Committee examining Oakland County election infrastructure welcomes public

The Oakland County Board of Commissioners’ bipartisan Ad Hoc Committee on Oakland County Election Infrastructure held its first meeting on August 17 and invites the public to attend their next one today at 1 p.m. in Pontiac. It will be held in the Commissioners Auditorium, located at 1200 N. Telegraph Road, Bldg. 12 East.

Oakland County Clerk and Register of Deeds Lisa Brown and Oakland County Elections Director Joe Rozell will provide a preliminary update on their internal investigation.

The committee will also hear from the Oakland County Board of Canvassers. The meeting will include a Q & A session with local municipal clerks. Election workers and members of the public are also invited to speak.

In addition to their next regular meeting, the committee will host a community town hall on Wednesday, Sept. 12, from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Southfield City Council Chambers at City Hall (Municipal Building), located at 26000 Evergreen Road in Southfield. This meeting is another opportunity for Oakland County residents to voice concerns, share feedback and offer suggestions to the committee as it reviews the current election infrastructure. Residents who are unable to attend the meetings can still share their story by submitting a voter incident report on the Board’s website at www.oakgov.com/boc.

“Our initial meeting was a success and we made some important first steps,” said co-chair Commissioner Tom J. Berman (R-Keego Harbor). “We are committed to thoroughly investigating the challenges voters experienced at the polls and are confident we will find solutions to prevent these problems in future Oakland County elections.”

“It’s critical that we hear from voters and community leaders who have important insights to share about these issues,” said co-chair Commissioner Nancy Quarles (D-Southfield). “That is why we are reaching out to invite the public to join us for these upcoming meetings. We encourage residents, municipal clerks and election workers to participate in this important information gathering process.”

The committee will hold its final meeting at on Monday, Sept. 17, at noon and will submit their findings to the Board on Monday, Sept. 24.

The Ad Hoc Committee on Oakland County was established in response to reports of ballot shortages and significant delays at polling locations during the 2018 primary election. The members are actively seeking public input conducting a thorough review of the current Oakland County election system. After completing their review, the committee will make recommendations for improvements to the infrastructure and processes in place for future elections.

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