The state Board of Election Commissioners needs to be more proactive when it hears allegations of fraud or election irregularities, a commissioner and a lawmaker said Wednesday.

But Secretary of State Mark Martin, who is the board’s chairman, said the commission needs to respect the authority of county election commissions and shouldn’t jump to investigate too soon.

“I can’t see us getting super anxious about stepping outside or even stepping to the line of what we have authority to do,” Martin said. “I think everybody on this board recognizes what their role is and why we’ve got different elements of our elections divided up among separate powers. It creates a cautious, slow process.”

Rep. Bryan King, R-Berryville, said he plans to carry legislation changingthe makeup of the board and its staff when he returns as a senator in the 2013 session.

King accused board employees of ignoring problems with the state’s elections.

“The staff people over there are obviously not doing their job. Either they are incompetent or they are turning a blind eye,” King said. “If a cop just sits behind a desk, he’ll never find anything.”

Meeting in Little Rock, the board discussed how it and its staff responded to allegations of voter fraud stemming from three special elections in 2011.

On Sept. 5, Rep. Hudson Hallum of Marion and three other men pleaded guilty in federal court to bribing absentee voters with cash, chicken dinners and vodka in exchange for their votes in 2011 - a primary on April 20, a runoff onMay 10 and a special general election for an empty seat on July 12. Hallum has since resigned.

Despite hearing allegations days after the election, the board didn’t investigate. Staff members said, after Hallum’s conviction, that the board didn’t investigate because the Arkansas State Police had begun an investigation.

Five more people have since been charged with using absentee ballots to defraud an election official stemming from those same three elections.

State police spokesman Bill Sadler said that, as of Nov. 5, officers were investigating a related case in Mississippi County. He said sheriffs’ offices had opened cases in Craighead and Crittenden counties.

Election Commissioner Stu Soffer asked at Wednesday’s meeting why the board hasn’t gotten more involved pursuing allegations of fraud or abuse. He pointed to incidents he hadheard of but law enforcement officials had declined to prosecute.

“If the Justice Department and the FBI are not going to look into it, I suggest perhaps at this point we consider picking up and looking at [it,]” Soffer said. “We need to be more involved as a board. We know there is a violation, yet nothing has been done.”

Martin said after the meeting that the staff and the board have “nothing to be ashamed of.”

“The proper role of the board is to begin looking at what failures took place and if there is anything that we can do by training and procedures and stuff like that to begin to resolve the problems that occurred that have been identified,” he said. “To start conducting investigations and maybe even scoffing at the decisions of the state police? I don’t know, that begins to get a little arrogant on the part of the board to say ‘We knowsomething state police, who’ve been on the ground investigating, don’t know.’ I just don’t see a whole lot of action out of the board going forward on stuff that the state police have allowed to rest.”

Soffer said after the meeting that he was disappointed at the board’s reaction.

“There’s no fire in their bellies to become more proactive,” he said. “I just don’t see the others wanting to do more except continue to delegate to the staff.”

Board Director Susie Stormes said the board will promulgate new rules and policies next summer, which could address Soffer’s concerns.

Soffer said the board is not involved enough and staff members will only do as much as the board allows them.

“There is no interest except for showing up, having a brief meeting approving a few things and singing Kumbaya,” Soffer said.

Northwest Arkansas, Pages 9 on 11/16/2012