Election official 'sick and tired' of criticism

Adams blames press for 'looking for dirt' after voting debacle

Lou Kilzer, Rocky Mountain News

Published November 13, 2006 at midnight

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The day after the Denver election commission put its head of technology on investigative leave, a commissioner declared that she is "sick and tired of the criticism" leveled after Tuesday's botched election.

Commissioner Sandy Adams declared that reporters digging into what happened last Tuesday are "looking for dirt. You're not looking for good things."

"I'm just sick that everyone's picking on Denver when we have 19 other counties that had vote centers and had as long, if not longer, lines."

Asked for the names of the counties with longer lines, she pointed to Douglas County.

"They had voting at 1:30 the next morning," she said.

She also said she had a sister-in-law who had to wait three hours in Washington, D.C.

Adams rejected criticism that the city's new vote centers are at fault.

"The first time somebody tried a hip replacement, it probably didn't get as good a result as the second time and the 10th time," she said by analogy. "You can't do a dress rehearsal for something like this."

Adams also spoke of the departure of commission technology chief Anthony Rainey.

She said that commission Executive Director John Gaydeski sent her an e-mail Saturday morning saying Rainey had been placed on investigative administrative leave.

The reasons were unclear, but it seemed certain Sunday that his background in technology will be examined.

Several people say Rainey resisted outside help in running or backing up the election system, having a blowup with a Denver technology official just days before the election.

Several people have questioned Rainey's information technology background.

Adams said she herself did some checking 18 to 24 months ago.

"He had already been hired and I started thinking, 'What is going on here?' "

She said Rainey told her that he had supervised 200 to 400 people at Denver Health. Her investigation showed that he had been a consultant at the hospital.

She would not say if she had determined whether he supervised hundreds of employees while in that position.

Rainey's job application for his commission post doesn't mention his stint at Denver Health.

He wrote that he graduated summa cum laude with a 4.0 grade-point average from National American University, earning a bachelor of science degree in management. Under the grade average, he writes "#3 Class."

For past employment, he listed two technology companies that are no longer in existence, as well as Qwest Communications and a company he formed called Covenant Technology.

In part, Covenant helped companies design Web pages, according to two companies listed as clients.

Rainey said he made $100,000 a year working for a company called ITIC of Colorado.

Rainey wrote that he had experience in running database software, including SQL, MSSQL, MYSQL and Microsoft Access.

Adams wasn't the only one associated with the election commission who was on the defensive Sunday.

Alton Dillard, commission spokesman, said it was "BS" that a reporter had called a commission staffer on her cell phone.

"After this all dies down, we're going to have a little chat," he warned, hanging up.

Adams said she wasn't trying to diminish what happened Tuesday - only put it in perspective.

She told this story:

She was working at the Botanic Gardens vote center when she talked to a woman who had waited two hours to vote.

"I said, 'I'm so sorry that you had to wait this long.' And she started to cry. I said, 'Look you're almost there.' And she said 'No. This is great.'

"She said that a few years ago she waited in line for two and a half hours at a precinct polling place and was told she was in the wrong precinct."

The woman had rushed to her correct precinct but was two seconds late.

Vote centers, Adams said, beat precinct voting. But she said she was ashamed and disappointed about how things went, "but at least we have it narrowed down as to where the problem was."

Though Rainey was already on staff when Gaydeski was hired last May, the executive director has accepted personal responsibility for the election meltdown.

On Friday, he told reporters: "I want to apologize to the voters, election workers and anyone else that was affected. We will work with all city agencies to make sure it can never happen again."

kilzerl@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-2644

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