A public vote. It seems like a simple concept. A board, council, commission, etc. has an issue, makes a decision, and votes on it openly in a public session. Generally, the public leaves the meeting knowing how the members voted and who voted how. This was not the case for many who attended the public hearing on the voter registration challenge by Sarita Bethea against James M. “Hoghead” Campbell in the Dillon County Council District One election.
When the nine-member commission voted, a voice vote was taken. No poll or roll call took place. Just several members speaking all at the same time when they voted for or against. To our knowledge and what we were able to observe, only one member, Amy Cardwell, raised her hand and should be given credit for making her vote completely public and known without question, just as it should be. The chairman, Wil Brown, said the clear majority voted not to uphold Bethea’s challenge; however, it was not clear to the majority of the people—both for and against—that The Herald spoke with who were in the audience. It was not clear to The Herald. We agree with those we spoke with that it sounded about evenly split. We filmed the meeting. Take a listen and see if you agree.
The chairman said that a roll call was not requested before the meeting was adjourned so one was not taken. The chairman told The Herald on Monday that there was no number count on who voted for or against because it was a “clear” majority.
While it may have been clear to the chairman or other board members who were in an executive session prior to the vote and likely came out with an expectation or idea of how their fellow members would vote, the vote was not made perfectly clear to the audience—the public—in attendance.
Was it an error? Some of the members of this same board were in a similar hearing a couple of years ago with another councilman and had a clear and decisive vote. The public left with a clear of idea of who voted and the vote count. It is unclear to The Herald at least why a more clear vote was not taken under the current chairman, and it sets a poor precedent for other votes to be taken by this commission, other boards, and other councils.
If one attends a county council meeting, town council meeting, or school board meeting, members signify whether they are in favor or not with either a show of hands or a roll call vote. The vote is clear. It is understood. It is transparent. The public knows what happened beyond a shadow of a doubt whether they agree with the decision or not. Do they have difficult or controversial decisions to make like this commission had? Of course, they do, and yet, The Herald has never seen another council or board in this county hide behind an unclear voice vote. Some may even remember a very controversial termination a few years ago, where a councilman raised not one hand, but two, making his vote crystal clear. There’s something to be said for that whether you agree or disagree with the decision.
On a voice vote where everyone speaks for or against at the same time and a large, nine-member board, it’s nearly impossible to tell who voted and which way when this kind of vote is taken. We feel that some members of the board knew that, but unfortunately did not have the fortitude to speak up and insist on a more public vote. Maybe they feared or were concerned about public reaction if the individual votes were more clear, but instead the matter feels unsettled, and they have only subjected themselves to more scrutiny.
The Dillon County Election Commission’s vote may have been taken in a public session, but it certainly wasn’t a “public” vote. For the most part, other than the decision that the chairman said was made, there is not a clear answer as to who voted for and against the matter and the vote count.
The commission’s “public” vote may have been legal, but it certainly wasn’t right.
The public could let this matter go and deem it as Dillon County business as usual, but it’s time for the citizens to say no and demand better. The business of any such entity should be done with the utmost transparency and clarity. This commission let themselves down, and the public down by not respecting and honoring the need for a clear, decisive vote regardless of the decision.
We still have an open invitation for any commission members who wish to make their individual votes public.
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Editor’s Note: If you would like to view this hearing, visit www.thedillonherald.com or go to YouTube, search under the name “Johnnie Daniels” and look for The Dillon Herald sign. The video can be found on that YouTube channel.
