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County OKs election services contracts after public questions about procurement
Summary
The board approved a multi-million-dollar contract with Election Graphics for voting-machine testing and a separate $165,281 mapping-services agreement; a public commenter urged more competitive procurement and fewer remote votes by commissioners.
Essex County commissioners voted to approve two election-related contracts Tuesday after election officials described the services and answered brief procedural questions.
Patricia Spango, superintendent of elections and commissioner of registration, asked the board to approve a contract with Election Graphics to handle certification, testing and support for voting machines. Spango said Election Graphics has worked with the county "for many, many years," providing certification and testing for equipment. The contract was presented during resolution 1 and approved by roll call after a motion from Commissioner Mercado and a second from Commissioner Luciano.
Nicole Amos, chief clerk of the Essex County Board of Elections, then described a professional services agreement with Remington and Bernick to provide election mapping services for 24 months at an amount not to exceed $165,281. She said the services include maintaining precinct maps, updating boundaries after redistricting, verifying voter assignments and supporting polling-place mapping. The board approved the item by roll call with no further questions.
During public comment earlier in the meeting, Adam Kramer, a Republican nominee for commissioner, urged greater scrutiny of the larger election contract. "It's over $3,000,000 and it's a big contract," Kramer said. "I just want some extra assurances that everything was done to make sure that there was real competition in the process and that Essex County is getting the best possible price for this service." Kramer also suggested returning to more in-person participation by commissioners and said the public wants to see officials in the room during important votes.
Spango and Amos did not offer additional cost detail during their presentations beyond describing the scope of services and the vendor relationship; commissioners recorded no votes against the measures in the meeting transcript.
The board treated the contracts as part of routine election-administration maintenance but permitted public comment on procurement processes. No formal action to re-open procurement or to request additional competitive-bid documentation was recorded during the meeting.
