MINUTES

                            City of Charlottesville Electoral Board
                                 Meeting of February 5, 2020

The meeting was called to order by the Chair at 5:47 p.m. on Wednesday, February 5,
in the office of the Charlottesville General Registrar. Those present were Electoral
Board members Anne Hemenway (Chair), Jon Bright (Vice Chair) and Jim Nix
(Secretary), Director of Elections and General Registrar Melissa A. Morton, and Deputy
Registrar Martin Mash.

On a motion by the Chair, seconded by the Vice Chair, the agenda was unanimously
approved without change.

On a motion by the Chair, seconded by the Vice Chair, the minutes of the January 7,
2020 meeting were unanimously approved without change.

Public Comment

Ms. Sharon Webb, co-chair of the Charlottesville Democratic Committee was present
for the meeting. She made no comment but did ask several questions during the
meeting.

Ms. Moriah Davis, a reporter for television station WVIR, was present for part of the
meeting. She requested a comment from the Board on the implications of the Iowa
caucuses for the local Presidential Primary. The meeting was paused for a few minutes
to enable Ms. Davis to conduct a brief on-camera interview with the Chair.

Report of the General Registrar

Ms. Morton presented the Board members with a written report that included an update
on personnel actions and her efforts to reorganize the office staff and rearrange the
office layout in preparation for absentee/early voting in the fall. She informed the Board
of some ADA compliance issues at several polling places and her plan to inspect all of
them in the company of city facilities staff next week. Ms. Morton also updated the
Board on preparation for the March 3 Presidential primary outlining the training
schedule for election officials and necessary Board participation. This schedule
includes mandatory training for all officials on the new Electronic Poll Book (EPB)
software to be used for the first time in this election. Ms. Morton had set up three EPBs
for familiarization of the Board members with the operation of the new software
following this meeting.




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In addition to the printed report Ms. Morton provided the Board with information on the
status of spending in the current year budget and negotiations on the budget for the
fiscal year beginning on July 1, 2020. Spending for the current year is within budget but
she highlighted a continuing concern with the FY 2020 budget, specifically the fact that
the City has not approved funding for printing ballots for the November 3, 2020 General
Election. The Board members expressed dismay that this vital Presidential Election
expenditure should be in question.

Appointment of Officers of Election

Mr. Mash presented applications for 11 individuals wishing to be reappointed as officers
of election plus three requesting first-time appointment. In addition, there was one other
applicant that was recommended for rejection by the General Registrar. The board
reviewed the applications, accepted the Registrar’s recommendations, and, on a motion
by the Chair, seconded by the Vice Chair, unanimously approved the following for
appointment to a three-year term:

Reappointed
Herb Beskins
John Donnolly
Barbara Dulaney
Mary Jensen
Ann Loper
George Loper
Barbara Seidler
Michale Powers
John Seidler
William Siegal
Dennis Trissel

First time appointment
Asia Astrid Abdulu
Helen Atkins
Sophie Skinner

Update on Absentee Voting and Officer of Election Assignments

Ms. Morton distributed copies of a VERIS cumulative control report providing details on
the progress of absentee voting as of the close of business on the date of the meeting.
In-person absentee voting has been slow but there has been a good demand for mailed
ballots presumably an indication that, while interest in the primary may be high, many
voters remain undecided.


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To date, 1000 absentee ballots have been printed. Printing of 10,000 election-day
ballots is scheduled for 12, 13 and 14 February with additional printing to follow if the
volume of absentee voting suggests it is needed.

Mr. Mash provided the Board with rosters of Election Officials assigned to each precinct
for the March 3 Presidential Primary. All leadership positions have now been filled for
this election.

Election Security

Ms. Morton provided the Board with a printed schedule for completing and submitting
the Election Security Assessment mandated by statute. The Vulnerability and Risk
Assessment will be completed by February 14 and the updated security plan completed
by February 21. The Board members will review the plan and submit a report of the
security plan and procedures to the Department of Elections by March 1.

Ms. Morton recommended to the Board the appointment of Voter Equipment Technician
and Assistant Registrar Grant Armstrong to be our new Information Security Officer.
Following a short discussion, the Chair moved that Mr. Armstrong be appointed to this
position. The Vice Chair seconded, and the vote was unanimous.

The next meeting of the Board will take place in the office of the Charlottesville General
Registrar at 7:00 p.m. on March 3, 2020 in conjunction with the primary election and
canvass.

The meeting was adjourned at 7:10 p.m. but the Board members remained to receive
training on the new EPB software.

Respectfully submitted:



James Nix, Secretary



Anne Hemenway, Chair                                     Jon Bright, Vice Chair




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