Elections have consequences, good and bad, and that has never been more evident than at the Monday night meeting of the Worcester Election Commission. At the meeting, according to an article by Nick Kotsopoulos in the Worcester Telegram today, T&G, a letter was presented by City Clerk David J. Rushford in which he makes it clear he believes there are no lingering issues from the November 6 election or the earlier September primary. Since the Commission shamelessly failed to take any action against him, the status-quo has been preserved and we, the voters, can expect more of the same in upcoming elections.
At the heart of the issue was the brazen attempt by the Worcester Commission to implement its own rules for poll workers during the elections. In a Telegram article on October 31, (Earlier article from Worcester Telegram) Commissioner Diane Mohieldin defended their actions by claiming, since the Secretary of States Office did not respond to their request to implement their own local rules, they felt it was proper to do just that. On and on she goes throughout the article describing the local rules and how much better they are for the election process. Let's think about this for a second. In her arrogance she leaves out one very important part of the equation; the Secretary of States Office is responsible for setting the rules across the state and guided by the Massachusetts General Laws in doing so. Why should the Secretaries Office even respond to that request? Under what authority does the Worcester Election Commission presume to be able to write its own rules? Who do these people think they are?
Unfortunately the arrogance displayed is a direct result of not having to worry about your job. It is created every time an election is held in which the same party wins big, over and over again. This is the message which gets lost during the campaign season. Local elections matter! Clerk Rushford has nothing to worry about because he is strongly supported by a one sided city council. They have nothing to worry about because for decades they have not had to face any real challenges to their authority. On and on it goes folks.
Of course, the Secretary of States Office probably had the same questions of the commission as me, but since all of the players are part of the same political persuasion and power machine, it would be naive to think any real action would be taken or answers provided. Instead we can count on a lot of blubbering hot air and a very large broom to appear to sweep the whole mess aside. Hence the Clerk's letter and the lack of interest displayed by the commission. I would call them all to shame, but it would surely be a waste of time with this bunch.
