Norfolk election officials ask judge to remove one of its board members
Officials are asking a judge to remove Marianne McKay, the board vice chair, according to court documents.
'Her actions are a refusal to perform her required duties under state code as an appointed electoral board member,' Stephanie Iles, Norfolk general registrar, said in a Nov. 16 email to Virginia Department of Elections Commissioner Susan Beals.
The case against McKay revolves around several actions taken by her during the 2024 June primary and November general election. In November, McKay attempted to rescind her approval of the 2024 election results because she was not allowed to personally review thousands of provisional ballots.
'Despite our procedures of researching all information for each provisional ballot cast to ensure the voter is eligible and in the correct precinct to present our findings before the board for approval, she continued to delay the request to certify the provisional votes,' Iles said in a Jan. 6 letter to the Virginia State Board of Elections.
Additionally, Iles said McKay instructed election officials to deviate from normal protocols by asking chief and assistant chief officers to separately complete statements of results, according to the letter.
'Why would you change our procedures?' Iles asked. 'In a time where there are seeds of doubt sewn in our local and national elections, this action was tantamount to sabotage.'
Iles also said McKay worked with a third-party election integrity group to staff outside poll watchers at the June and November elections. Iles said the poll watchers were instructed to illegally take pictures in the polling place and that she received complaints about their behavior. Iles called the actions ethically compromising and political in nature.
'Ms. McKay has exhibited aggressive actions and a micromanaging mentality as a board member,' Iles said in the letter, adding that she continues to ignore a passed motion telling board members to only perform duties assigned to their position.
Finally, Iles said during the first election McKay served as a board member, she offended staff members with her opinions on gay people and offended Electoral Board Chair Atoy Carrington, who is Black, with racial insults.
Carrington also sent an email to Beals and other state election officials in August, saying during the June primary McKay would not answer questions about an incident that occurred on another board member's assigned route. Carrington said McKay removed a poll chief at that precinct and replaced that person with one of her choosing.
'A team player she is not,' Carrington said. 'We have all attempted to work with Ms. McKay, but she refuses to work with us.'
John Sitka, chair of the Norfolk Republican Party, even asked McKay to step down from her position after she included him in her email chains. In a Nov. 16 email, Sitka asked McKay to resign, saying doing so would prevent future embarrassment for her and Norfolk Republicans.
'If you do not voluntarily step down, I will have to consider asking a judge to remove you,' Sitka said in another email after McKay did not resign.
In a written response to the state board, McKay sidestepped a question about whether she would withdraw her certification of the election if she had the chance to do it again. McKay claimed she and other poll watchers witnessed irregularities at the Chesterfield precinct, particularly involving groups of Norfolk State University students voting. She admitted to training the poll watchers but denied that it was ethically compromising because she said she was not acting as a board member at that time.
She also countered claims of micromanaging by saying she was conducting oversight over Iles and blamed what she said was an overly broad motion delegating many tasks to the general registrar. She also denied insulting gay people or using racial insults.
Virginia's bipartisan electoral boards are selected for three-year staggered terms by Circuit Court judges based on local party recommendations, according to the Virginia elections website. Iles said McKay was sworn in Dec. 15, 2022, and her term ends Dec. 31. McKay was one of three candidates recommended by former Norfolk GOP Chair Craig Shepherd, Iles said.
Since Donald Trump falsely claimed the 2020 election was stolen and sought to overturn the results, the Republican Party and its allies recruited poll watchers in 2024 to attempt to collect evidence of fraud at elections, according to New York Times reporting.
The Virginia Board of Elections voted 4-1 on March 4 to petition the court for McKay's removal. McKay's next hearing is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Tuesday in Norfolk Circuit Court.
McKay, Iles and Carrington declined to comment.
In a handwritten letter sent to Iles' home following the June primary, McKay quoted a Bible verse from Proverbs: 'Better is open rebuke than hidden love. Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses. As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpers another.'
Trevor Metcalfe, 757-222-5345, trevor.metcalfe@pilotonline.com
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