The Re-count.

As anticipated the re-count turned out to be a waste of resources.

Ten staff did the actual count. As noted in the previous post. it went from nine in the morning until about three-thirty in the afternoon.

The Elections Officer , the Chief Administrative Officer, the Associate solicitor were present throughout the day.

There were a few small challenges which were dealt with promptly and efficiently by the Elections Officer.

I didn't expect it would be any different.I did think the objective was a last ditch desperate attempt to undermine the entire election.

I don't believe I was wrong.

Yesterday, three weeks after the election, an e-mail was received by Councillors claiming a problem was experienced on election day.

Councillor Gaertner responded with one of her e-mails in huge letters, presumably to indicate urgency, directing the Elections Officer's attention to the e-mail.

This morning, the Councillor forwarded a second e-mail to the Elections Officer, the complainant and the outgoing Council,directing a report on the matter be submitted to the last meeting of the current Council.

Political candidates have no role to play in the conduct of an election. We are not a banana republic.

At the last special meeting of Council held to consider the request for a recount. sections of the Elections Act were read more than once to answer questions to everyone's satisfaction that candidates for office have no role to play before or after  an election has been conducted.

The re-count has established resources expended in the exercise were not productive.

Those chosen by the electorate on October 25th 2010, to form the Council of the next four years are still the same people.

Whether the cost was ten, twenty or thirty thousand dollars, it was still a waste of taxpayers' money.

It appears the message is still not understood or accepted in some quarters.