Morrisville District 1 Election - Update 12/5/11

Morrisville’s 2011 District 1 Election
Frequently Asked Questions

Who won the election?

The Wake County Board of Elections’ certification reports the vote count to be:
Linda Lyons (Incumbent) 679
Michael “Mike” Schlink 681
Write-Ins 4 (one write-in for Linda Lyons included in the 679 above)

Will Mr. Schlink be sworn into office on December 13th?

No. According to Cherie Poucher, Director, Wake County Board of Elections, “Wake County certified the election results as required by law and Michael Schlink was declared elected. However, due to the protest filed, the Board cannot issue a Certificate of Election. Ms. Lyons also filed a request for a recount which was conducted last Friday [18 NOV]. The results were exactly as the certified results and Michael Schlink won by 2 votes.”

Who filed a protest and what is the basis of the protest? (Source: appeal document filed with the State Board of Elections)

Election protests have been filed by Morrisville voters Vivian Ann Mills and Carolyn M Pearson.

On November 18, 2011, the Wake Board held a preliminary hearing on this protest to determine if there was probable cause to find a violation of the law in the Wake Board’s decision to not count the absentee ballots of the eleven (11) citizens of the Town of Morrisville identified in the two protests as follows:

1. Deepak Mohan Advani – postmark: None, ballot received 10 NOV
2. Alexis Kathryn Barnes – postmark: 1 NOV, ballot received 8 NOV
3. Soumajit Ghosh – postmark: 4 NOV, ballot received 10 NOV
4. Aree M. Monroe - postmark: 7 NOV, ballot received 8 NOV
5. Bipinchandra Zaverbhai Patel – postmark: None, ballot received 8 NOV
6. Nicolette Michele Schlink – postmark: None, ballot received 10 NOV
7. David Michael Scoglio – postmark: 7 NOV, ballot received 10 NOV
8. Monical Singh Vilkhu – postmark: None, ballot received 10 NOV
9. Linda C. Evans – Reason for rejection: Identity of witness
10. Joseph Loveless – Reason for rejection: Identity of witness
11. Vivian Ann Mills – Reason for rejection: Identity of witness

The Wake County Board of Elections ruled there was no probable cause and dismissed the protest. The two above named Morrisville voters have appealed the ruling to the State Board of Elections. According to the appeal documents filed with the State Board of Elections, these voters are requesting to have the absentee ballots of eight Morrisville citizens counted in the Morrisville Town Council District 1 election because the absentee ballot applications for these ballots were timely received by the Wake Board in accordance with the exception set out in G.S. 163-231(b)(ii) to the general rule of timeliness set out in G.S. 163-231(b), and the absentee ballots of three Morrisville citizens counted because the absentee ballot applications were properly executed under G.S. 163-231(a) and timely received under G.S. 163-231(b).

When will the State Board of Elections consider the appeals?

The State Board of Elections will hear a number of appeals on Thursday, Dec 22nd, including the Morrisville appeals.

While the matter is under appeal what is the status of the District 1 election?

According to Cherie Poucher, Director, Wake County Board of Elections, “Until the appeal process is concluded (which could also include an appeal to the Wake County Superior Court) no Certificate of Election can be issued. And without the Certificate of Election, no one can be sworn into office.”

If no one can be sworn into the District 1 office, will the seat become vacant as of 13 DEC?

North Carolina General Statutes state the following:

§ 160A-62. Officers to hold over until successors qualified.
All city officers, whether elected or appointed, shall continue to hold office until their successors are chosen and qualified. This section shall not apply when an office or position has been abolished, when an appointed officer or employee has been discharged, or when an elected officer has been removed from office. (R.C., c. 111, s. 8; Code, s. 3792; Rev., s. 2943; C.S., s. 2648; 1971, c. 698, s. 1.)

By state law, Council Member Lyons’ will continue to hold office until a successor is chosen and qualified.

Election 2011 - Tuesday November 8th

Calling all Morrisville voters: Tuesday, November 8th, between the hours of 6:30 AM and 7:30 PM, you will have an opportunity, a responsibility, to vote. You've no doubt seen the colorful campaign signs and heard the rhetoric. Perhaps you attended the Morrisville Chamber of Commerce Candidate Forum or read statements posted as part of UNC TV's Voter Guide. Maybe you've looked through the candidates' campaign finance reports to see who received money from whom and who filed on time. Or not. Likely you've had a personal visit or phone call from at least one of our ten candidates. Surely you have received multiple campaign related mailers. And now the day of decision is fast approaching.

I've read every piece of candidate literature, every facebook post on their walls and every page of each of their websites. I've spoken to and shaken hands with all 10 candidates and listened to their stump speeches. In short, I've done my homework. And I am convinced that the Town of Morrisville could do no better than to re-elect our three incumbent candidates Liz Johnson, Pete Martin and Linda Lyons on Tuesday. All three have well served our Morrisville community, earning the respect and confidence of voters since 1999. They have brought to the Heart of the Triangle government professionalism, transparency, a strong sense of community and the 3rd lowest property tax rate in the county. I believe in the work Linda, Liz and Pete are doing to address transportation infrastructure issues, public safety, land use decisions and our community's desire for a vibrant Town Center, all while balancing taxpayer cost and benefit.

I hope you will join my family in supporting Mayor Pro Tem Pete Martin and Council Members Linda Lyons and Liz Johnson on Tuesday November 8th. (If you are unsure of your polling place or voter status, go here.) But regardless of your choices in our four Town Council races, please........ VOTE.

Why It's Good To Be Morrisville Part I

Every October, the Town of Morrisville staff and Council review the previous year’s financial performance by way of our post-audit Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. This year was no exception. In addition, at the Council’s October 25th business meeting, Town Manager John Whitson presented information on our Five Year Financial Performance using comparative data from the Office of the State Treasurer. Highlights for the five year period include:

· A town population increase of 32%
· S&P bond rating improvement of three positions to AA+
· Moody’s bond rating improvement of 4 positions to Aa2
· Per capita expenditure decrease of 31%
· Total expenditure decrease of 9%
· Doubling of town assets, from $46.8 million to $91.5 million
· A rollback of spending to below 2009 levels
· Fiscal Year 2011 revenues $500k higher than budgeted
· Fiscal Year 2011 expenditures $1.8 million lower than budgeted

In short, our Town’s austerity program has worked and worked well. We cut back, delayed, deferred and restructured, not by necessity but by design. Clear, consistent leadership from the Town Council and exceptional budget execution by Town Staff are responsible for Morrisville’s current financial picture. Our year end fund balance - or Town savings – now exceeds minimum policy by nearly $5 million.

In the coming months, Morrisville taxpayers will have opportunities to respond to this positive news, beginning with polling of our Citizen Survey Panel. We will use the input gathered to refine our Town’s long and short term financial goals and to determine appropriate levels of service delivery and infrastructure investment.

Earlier this summer, Money Magazine recognized Morrisville as the 7th most affordable community in the US. By design and through Staff and Town Council collaboration, our fiscally responsible approach to town government is working. Now let's move forward, together, on a fiscal philosophy that addresses our long term financial sustainability.

Coming Soon : Taxing and Spending - How Did We Do?

Ah fall, you have arrived, with your football rivalries, the NC State Fair, Morrisville's Spooktacular Trail Walk , a change in offerings at the Western Wake Farmer's Market . Oh, and publication of our town's Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. Wait, wait, don't yawn yet even if everything you needed to know about a CAFR you learned from Wikipedia:

A Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) is a set of government financial statements comprising the financial report of a state, municipal or other governmental entity that complies with the accounting requirements—generally accepted accounting principles GAAP—promulgated by the Financial Accounting Standards (FASB).

A CAFR is "compiled" by a state, municipal or other governmental accounting staff and "audited" by an external American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) certified accounting firm utilizing FASB requirements. It is composed of three sections: Introductory, Financial and Statistical. It combines the financial information of fund accounting and Enterprise Authorities accounting.

Now wait. No, this isn't FL vs GA (State vs Carolina?) or fried anything. But it is important information. The CAFR provides a much anticipated comparison between Morrisville's adopted budget and our actual revenues and expenses. It answers the question: How much money did the Town take in and how much of it did we spend?

Your Town Council and staff will explore that question on Tuesday. Stay tuned.

Transportation Projects: Quarterly Reports & Public/Private Partnerships

In support of the Morrisville Town Council's focus on transportation infrastructure, our staff now provides quarterly updates on active and recently completed transportation projects. Of significance in our July update: on-the-horizon improvements to Morrisville-Carpenter Rd and its intersection with Davis Dr. Approved for submittal to CAMPO by the Town Council in late 2010, the $1.16M of pedestrian and road improvements will be paid for using STP-DA (Surface Transportation Program Direct Allocation) funds, Grace Park development funds and town general funds. This is good news for our taxpayers: our local contribution for this regionally significant project amounts to about 8% of the total cost.

Hats off to all who worked effectively on this creative funding of needed improvements!

Read To Succeed - Help Wanted

In response to oft mentioned achievement gap concerns, an opportunity:

VOLUNTEER!

Cedar Fork Elementary Principal Kathleen Marynak and teachers have put together a new program called Read to Succeed and here is how it works:

• First, register as a volunteer with the Wake County Public Schools any Monday between the hours of 8:45 AM and 4:00 PM at Cedar Fork Elementary.


• Next, attend a brief training session on Tuesday January 11th at 9:30 AM at Cedar Fork Community Center.


• Then - get started! Commit to an hour or more per week to help elementary students become more successful readers. (All books and materials will be provided.)

That's all there is to it!

Politics aside, this is an opportunity for our community to respond in a very positive and tangible way to an identified need - decrease the reading achievement gap. It is also an opportunity to highlight some of the many initiatives within our Wake county schools to make a great school system even better.