Bay Area elections official defends his office after critical Grand Jury report

"Alameda County Registrar of Voters Tim Dupuis has faced no shortage of criticism after recent elections, but he's pushing back against a Grand Jury report taking his performance to task. Though Dupuis announced in September that he would step down from his position in 2026, the county's top election official will oversee one more election this fall - which will include the controversial redistricting measure Prop. 50 - before the county replaces him. The Grand Jury report had 13 findings and 10 recommendations for the Registrar of Voters, drawing primarily from the experiences of grand jurors who observed the election before, during and after Nov. 5. 2024."

"The most notable among these controversies concerned a 2022 Oakland school board race using ranked-choice voting where human error led to certification of the incorrect candidate as the winner. Dupuis met with county counsel at the time to determine how to resolve the improper certification, eventually swearing in the rightful winner Mike Hutchinson to the school board. In addition, Alameda County has notoriously been one of the slowest counties in the state to produce election results, which has garnered anger and frustration from the public. Former Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson addressed the protracted count following last November's election, saying "Months ago, in public meetings, I asked the Registrar if he had a sufficient workforce and resources in order to carry out the November elections; his response was 'yes." Unfortunately, that appears not to be the case.""

Tim Dupuis, Alameda County Registrar of Voters, has come under criticism and is contesting a Grand Jury report that faults his performance. Dupuis plans to step down in 2026 but will oversee one final fall election that includes Prop. 50. The Grand Jury issued 13 findings and 10 recommendations based on jurors' observations around the Nov. 5, 2024 election. High-profile problems include a 2022 ranked-choice voting error that initially certified the wrong Oakland school board winner and protracted vote counts that left the county among the slowest in the state. Observers and officials raised concerns about transparency, staffing, and resources.

Read at The Mercury News