Today’s Express and Echo (page 3) reveals that, as late as 48 hours ago, CEO and Returning Officer Mark Williams was desperately tweeting to find presiding officers for the PCC elections in Lympstone and Exmouth.

The tweet, posted on May 3, at 3.19pm, said: “@eastdevon needs Presiding Officer for Woodbury Village Hall & Exmouth Littlemead Methodist Churchroom for Police election Thurs 5 May”.

The Express and Echo says: “The council came in for criticism in May last year after delays at the count for the General Election in Sidmouth. A representative said at the time that the expected announcement time of 2am was pushed back to 6 am ‘because of the sheer number of ballot papers’ ”

Hard to believe as the turnout was pretty similar to four years before.

And the article neglects to say that these problems are not new. The CEO was hauled before Parliament to explain how he “lost” six thousand voters from the electoral roll (because he decided that individual homes would not be canvassed but that officers would telephone people who need following up – though how he knew who to follow-up was never explained.

And, of course, there was the Case of the Misprinted Postal Ballot Papers in Sidmouth, that had to be withdrawn and resent as they had the wrong voting instructions on them.

It seems that the longer our CEO does the Electoral Officer and Returning Officer jobs (for which he is handsomely recompensed in addition to his CEO salary) the worse he gets at it.

Perhaps time to give up the day job(s)?

http://www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk/East-Devon-District-Council-explains-reason-late/story-29232946-detail/story.html