MADISON COUNTY, Jan. 14, 2025 — The Madison County Election Commission on Tuesday elected Commissioner Helen Carney chair, Commissioner Anthony Denton secretary and Commissioner Leroy Lacey vice chair, approved routine maintenance purges and a separate purge of voters flagged for disenfranchising crimes, and discussed coordination with municipalities over voting equipment and poll-worker training ahead of municipal qualifying deadlines.

The commission’s action followed regular business including a voter move report, consideration of inactive voters and discussion of municipal requests for voting equipment. Circuit Clerk Anita Ray reported a voter-move report showing 252 voters who moved within Madison County between Jan. 12–13, 2025, and said municipal candidate qualifying is underway and closes the last day of January. Commissioners voted to approve the December 11, 2024, minutes and multiple routine purge lists for the period Dec. 3, 2024, to Jan. 8, 2025.

Why it matters: officer selection determines the panel’s procedural leadership for the year; the purges remove voters determined by state criteria to be ineligible; and municipal coordination affects how newly incorporated or smaller cities will run their municipal elections later this winter and spring.

The commission opened nominations in January as required by the commission’s practices. After nominations and a vote, Carney was elected chair by voice vote. Denton was elected secretary after nomination and a voice vote. Commissioners then approved Leroy Lacey as vice chair.

Legal counsel Spence Blackguard briefed commissioners on the legal framework for officer terms, noting that state law requires the commission to elect a chair and secretary annually but does not impose term limits. "The law says that each January you'll meet and you elect officers, a chairman and a secretary," Blackguard said, and added there was no binding legal limit that would prevent a commissioner from serving multiple terms if no other nominee sought the post.

The commission approved purge requests covering active voters and a separate inactives list for the same Dec. 3–Jan. 8 window. Purge counts read into the record were: District 1 — 562; District 2 — 530; District 3 — 773; District 4 — 864; District 5 — 400. Inactives reported for the same period were: District 1 — 5; District 2 — 17; District 3 — 78; District 4 — 2; District 5 — 1. A separate review for disenfranchising crimes was presented; Blackguard described a county-produced report that cross-checks convictions against a defined list of disenfranchising offenses, and recommended the commission find that the people on that report had committed disenfranchising crimes and purge any who still appeared on the rolls. The commission moved and voted to implement that purge.

On municipal support, commissioners and Clerk Ray discussed municipal requests for borrowing county voting equipment, pickup logistics and whether county staff should pack "red bags" of election supplies for municipalities. Ray said municipalities should request equipment in writing and that the office will coordinate how many machines each city needs and logistics for pickup. Commissioners discussed a variety of approaches: some municipalities have historically packed their own bags from a county-provided checklist, while newer cities such as Gluckstadt may need extra assistance. Commissioners were advised that if the county provides training or bag-packing services those arrangements should be formalized with a short contract so county staff or commissioners may be compensated when work is done under contract.

Commissioners discussed poll-worker training and whether the county should offer training under contract. Blackguard and staff advised that any training or labor provided to a municipality should be described in a contract listing responsibilities and compensation. Commissioners asked Clerk Ray to contact city clerks to determine which municipalities want county assistance and what specific help they need before the end of January.

Other routine business: the commission authorized payment to a staff member referred to in the minutes as "Missus Spence"; a motion to pay her was made and carried. Separately, commissioners moved to retain county legal counsel Spence Blackguard; that motion also passed by voice vote.

Commissioners closed the meeting by announcing the next regular meeting date of Feb. 12 and briefly reviewed upcoming deadlines and the ECAM conference scheduled Feb. 4–7.

Notes on quoted material: legal counsel Spence Blackguard said, "The law says that each January you'll meet and you elect officers, a chairman and a secretary." Commissioner Leroy Lacey commented on the chair’s role: "The chair is nothing but a person that runs the meeting. They don't have no other power than anybody else."