Barb bans the binos

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THROWS A FIT OVER VOLUNTEERS TRYING TO SEE BETTER

Another day, another drama at the Anchorage Election Office. Two volunteer observers for the ballot-watching process at Anchorage’s Election Office were kept so far from the ballot-counting process that they ended up bringing in binoculars so they could see what was going on this week.

That sent Municipal Clerk Barbara Jones over the edge: She sent note to both the Bronson campaign and the Dunbar campaign complaining about the observer, who was there on behalf of winning candidate Dave Bronson. The note was, obviously, pointed at the Bronson campaign:

“To all: I am astonished that I have to say this, but an observer was seen today using BINOCULARS to view computers in the Election Center. I am so shocked that the observer admittedly used binoculars without asking first if she could get closer to the computers. We have accommodated this observer and others all day today and yesterday — bringing chairs for two people from each campaign to review every single questioned ballot envelope and every single special needs ballot envelope … yet this overly intense and unnecessary scrutiny, without asking for information, does little to show a willingness to understand the process nor demonstrate the respect we have requested from the campaigns and observers for election official. I have informed this observer if she uses binoculars again the the Election Center, she will be removed permanently. Barbara”

There are no references in municipal code that prevent an observer from using a magnifying glass or binoculars to help them see. Jones has maintained physical distancing that makes it difficult for observers to be sure of what they are seeing.

Today, losing candidate Forrest Dunbar also swiped at the Bronson volunteers, calling them bizarre:

…”we have witnessed aggressive, confrontational, and frankly bizarre behavior from Bronson supporters and staff toward Election Center workers. Their actions have caused the Election Center to revoke observer access to members of the general public, ban at least one Bronson campaign observer from entering the Center, and needlessly consumed Election Center staff time responding to baseless challenges. Coupled with their allies on the Assembly and in the far-right media, the Bronson campaign is strangely casting doubt on the election that they themselves are winning,” Dunbar wrote, evidently not a fan of the Bronson campaign’s election vigilance.

Read: Dunbar concedes, takes swipes at Bronson

The election counting was to finish today, with final results certified by the Assembly on Tuesday. As of the most recent number released by the clerk, it’s 45,889 votes for Bronson, and 44,698 votes for Dunbar, or 50.66 percent to 49.34 percent.

36 COMMENTS

  1. Perhaps if they did not act so suspiciously there would be no need for such actions. Just saying.

  2. The lights were turned on and there wasn’t any dark little holes to scurry into. Trapped in the light … poor thing.

  3. The first thing I would do if I was Bronson is hire Jovan Hutton Pulitzer to do a forensic audit of the election. We all know that mail in voting is pushed by leftists to steal elections. There is no doubt mail in voter fraud happened in this race too, so prove it. The process takes time, so get on it right away.
    After we find out how much voter fraud was committed by the left it provides two things. It solidifies the result that Bronson won. Secondly it provides the ammunition needed to kill mail in voting once and for all. Then you can take actions to secure all future elections.
    If the new mayor doesn’t do this, the left will figure out a way to cheat on a larger scale, especially for assembly races to stop Bronson’s agenda.
    Watch what comes out of Arizona as proof.
    Too bad Kevin Meyer and the rest of the State is refusing to do a damn thing about voter fraud in Alaska by starting with our own forensic audit of the 2020 elections.

  4. Always with the attitude of “Genuflect to me and inquire of me or I shall interfere or ban your participation.” SO many areas to tighten up to truly welcome the public back into our process. I’ll be glad when this ship of state gets pointed in the right direction!

  5. This is the type of whiny crap is what we have come to expect from the left and entrenched governement officials when they don’t get things to go their way. There is ZERO negative effect from an observer using binoculars in order to see ballots and the clerk is just an echo chamber fro the likes of Dunbar and Constant. She should be replaced.

  6. You have nothing to hide, then let them observe from six feet, otherwise binoculars or other magnifying devices are allowed. Barb has to be the first to go on July 1, 2021 or reassigned work elsewhere.

  7. Sort of reminds me of my kids when they were little and yelling about “she’s looking at me…stop looking at me!” How infantile can these municipal officials get? Just read the letter and wonder why something like this would set someone off. Barbara really needs to get a grip. You’d almost believe that the observer with the binocs was being accused of peeping. It’s comical and sad, simultaneously. It also says a lot about the state of politics in a city where the people in charge have gotten WAY too used to laying down the law and getting their way.

  8. Is this someone the new mayor can fire? Clearly her suspicious behavior should warrant a pink slip.

  9. Get rid of mail in voting and weeks long election process and this will be a non issue. It is amazing that Texas and Florida can hold Presidential elections and have them tallied within 12 hours or so but a tiny little mayoral race in podunk Anchorage takes over a week!

  10. Hahaha!
    That sounds funny. Who was that using binoculars!? Hahaha
    How come employe
    Barb is another Anchorage city leader needing Thursday night Celebrate Recovery at New Hope Ministries church in Christopher Constant’s district. I am going to continue reminding until I see city leaders recognize they have bigger problems than someone peeking in at them through binoculars just because of the election process is prone to human errors.

  11. Mr. Bronson it’s time to start asking for resignation from the election clerk, if she work for the city. That was the first order Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis did after he won the governorship. Now Florida have one of the smoothest and safest election process in the country. Get rid of these so called “non-partisan” folks to start the clean up process. Don’t make the mistake President Trump did by keeping all the swamp and deep staters in important positions. With the leftist assembly already making threats about making it hard for you to accomplish anything if you don’t keep their people in the position they were given, there’s no need to work with them. Remember from their own mouth “We’re just gonna do it our way. Sorry folks.” Maybe next time around Anchorage will vote in the right people for assembly that are willing to work for the people the represent.

  12. I have worked elections in Anchorage, but at the polls. Even I don’t know the process after the ballots are turned in. If the process can’t stand scrutiny, then I have to question the process. Kudos to the observer who was smart enough to bring the binoculars. I fail to see how someone using binoculars could in any way harm anyone else. It’s even less intrusive than wearing a mask.

  13. With election “audits” happening in Arizona, being proposed in Georgia, and now potentially cropping up in Anchorage, all places where REBUBLICANS have won or are winning elections, it appears the Trump “steal the election in 2024” campaign is proceeding apace. This kind of harassment is truly an affront to the election process, which was recently deemed the most accurate in history by multiple sources, many of them REPUBLICAN, and an assault on the American tradition of free and fair elections.
    Why is this happening now, when election accuracy is the best ever? It’s likely because Trump lost, and in his efforts to steal the election of 2020, known as The Big Lie, he is attempting to rig the system so he can steal the election in 2024. Supporting this is probably the most un-American thing a citizen can do, and may well result in fraudulent elections in the future, all under the guise of “transparency” and “accuracy.”
    While I’m at it, where is the outcry from the “observers” about the rush of votes counted after election day that gave the mayoral edge to Bronson? He’s behind, and then, when it appears he may not win, all those votes show up in his favor and push him into the lead. Where did those votes come from? Looks suspicious, doesn’t it?
    Maybe Dunbar should call for an audit.

  14. Wassa matter Barb, afraid of something? Or just disappointed you couldn’t cheat for your guy… Scrutiny is not mutiny – it just assures honest elections.

  15. Greg
    Yes Trump won the election

    Because of Bronson’s team watching this election, Bronson won. Because of the cheating from the left and mail in voting. We needed to be there, watching with binoculars if need be. Wait it’s ok to use binoculars, just not for the winning team.
    If this clerk Barbara was an honest person. Both sides could be as close as they needed to be. To watch a fair election count take place.

  16. This is a classic case of the “Streisand effect.”

    The Streisand effect is a social phenomenon that occurs when an attempt to hide, remove, or censor information has the unintended consequence of further publicizing that information. The liberal singer Barbara got into trouble trying to keep ordinary people away from her beachfront mansion. The liberal vote counter Barbara is now getting into trouble by making our elections less transparent. It’s long past time for a resignation.

  17. Greg R., please explain to me how someone observing the election process, whether with binoculars or not, is an affront or any other sort of harassment. Imagine wearing masks all day, or a body cam. Would you prefer the election observers use body cams like the police do? Now that I’m typing this, my thoughts are going to perhaps election workers should be wearing body cams while working elections. If it’s good enough for the police, why not election workers? Thanks, Greg!

    PS – Elections are not the most accurate ever. They’re the least secure ever.

  18. So MANDA GERSHON, if I were to start observing your property both on the street and with binoculars from afar, you wouldn’t feel harassed? What if the police were to do so? Or the neighborhood watch group?
    I’d like to see the information you have that the last elections were the least secure ever.
    PROUD ALASKAN; Bronson won the election. It wasn’t because of cheating from the left or mail in voting. Don’t you see the absurdity of that statement, unless you are a Dunbar supporter looking to game the system.
    The problem with an unlimited number of citizen observers is that it compromises the integrity of the election. Videos of “observers” in Michigan banging on the windows of an election processing center look a lot more like intimidation than an honest questioning of election results. This is how the election process gets compromised and how elections can be stolen. Trump is the main instigator, because he lost and wouldn’t accept the results, not because the election was stolen from him.

  19. Greg this is not Barbara Jones’ personal property and allowing people to monitor from a reasonable distance to assure a fair election in Anchorage, is not too much for Anchorage residents to ask. No one said “unlimited observers” and you really need to get over Trump, who ends up in ever post you add. This is not about Trump, but rather a petty bureaucrat, Barbara Jones that is adding to the mistrust, not reducing it, by managing a transparent process.

  20. It sounds like their home team got away with much more in past mail-in elections. Why else would Barbara Jones become shocked that observers want to see?!

  21. Barbara Jones has to go. She is unprofessional and obviously biased. What’s next? Erecting cardboard barriers so only Barbara can decide what observers can see? She adds not to the trust in our election process, she only increases the voting public’s doubt in the very municipal employees who are supposed to ensure at the very least a mask of impartiality and efficacy. This could quickly devolve into the type of clown show that Chicago is famous for and for which Arizona is being audited.

  22. Greg R.
    “…if I were to start observing your property both on the street and with binoculars from afar, you wouldn’t feel harassed? What if the police were to do so? Or the neighborhood watch group?” Not the same thing. On my property I’m a private person doing as I please. Barbara Jones is a public servant working for the people of Anchorage. She has a responsibility to do her work honestly and to the best of her ability. And, yes, all while being evaluated [red: watched] by her supervisors… and those supervisors include the citizens of Anchorage. Since it would be untenable for dozens of folks to show up and watch, there are just a few representatives from each campaign.

    What’s the problem here? Watching from a distance – even as little as 6 feet – might not provide the actual oversight that is due. If simply using binoculars solves the problem – and that’s up to the observer to decide – it’s a simple fix and doesn’t take any effort on the part of any member of the municipal staff. Barbara Jones just needs to carry on and do her job, or perhaps it’s time for her to find a new one.

  23. I agree with Dunbar, it’s very bizarre to make sure an election isn’t being stolen right in front of us. They should just be confident and ignorant.

  24. @Greg R.
    If Forrest Dunbar sees suspicious items in the election, and tallying the ballots, he should call for an audit. I would fully, 100% support it. Full, top to bottom audit, examining the ballot from the moment it was mailed to the voter to the moment it was counted.
    .
    Also:
    “With election “audits” happening in Arizona, being proposed in Georgia, and now potentially cropping up in Anchorage, all places where REBUBLICANS have won or are winning elections”
    .
    Please explain what difference it makes who won the election. If there is suspicion of fraud, it MUST be investigated. Election integrity is paramount in a representative government.
    Or are you trying to make some comment about hypocrisy? Because if you are it is missing the target. Widely.

  25. Greg R
    Sadly the Audits that are happening in AZ will soon prove that this was not a secure election at all.
    As for the observer’s using binos not sure how that is a problem when before Covid they would have been right next to the election workers watching the process and this is not anything new ( Observer’s that is ) and was always welcomed until they had something to hide. anybody who is doing their job correctly does not mind if someone is watching them do it, and if they do have a problem with it then they shouldn’t be doing that job! If this election was ran by a conservative then you would be hearing screeching from the left if they kicked out a liberal observer for doing what they are there to do OBSERVE.
    Why not just allow them to do their job, be transparent, everything your yelling for from the opposite side of the fence why is it such a big deal that they did this they aren’t seeing anything that they wouldn’t already be seeing to begin with if they had been 6′ away or even right next to them pre-covid.
    Think about what you are saying before you say it, All we are asking for is that you allow us to make sure things are done correctly and if Dunbar won so be it, if Bronson won so be it, the same applied to the Presidential Election why not prove that Biden won by allowing observers to do their job or allow audits to happen wouldn’t that clear everything up? Nobody could say the election was stolen in that case, they would just say well lets try to work together for a better USA, Instead you get nothing but balking, and stalling from the left, and that creates suspicion, suspicion breeds conspiracy theories, conspiracy theories breeds animosity and distrust.

  26. Technically Barb works for the Municipality of Anchorage. She may serve the Assembly on a whim, yet I do not believe she can hide behind there skirt. I wonder if her keeping Davidson’s seat open for her to return after her stint as fake mayor follows the Charter. If not it may be terms for termination. MOA pays her salary, health insurance and retirement, not the assembly.

  27. I think the left is full of demonstrated lies and deceit. Dunbar’s team and Barbara’s city hall ballot counting obviously nearly won through cheating and scandal but couldn’t quite get there due to fantastic diligence from the heroic observers.

    How do you get within 1,500 votes in the run off from Bronson when in the primary election adding up all the votes from the four conservatives and comparing that total to what Dunbar received. It doesn’t compute. You mean to ask me to believe that many of not most of the losing conservative supporters all votes for Dunbar? Impossible.

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