Election Rejection: Baltimore Mayor Wants More State Oversight
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Baltimore City's primary results remain in question. Election workers were still sorting through documents Wednesday to find out why there were more ballots than voters in some Baltimore City precincts.
Political reporter Pat Warren has more on a call from the mayor for more state oversight.
Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake weighed in on the election rejection Wednesday for the first time since the state refused to accept Baltimore's primary results last week.
The election review zeroing in on city precincts that have the biggest discrepancies -- more ballots than voters -- has singled out 60 of the city's 296 precincts with significantly larger issues than others.
Most agree -- it's not the outcome of the election that is in doubt.
"There's no reason to question the outcome. There's reason to question the management oversight," Mayor Rawlings-Blake said.
According to Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, the state should have had a better handle on the Board of Elections.
"The process could have been a lot cleaner, a lot smoother, a lot better managed," the mayor said.
The review was originally closed to the public, but after the Dixon campaign sought a restraining order to stop the review, it was agreed the public would be admitted to a limited space in the warehouse.
Only a few observers -- mostly from the media, the campaigns and election watchdogs -- showed up.
Mayor Rawlings-Blake says there should be more official intervention.
"Again, I hope the governor and his administration take this seriously and do a thorough assessment and make sure these types of irregularities don't happen again," she said.
The city and state election boards were appointed by Governor Hogan, but the agency is not under the control of the administration.
A report on the progress is expected Thursday.
Election canvassers from Baltimore, Howard, Harford and Anne Arundel counties are working with the state and city on the Baltimore election review.
