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Public commenter urges state board to investigate alleged provisional-ballot handling in Norfolk
Summary
At the State Board of Elections meeting, public commenter Sherry Anne McKay alleged statutory noncompliance and improper handling of provisional ballots in several Norfolk elections and said the matter had been discussed in a closed session; board members described limits of working papers and said no board member had moved to place the petition on the agenda.
Sherry Anne McKay told the State Board of Elections she filed a petition seeking renewal review of two Norfolk electoral board members and alleged "improprieties in how the provisional ballots were handled," saying the issue affected multiple elections and that she believed discussions had occurred in an "illegal closed session."
"The petition that I filed was legitimate. It was cogent. It was well documented," McKay said, and she asked the board to place the matter on the public record and investigate whether statutory requirements had been followed.
Board members and staff responded that board working papers are discretionary and not part of the public record, and that the record shows no member moved to place the petition on an agenda. The chair said staff or the board's attorney could recheck records and confirmed that, to the board's knowledge, no motion had been introduced to pursue the complaint.
A board member clarified there is no statutory requirement that the board automatically hear communications brought to it; an item must be requested to be placed on the agenda by a member for staff to prepare working papers linked to an agenda item.
The meeting record shows McKay's allegations were made in public comment and the board discussed procedural avenues for follow-up but did not vote to open a formal investigation during the session.
