Public commenters press supervisors on decorum and treatment of elections staff

Multiple public commenters at the June 3 Cochise County Board of Supervisors meeting raised concerns about public remarks by a supervisor referring to a former elections director and asked the board to adopt clearer decorum standards and support the elections office in following state law.

At the first "call to the public," Ronnie Maestas Condos said comments made by Supervisor Antonori at a May 29 work session about former elections director Lisa Mara were "offensive, very inappropriate, and slanderous." Maestas Condos said those remarks — including that Mara was "a punk bureaucrat" and that she would have been fired for insubordination — were improper because the person targeted was not present to respond. "It was a cowardly act on your part," Maestas Condos said.

Supervisor Antonori responded later in the meeting, saying his earlier remarks were made in the context of discussions about elections administration and staff supervision. Antonori said county employees report to the board and defended his right to free speech, adding, "If somebody's not happy with me, you're free to vote me out. That's the system." He reiterated his view that staff who lobby the legislature without board approval had acted insubordinately and said, "If I had been the chair, I would have fired her for that, and I stand by that."

Allison Morse, a registered voter from Portal who also spoke during the public-comment period and again later during discussion of the county organizational chart, urged the board and other speakers to refrain from "name calling" at public meetings. Morse cited examples of derogatory language she has heard at work sessions and asked the board to adopt consistent conduct guidelines similar to those used by the Planning and Zoning Commission; she also suggested beginning work sessions with an invocation if it promotes civility. Morse later raised concerns about potential board pressure on the elections director, noting the county has had several elections directors in recent years and urging the board to support an elections director who follows state law.

The board did not adopt a new formal decorum policy at the meeting. Supervisors allowed speakers to respond when personally addressed; the chair stated that a person named during public comment may reply. The public comments were entered into the record; no formal disciplinary or policy action followed at this meeting.