The issue, which took on new life after members of the “Audit the Vote” online group demanded the commissioners conduct a forensic audit during the county’s July 15 meeting, is effectively dead, although it presumably could be raised again at a later election review committee meeting.

Thursday night’s meeting was requested by commission Chairwoman Diana Irey Vaughan, who previously said she would only support an audit of the elections office if the review committee recommended it.

“I think the committee listened to a lot of people tonight and that’s their recommendation,” Irey Vaughan said after the meeting, which she attended by listening to over the telephone. “I’m going to accept that recommendation if they believe an audit is not needed. I’m not going to support it at this time.”

The meeting got off to a fiery start as audience members interrupted and even heckled board members at times. Committee Chairman Dave Ball, who is also chairman of the Washington County Republican Party, was able to get the meeting back on track and tried to explain the thinking behind a potential “quality control” audit.

“There is a lot of emotion when someone says audit. People get a lot of ideas,” Ball said. “It means going back and looking at what you’re doing.”

Fellow committee member Larry Mauro responded that he thought the premise was part of a larger effort to sow doubt in the 2020 presidential election in which Democrat Joe Biden defeated Republican Donald Trump.

“This is a nationwide effort to overturn the election,” Mauro said.

Ball responded that he thought it would be a good idea to get “somebody else” to review how their elections operate. But committee member Christina Proctor, who is chairwoman of the Washington County Democratic Committee, pointed out that the board they were sitting on was created in early 2020 to do just that.

Elections Director Melanie Ostrander added that the office performs a small audit of the results every election, and is also participating in a state pilot program to conduct a “risk-limiting audit” as an additional step.

“The results of all of them were in line with the results,” Ostrander said of the last three elections that have used the new ES&S electronic voting machines, prompting the audience to erupt in applause.

“Why do we want to mess with something that’s being done successfully?” Mauro said. “I don’t see a need for this at all.”

But Ashley Duff, a new appointee on the committee who also spoke at the July 15 commissioners meeting in favor of a full forensic audit that examined the voting machines, said anything less would not be enough for her. She said she spent hours of her time researching and claimed to find irregularities, which she compiled in an 11-page report she submitted to the committee at the meeting.

“It should be looked at by a third party,” Duff said.

The state Department of State has warned counties that if they allow an outside company to inspect or examine the voting machines, they will be decertified and have to be decommissioned since they have left the county’s “chain of custody” and could be manipulated. Washington County purchased its new ES&S electronic voting machines for $2.8 million in 2019.

Duff’s previous assertion that the county should spend $3 million on new machines if necessary prompted a rebuke from many in the audience who said they would prefer money to purchase new machines not be wasted and instead spent to fix problems in the county. Others questioned Duff’s research and said they trusted the election and accepted the results.

“I have confidence. I don’t know who doesn’t?” Phyllis Waller of Washington said of trusting the election results. “I don’t want anyone taking away our right to vote. Ever.”

Bob Sabot, a supervisor in North Franklin, has run for election many times and said he trusts the process. He also accused Ball of spreading false information that 298 dead people voted using mail-in ballots, which Sabot said he proved was incorrect.

“I’ve won elections. I’ve lost elections,” Sabot said. “The election is the election. The results are the results. When it’s over, it’s over.”

While a few people in the audience spoke in favor of an audit, the vast majority of people in attendance were against it. But while the discussion of an audit was mostly wrapped around the 2020 presidential election, Krys Soukup of Canonsburg said a mistake by the elections office that sent out 300 incorrect mail-in ballots might have cost her in her race for Canon-McMillan School Board. While the correct ballots were later sent out, she wonders if the mistake may have cost her after she lost by only three votes in the Republican primary.

“These are the races that make an impact,” Soukup said. “These are the people (running) in your community.”

When asked what problems Ostrander has experienced in her office, she responded that the lack of poll workers during off-year and primary elections is troublesome. She said the office had more than enough workers to staff all the precincts in last year’s presidential election, but had barely enough in some polling places during this year’s primary just a few months later. She asked leaders in both political parties to encourage voters to run for judge of elections and inspector in their precincts.

“That’s why I’m reaching out to you,” Ostrander said. “That’s why you’re all here. You’re all concerned.”

After listening to public comment, committee member Lane Turturice made the motion to make a request for proposal to bring in an outside company to perform a quality control audit on the elections process.

“All we’re doing is floating an RFP to see who’s out there and what it will cost,” Turturice said. “I don’t see the harm in that.”

But other members on the committee appeared to be concerned about the vagueness of the audit’s scope and what the request for proposal was actually asking for from a company that has yet to be selected.

The two party leaders split their votes, with Ball voting yes and Proctor voting no. The other nine members, with one county commissioner appointing three each, appeared to vote together in their groupings. Irey Vaughan’s three appointments – Duff, Pete Marcoline Sr. and Dave Kresh – voted no, alongside Commissioner Larry Maggi’s picks – Mauro, Kathy Esno and Suzanne Ashmore – while Commissioner Nick Sherman’s three appointments – Turturice, Lawna Blankenship and Eric Sivavec – all voted yes.

Irey Vaughan said during a phone interview after the meeting that she was happy that county residents voiced their opinions and supported the committee’s decision not to recommend an audit. She added that she would still support an internal audit performed by the elections staff if it was warranted.