Waukesha County: City of Brookfield Recount Starts With Ballot Bags Dispute (six new bags)

[Ellipsis]

Judge allows six not completely sealed ballot bags to be opened and their ballots counted despite objections from Kloppenburg campaign.


The City of Brookfield's recount of its state Supreme Court race votes started this morning with an objection to opening and counting the first six ballot bags because they were not completely cinched at the top, leaving an open gap.

Bill Hoft, a representative for JoAnne Kloppenburg's campaign, objected to opening the bags, saying there was no way to know if they were secure and untampered. Brandon O'Bryon, from the campaign for incumbent Justice David Prosser, said they should be open and cited testimony from Brookfield City Clerk Kristine Schmidt about the protective custody her office makes of ballot bags after the election.

Schmidt said the bags were heavy with the ballots from Wards 1, 2 and 3, which places strain on the plastic bags, causing a gap at their opening, which is sealed with a red security tie.

http://muskego.patch.com/articles/city-of-brookfield-recount-starts-with-ballot-bags-dispute