismanagement has completely undermined our elections and any shred of faith voters may have had left in the process."
Election officials confirmed to Memphis media that early voters in Shelby County cast more than 1,000 wrong ballots during early voting.
With so many mistakes, state officials should review early voting ballots ahead of the August 2 Primary Election -- specifically in districts and precincts that were severely altered by redistricting -- and report on the scope and magnitude of the "wrong ballot" mishap.
Initially election officials refused to acknowledge the widespread error, but thanks to the persistence of two concerned citizens, Joe Weinberg and Steve Ross, voters now have an understanding of the problem in Shelby County. So far state officials have failed to address whether the "wrong ballot" oversight is happening elsewhere in Tennessee.
"The taxpayers funding these elections deserve to know whether their vote counted or it was stolen because of incompetence," Mr. Forrester said. "How big is this problem? When will it be fixed? Unfortunately, we don't know because Elections Coordinator Mark Goins has not publicly addressed the issue that 1,000 wrong ballots were cast on his watch."
Local election officials say they won't lift a finger to fix this blunder. The pattern of neglect we see from our election officials is unacceptable.
"From the failed implementation of the voter-suppressing photo ID law to the disenfranchisement of law-abiding voters, we have called on Coordinator Goins multiple times to take some responsibility and fix the problems plaguing our elections, but it appears he's more interested in playing politics than being accountable to voters," Mr. Forrester said. "While we are proud to live in a state where citizens stand up to a neglectful government, our citizens deserve leaders who will hold themselves accountable for the errors happening under their command."