________________________________________
By Brian Hews
Hews Media Group-Community News reported last week that phony election officials were going door-to-door in the city of Commerce telling residents that they worked for the City and that they could deliver the ballots to City Hall for them.
The Exclusive story included a video that has been seen by residents hundreds of times.
The residents became aware of the bogus election officials after reading the story in HMG-CN and began calling Commerce City Hall asking if the City Clerk had received their ballots.
One Commerce resident, who did not want to be identified, called the City Clerk and realized her worst fears-that the June 6 election could be compromised.
She learned that the City Clerk had not yet received her husband’s ballot, and received hers nine days after she gave it to the phony election official.
In a letter to HMGC the woman wrote, “I was approached at my home by an individual who claimed to be a city of Commerce employee on May 14, 2017. He asked if my voting ballot was ready for pick up. He stated he was hired by the City as an election specialist to retrieve ballots for the upcoming election. I told him that my ballot and my common-law husband’s ballot was not ready, he offered to pick up the ballot the following day on May 15. One week later I read in the HMG-CN newspaper that someone was fraudulently picking up ballots. I dated my ballot May 15 and it wasn’t turned into the City Clerk’s office until May 24. The clerk has still not received my husband’s ballot.”
The woman finished, “clearly the election process in the city of Commerce has been compromised.”
HMG-CN talked to another City Clerk that wished to remain anonymous who said, “If this was happening in my City I would tell all the candidates and then take the City Manager over to the police department to investigate the allegations. I have never heard of a city paying for ballot workers to retrieve ballots, I certainly would never order such an action.”
HMG-CN sent in several email requests for comment to Commerce City Clerk Lena Shumway, as of press time, Shumway had not returned the email.
