California county that tried to hand-count ballots picks novice to replace retiring elections chief

Leaders of a conservative California county that tried to manually count ballots in response to baseless claims of fraud have hired a new voter registrar who has no experience running elections.

The Shasta County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 Wednesday to give the job to Tom Toller, a former Shasta County prosecutor. the ballots were returned in elections across the district, which included dozens of races.

Nestled in the often snow-capped shadow of Mount Shasta, the county made national news in 2023 when the conservative majority on the Board of Supervisors voted to abruptly give up their vote-counting machines and ordered election officials to count ballots by hand.

The voting machines were made by Dominion Voting Systems, the Canada-based company at the center of debunked conspiracy theories about why former President Donald Trump lost the 2020 presidential election.

The Democrats control the state. The legislature intervened, Adopt a law that prohibits counties from counting ballots by hand except in limited circumstances.

The controversy over the voting machines divided the community to the point that some residents attempted to recall Supervisor Kevin Crye from office. To cry barely survived that recall attempt in the March elections, which many saw as a referendum on the elections wisdom of manually counting the ballots.

Toller, who also helped train lawyers and police officers across the state during a stint with the California District Attorneys Association, indicated he would support a lawsuit to overturn the state’s ban on hand-counting ballots. should the province decide to file one.

“I think it is a system that can be implemented and observed because of its transparency, fairness and accuracy,” he said. “I don’t see any reason why this shouldn’t go ahead.”

The Registrar of Voters is an elected position. But the former clerk, 20-year veteran Cathy Darling Allen, retired with more than two years left in her term. The Supervisory Board had to look for a replacement.

More than twenty people applied for the position. The board spent two days this week publicly interviewing candidates, followed by a public discussion and vote.

The board chose Toller over Joanna Fransecut, a 16-year veteran of the office who had been Allen’s top deputy. Toller acknowledged his lack of experience, at one point telling the board that what happens inside the office “is kind of a black box for me.”

To prepare, he said he downloaded the California election code to his phone and read it every night for homework. He said he is a resident with a secure retirement who doesn’t need the money and will bring that independence to the office.

“I firmly believe that just because the California Secretary of State tells us that a statute or regulation should be interpreted a certain way is not the end of the story,” he said. “I can decide on the election statutes and regulations with an independent mind.”

Crye — who said he would have preferred voters, not the board, to choose the next voter registrar — said he believed Fransecut was the right person for the job but said she was “not the right person yet.” . He said she would benefit from Toller’s leadership within two years.

Supervisor Mary Rickert criticized her fellow board members for voting to hire Toller, noting his lack of experience.

“Do you want to use someone who has never held elections before?” she asked Crye at one point during the hearing. “If it fails, it will be on your shoulders and it will be your fault. Can you sleep at night?’

“Like a stone,” Crye replied.