Nov. 22, 2004 – A seat on the St. Croix Board of Elections which didn't generate enough interest to get a candidate's name on the ballot is suddenly being hotly contested.
Election results have Carmen Golden winning the seat with 27 write-in votes.
However, second place finisher Hope Gibson, who had 15 write-in votes, is challenging those results.
On Friday she sent letters to Evelyn James, St. Croix Board of Elections president, and John Abramson, supervisor of elections, outlining what she calls an "official challenge to the certification."
Gibson has been an outspoken opponent of the Board of Elections using computer voting machines that leave no paper trail. (See "Let the Voter Beware, or Be Confident of the Count?").
Gibson's challenge makes two allegations – that Golden inappropriately changed her party affiliation after the election and that Golden used her position on the Board of Elections to gain information that was not available to the public.
Gibson answered questions Monday. She said, "I strongly feel Ms. Golden's actions as a Board of Elections official gave her an unfair advantage over legitimate, non-Democrat, St. Croix Board of Election candidates who did not have access to the same advance information. I also feel Ms. Golden's actions as a candidate directly interfered with her ability to act fairly and impartially as an official of the current St. Croix Board of Elections, and further represent a potentially serious conflict of interest in her attempt to circumvent election laws to her personal gain."
V.I. law only permits four members of one party on the Board of Elections. There were already four Democrats on the board.
Abramson said Monday there is a process for handling complaints of this nature, but it goes through the board, not through him. He said he notified Gibson about that process.
Golden, whose phone number is not listed in the phone book or on the election board Web site, could not be reached for comment Monday. A message was left for her at the Board of Elections.
Dodson K. James defeated Golden in the Democratic primary 735 to 638
There are two election districts within the Virgin Islands, the district of St. Croix and the district of St. Thomas- St. John. Each district has a separate Board of Elections consisting of seven members who are elected to terms of four years.
According to the board's Web site www.vivote.gov/, the boards have jurisdiction over the registration of electors and the conduct of primaries and general elections. They are also responsible for investigating election fraud and irregularities.
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