ROGERS — Benton County Democratic Party officials voted Monday to remove their sometimes-feuding representatives from the county election commission as soon as a new state law allows their recall.
At a meeting of the party’s central committee, treasurer Mike Brown revived a motion made at the committee’s March meeting calling on E.J. Miller and Bill Williams to resign from the Benton County Election Commission. Miller was present at the meeting and when asked, initially said he had no comment. Miller later said he could not resign from the commission while an investigation into allegation of wrongdoing made by commission employees was still pending. Williams was not at the meeting but a member of the committee said he had indicated he had a prior commitment and would not be able to attend.
Brown told the committee a bill passed during this year’s Legislative session gives county committees the authority to remove their appointees to county election commissions. Each of the state’s two major political parties appoints one member of the three-person commission and the majority party — the party holding the bulk of five of the state’s Constitutional offices — appoints the third member of the commission.
The commission has been embroiled in disputes with cities over the cost of elections and new fees set by the commission to recover the cost of operating the commission. Williams made headlines when he spent about $1,000 to charter an airplane flight to Omaha, Neb., just before the 2010 general election to pick up some computer software. On April 1, after being reinstated as chairman, Miller led a move by the commission to fire the three-person staff and changed the locks on the commission offices. County Judge Bob Clinard has reinstated the employees and taken control of the county-leased commission offices. Clinard said the allegations, raised by the three employees when they filed grievances over their firings, were too serious to ignore and has launched an investigation.
AT A GLANCE
Commissioner Terms
County election commissioners previously were appointed to three-year terms by the county committees of the state’s majority and minority political parties. Act 1056 of 2011 allows the county committees to remove commissioners and appoint their replacements. The act was approved without an emergency clause and will take effect in July.
Source: Staff Report
Brown said the new law allowing county committees to remove election commissioners becomes effective “on or around July 27” and made a motion that the committee vote on whether Miller and Williams should be retained or removed from office. Paper ballots were distributed and out of 20 votes cast, 18 people voted to remove Williams and one to retain him while 16 people voted to remove Miller and three to retain him. There was one abstention on each man.
Committee member Robin Tumey said the legislation was passed with the support of both Democrats and Republicans in the Legislature.
“Everybody felt it was a good government bill,” Tumey said.
After the vote to remove Miller and Williams a motion was made to name John Brown and Tumey as their replacements. After some discussion, those appointments were carried by a voice vote.
Brown said during the discussion that Miller had made “a good speech” at the election commission’s April 1 meeting when he talked about the importance of trust. Brown said he would “reluctantly” accept the party’s appointment and would work to re-establish trust in the election commission.
Tumey said after the meeting she was not surprised by the vote to remove Miller and Williams after the controversy surrounding the commission in recent months.
“It was bound to happen,” she said.
Williams was reached for comment after the meeting and said he was disappointed, but not surprised by the committee’s vote. He said the committee was reacting to what he called “the biased editorial pages of your newspaper” and was not in possession of both sides of the story.
“They’re trying to save some face,” Williams said, “when in fact all they’ve done is sully their own reputation.”