Judge rules against new city election for Baldwin
BY SHARON HOGAN
Judge Hugh Stone ruled in the City of Baldwin’s favor at a hearing held on Tuesday regarding the challenge to the November 6, 2007 city election. The day-long hearing was held in the Habersham County Courthouse in Clarkesville.
Council Post 1 challenger Theron Ayers filed the suit against the city and Baldwin Election Superintendent Brandy Kyle. The final count in the election showed incumbent Post 1 council member Beverly Holcomb beating Ayers by three votes.
The final count for the race was 99 to 96.
When asked to make a comment after Tuesday’s hearing to the newspaper Ayers replied, “No comment.”
Baldwin city attorney David Syfan said after the hearing, “I’m happy we were able to answer Mr. Ayers questions in court.” Syfan also said, “Anytime anyone wants to look at how we do things, we try to do things right.”
Baldwin mayor Mark Reed also declined to comment.
Ayers’ suit alleges that Kyle went out to homes in the city and brought back absentee ballots.
The suit states that according to the two voting machines used in the election, Ayers won by one vote.
Ayers represented himself in the suit and he called several witnesses to testify on his behalf.
He told Judge Stone that he had trouble voting for himself in the election because the lever on the voting machine he was using would not stay down when positioned by his name on the ballot.
A total of 183 people voted by machine in the November election. Holcomb received 88 machine votes and Ayers received 89. Six people chose not to vote by machine.
At the start of the hearing, Ayers told the judge that two of his witnesses, Jeff and Lynn Murray, told him that they would not be coming to testify because they had been told by Baldwin City Attorney David Syfan that they didn’t have to attend. The Murrays reside in Banks County not Habersham County.
Ayers said in his opening statement that the Nov. 6 election was compromised and his hope was for the court to grant a new election.
Ayers also questioned the training received by Kyle to hold the election superintendents job. Kyle said she had 15 hours of training and Ayers said the secretary of state’s office has only 12 hours recorded for Kyle.
Ayers also questioned why Holcomb had continued to attend the January meetings and vote on items before the council. Syfan said the city’s charter allows Holcomb to vote in her council member position until the election is cleared.
Ayers also alleged at the hearing on Tuesday that Holcomb was seen in city hall during the two weeks prior to the election. Ayers said this was in violation to the law that says no candidate can be in the voting area while any votes are being cast.
When Kyle was questioned on the witness stand about going out to the home of a registered voter, she stated that she did go out to one house and take the voter an absentee ballot application and ballot. Kyle said the voter called and asked her to come to her home on Oct. 29 to allow her to vote an absentee ballot due to the fact that she was sick and going to have surgery on Oct. 30. Kyle stated she called the registrars office in Habersham County and was told this was allowable.
Ayers said when he contacted Kyle about this matter she said, “I am the election superintendent and I went to those places by myself.” When questioned, Kyle said she went to the elector’s house alone.
Ayers called Amber Allen to the stand to testify about articles that appeared in The Northeast Georgian newspaper concerning the election. Ayers questioned Allen, a reporter for the newspaper, about three articles that appeared in the paper.. Ayers questioned Allen about an incorrect date that appeared in one of the articles. The date in the article on Nov. 13 stated that Kyle went to the home of the voter on Nov. 6 and the correct date should have been Oct. 29. Allen said this was her fault, she made an error and a correction was run in the paper.
Ayers also questioned Allen, who up until recently covered the Baldwin City Council meetings for The Northeast Georgian, about observing Holcomb at the council meeting on Jan. 14. Allen stated she did see Holcomb at this meeting.
Ayers asked Allen, “At the re-count, did you hear what Mr. (Ray) Clark, voting machine custodian, say about the machine?” Allen replied, “The machines are 25 to 30 years old. They are working properly at this time.”
After testimony from several other witnesses including city employees Betty Harper and Betty Craig, Mayor Reed, Ayers’ step-daughter Debbie Tench and Ayer’s wife, Polly Ayers, the judge ruled Ayers had not shown an irregularity that would change the election outcome.
Judge Stone said, “There are obviously deep feelings in this close election as in any close election. I don’t have a basis to set aside this election.”
