Mrs. Murray Langley is Brewing Tea...

For heaven's sake-- what a tempest in a teapot.  This is a response to the ridiculous allegations raised by Cynthia Murray Langley and "reported" in Instant News Katy--  I won't comment there because I don't want to actually acknowledge them as a "news" source.  Perhaps one of my readers will post this to INK so others can get the full story.

Anyway, if Mrs. Murray Langley had taken three minutes to ASK the election officials what the delay was, as I did, she would have had the whole story, too, and put her mind at ease:

To set the stage for those not present:  the election officials were counting the ballots in the back of the ESC.  Observers in the room included Eric Duhon as the properly appointed Poll Watcher named by Michalsky and/or Griffin.  Mrs. Blackman's and Mrs. Majors' husbands were there representing them.  This is customary and there is nothing sinister about it.  They were present early in the process (by 7:15 p.m., I'm told) so they could see the ballot boxes and electronic machines come in after the polls closed, and were present during the count.  A rather large gathering of interested persons were assembled in the lobby and in the board room awaiting the results.  (Typically, results are announced between 9 and 10 o'clock.)  I saw Mr. Adams and Mr. Shaw come in the FRONT of the building along with all the other interested parties (including myself) and never left that area of the building; I imagine they were reluctant to go past the big sign "ELECTION OFFICIALS ONLY BEYOND THIS POINT" placed just past the bathrooms near the board room.

Results were not announced until around 12 o'clock.  The reason it took so long to announce them explains the "missing" votes:  The machines are new to the district, because the State's redistricting nightmare pushed the primaries to May 29, so we couldn't have the machines we usually use.  No matter; the various election judges went to trainings and were ready to go.  Apparently something had to be done to the machines after early voting but 2 of the polling places followed the directions in the booklet provided by the voting machine manufacturer which unfortunately omitted that step.  The remaining polling places followed the directions provided in the training and did that step.

As a check to the whole process, Kathy Adams, the assistant to the Election Official, Bill Haskett, kept a chart showing the exact number of early and election day voters.  When her list did not match the list that came out of the electronic machines plus the paper ballots, she would not sign off on the results, and caused a ruckus with the electronic machine company's representative over the two lists not "balancing".  Eventually, they narrowed the issue to the few machines that were treated differently, fixed the problem and re-ran the tape from the electronic voting machines.  VOILA, they balanced perfectly with the hand-written chart that Mrs. Adams kept, so there was confidence that the number of ballots cast were there on hand to be counted, and therefor the results were correct.

Yes, it was a long night, and I'm sure tempers were taut.  But I have to give Kathy Adams and Bill Haskett a big atta-boy for maintaining order and ensuring an accurate count.  Mr. Haskett did NOT allow additional poll watchers, including Mrs. Murray Langley, to bust in while they were attempting to reconcile why the two lists had different numbers of voters.  This was exactly the correct thing to do-- the LEAST productive thing would be to allow additional people in the room.  If you ever worked as a cashier or bank teller who had to balance the books at the end of your shift, you know what I'm talking about:  what you need to figure out the discrepancy is quiet reflection and no additional fussing with your cash drawer.  Since poll watchers from both "sides" were already present who could attest to what transpired, adding additional people halfway through the process is actually COUNTER productive.  I find it telling that it was someone standing OUTSIDE the room that is belly aching the loudest; Mr. Blackman and Mr. Majors are NOT saying anything was amiss.  Since they were present in the room as every ballot was counted, I want to hear what THEY have to say, not Mrs. Murray Langley!

While I'm talking about Mr. Haskett and Mrs. Adams, I want to note they have conducted Katy ISD elections for many years, and I dare you to find more earnest or honest people.  This lady and gentleman take great pains to be fair and above-board with everything they do.  To have Bill Proctor verbally assault them is reprehensible, and to have the process of tabulating these votes called into question by Mrs. Murray Langley is ridiculous.  Bill Proctor should be ashamed of his appalling behavior towards these people.  I certainly am.  While I understand his extreme disappointment in the outcome of this election because it derailed his power grab, he needs to learn to control his temper.

In summary, Mrs. Murray Langley's complaint to the Secretary of State is a terrific waste of her time, his time, and your time.  More theatrics for political gain.  I encourage you to dismiss this behavior as such.