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Confusion over the voting process in last week's Wawasee School Board election will continue if changes are not made, according to at least one patron upset with Tuesday's election.
School board members are expected on Tuesday to hear complaints about the election process in which one-third of all ballots were thrown out because voters didn't follow instructions.
The board is likely faced with two decisions: Whether to call for a special election and whether the voting procedure needs to be simplified.
The election of two board members appears flawed by a complicated voting procedure that left many voters shaking their heads for the second consecutive election.
Four years ago, the school district conducted a special election after realizing the first election contained incorrect tabulations, a contradictory ballot and general confusion on the part of voters.
This year, though, problems were limited to general confusion.
The election included seven candidates listed in three districts. Voters were instructed to vote for no more than two candidates. In each district, additional instructions said vote for one or none.
However, of the estimated 10,000 voters who cast ballots in the election, about 3,000 were rejected because they voted improperly.
"The problem is the ballot is too confusing for the normal person to vote on," said Susie Butler, a member of a committee that sought changes to the election process nearly four years ago.
"It wasn't a fair representation of what the community really wanted. These people didn't get up early to go in (and vote) and have their vote thrown out. We're not stupid people here," she said.
Butler and others are unsure whether the large number of votes turned aside is reason enough to warrant a special election.
Interim superintendent Mark Stock said he's under the impression that no legal recourse for a special election exists because no rules were broken.
However, patrons could take their grievance to court, he said.
The two top voter-getters in different districts were David Carey (1,472 votes) and Jeffrey Wells (1,682). The two closest finishers were Bruce Lamb and John Weiss, both of whom had more than 1,000 votes.
The estimated 3,000 votes that were thrown out "could very well make a difference in the outcome," Butler said.
Tuesday's 7 p.m. board meeting will be at Wawasee Middle School.
Stock said he expects the issue to be discussed Tuesday night.
The committee assembled four years ago called for changes, but that idea was rejected by the school board.
Butler suggested changes are still needed.
"Four years down the road, we're still going to have the same problem," she said.
