Carney
blasts Council’s use of secret ballot
Editor’s
Note: former Town Council President Deborah Carney has filed an Open Meetings
Act complaint with the RI Attorney General for their use of a secret ballot to
appoint CCA minion Donna Chambers to the Chariho School Committee. Click
here for detail. Click
here to read the complaint.
During
the March council meeting, at the suggestion of [Councilor Dan] Slattery, the
council took a secret vote by writing names on pieces of paper and handing them
to the town clerk. This secret vote was
referred to as an “Australian Ballot”.
Encyclopedia
Britannica defines Australian ballot as follows, “Australian Ballot, also
called secret ballot, the system of voting in which voters mark their
choices in privacy or designate their choices by some other secret
means.”
Two
days after this secret vote was taken at a public meeting, Mr. Slattery testified
before the House Judiciary Committee and made the following statement, “Open and
transparent government starts with open and transparent elections.”
Contrary to this statement, taking a secret vote at a public meeting is not open government. Taking a secret vote at a public meeting is not transparent government.
This is the second time a Town
Council under the leadership of Mr. Gentz has taken a secret vote at a public
meeting. In the interest of true open
and transparent government I ask that you stop voting by Australian
ballot. Stop taking secret votes.