“Thursday, she brought to the Onondaga County Board of Elections a “notice of claim,” paperwork that preserves the group’s right to file a lawsuit, Elections Commissioner Dustin Czarny said.”
Further Statement on this story from me below:
This story is just a tip of the iceberg as to what we at the Onondaga County Board of Elections, and election officials across the country have been facing. Since the certification of the 2020 elections, we have seen onerous and burdensome FOIA requests concerning the 2020 election. I believe in transparency, and I believe in the public’s right to know. I have fought for more open ness not only at my board but across the state. My position was, and remains simple, we have nothing to hide and shedding a light on bi-partisan election process should ease concerns and lead to acceptance of results. Before 2020 for the most part that philosophy has proven successful.
Unfortunately, with the election deniers from 2020 I have concluded this philosophy may never be successful. It is clear that they have reached the conclusion that the election was fraudulent, and no amount of data or hard evidence will ever change this. In face it is a self-sustaining belief because when given proof against whatever claim they make, they then either use the proof as further proof of wrongdoing or just move on to the next ridiculous claim.
As we move into the midterm election, nearly two years later, these FOIA requests have become more frequent. This is not an accident. Under New York State Law Boards of Elections can start to dispose of election data 22 months after the date of the election. This has led to a new frenzy of requests. However, those requests are being organized and spurned on by Reddit and 4chan forums that originate templated FOIA requests. Their stated goal is to “gum up” the works at Board of Elections offices and are using the fear and bias of their supporters against them to drive them into a frenzy.
If it were not so dangerous, I would almost feel sorry for these deniers. They are destined to be lumped into the same category as 9/11 truthers, bigfoot hunters, and ancient alien enthusiasts. They have allowed themselves to believe in their divine right to rule that they have driven themselves down a dark path. That path is littered with charlatans and partisans whose sole intent is not the truth but to use their followers to separate them from their hard-earned money and precious time. They do so to elevate themselves and not our country, and certainly not our democracy.
As for the Citizens Audit of New York I have looked over their original audit and now their new “Notice of Claim.” As with their original audit they make claims without giving proof of how they got to their conclusions. They do so in the name of protecting anonymity of the voters but in my opinion, it is to shield their wild claims from being refuted. I note that the 1850 birthdate claim is being repeated even though it has been thoroughly explained in the press and the media. Outside of dropping off documents and issuing FOIAs we have had no direct engagement with the NY Citizens Audit, and they have refused to provide proof of their allegations. They rely on quasi science from anonymous “experts” who make wild unsubstantiated claims about expected turnout to “prove” there is fraud. Losing an election is not proof there was fraud, it is proof your candidate did not connect with the public as much as they did you.
In the meantime, the Onondaga County Board of Elections will continue to follow the law and provide information as required. It has basically been a full-time job in my office just responding to this ever-increasing amount of FOIAs and I know we are not alone. Unfortunately, we expect this to continue, not just for 2020 but every election going forward. As long as there are followers that will further the work of charlatans and false prophets, I imagine every election will continue with these onerous requests. We will do our work as Election Officials to ensure fair elections, but it will be the taxpayers that will ultimately foot the bill for these post-election witch hunts.
Dustin M. Czarny 