The Hinds County Democratic Executive Committee did an about-face Tuesday evening when they decided not to let the media into the election certification meeting. Democratic Executive Committee Chairman Claude McInnis and his committee held a private vote to certify the Hinds County Elections at the Mississippi Immigrants Rights Alliance Building on State Street. McInnis said that because committee members were meeting at a private building, the meeting could be closed to the public.
We understand why McInnis wanted more control over the election process. At times the media amplified the six-day spectacle of finger pointing and confusion. But it was an undemocratic way to handle the process. We aren't sure if he violated the state's open-meetings laws.
When campaign supporters and attorneys flooded the Hinds County Courthouse on Aug. 3, McInnis and his committee allowed them to have input into the process. Making the process an open one caused public scrutiny. Ballots seemed to appear from corners of the Circuit Clerk's office. Sheriff Malcolm McMillin's campaign noticed discrepancies in poll numbers, and gaggles of citizens and media followed committee members with their cell-phone video cameras.
Hinds County wasn't the only Mississippi county with election mishaps, but if you watched any of the local media outlets this past week, you wouldn't know that. The media have a responsibility to accurately report on the election process and not get sucked into hype and confusion. And while we applaud McInnis for attempting to do the right thing and open up the process, he seemed to lose control of it.
Members of the Democratic Executive Committee are volunteers and have the responsibility of overseeing the elections and settling ballot discrepancies. While we understand that this, in itself, is a big responsibility, the committee must have better organization and communication going forward. Election officials frustrated the media and the public by setting press conferences and announcement times and then never holding or making them. McInnis often barked at reporters who tried to get the facts.
Fights about election results in tight races aren't unusual, but the committee's public-relations errors cast a negative image on Hinds County.
We hope the Democratic Executive Committee has learned from their mistakes and will use this election as an opportunity to reorganize and demonstrate better leadership.
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