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Blackwell Redux?

The AP has this report on the Ohio Supreme Court's decision rejecting Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner's request that she be shielded from the deposition in a case regarding a Summit County Board of Elections member whom she refused to reappoint. This follows yesterday's story in the Columbus Dispatch, reporting on allegations that Brunner has retaliated against those who disagree with her by effecting their removal from office. The deputy chair of the Ohio Republican Party, Kevin DeWine, complains that Brunner is "injecting a culture of fear and intimidation" into county boards of elections. See here for more of DeWine's accusations.

This is a particularly significant issue to watch in Ohio, given the allegations of partisanship surrounding Brunner's Republican predecessor, Ken Blackwell. I've previously discussed concerns regarding Brunner's possible role in ousting the Matt Damschroder from his position as Franklin County's elections director. If Brunner is in fact using her power vindictively, to retaliate against local election officials who disagree with her, it can be expected to furthe erode public confidence in the state's administration of elections.

Full post as published by Election Law - Equal Vote on March 11, 2008 (boomark / email).