VIEWPOINT: The rise of skepticism

Guest column by Chris Larson

Do our elected officials care about election integrity? 

Those of us who witnessed the Minnehaha County Commission meeting of Sept. 16 are left wondering. When County Auditor Leah Anderson spoke to the board –  https://www.minnehahacounty.gov/dept/co/co.php – seeking approval for a $123,000 bill to be paid for electronic voting, she asked the commissioners to simply consider the wisdom of using electronic voting machines in the future. 

Well, that went over like a fart at the dinner table. Much harrumphing and tsk-tsking was directed at Mrs. Anderson, who apparently has the temerity to actually present the views of a significant segment of her constituency. It was difficult not to notice an undercurrent of scorn directed at the citizens who took the time to show up and share their opinions on the matter. Commissioner Jean Bender’s repeated schoolmarm hectoring of the speakers to not “repeat what other people have said,” followed up by Commissioner Joe Kippley’s lecture that he’s just “not gonna have a lotta patience” with this “nonsense” from “sore losers” who dare question the state’s vote counting methods. 

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