McLeod-Skinner alleges unequal access to vote count in Clackamas County complaint

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) -- More problems surrounding the ballot fiasco in Clackamas County were present Thursday as Jamie McLeod-Skinner's campaign filed a formal complaint saying that they weren't given equal access to observe the tallying process.

That official complaint made its way to the Oregon Secretary of State's Office, stating that an elections observer for the McLeod-Skinner campaign arrived at the Clackamas County elections office shortly after 8:00 a.m on Thursday.

Allegedly, someone on the intercom told him to go to the front door for access. According to the complaint, the observer rang the front doorbell twice but wasn't let into the building until 8:30 a.m.

The man said when he made it into the observation room, an observer from Kurt Schrader's campaign was already in the room and had signed in at 7:30 a.m., an hour before the office was officially open.

That McLeod-Skinner observer said County Clerk Sherry Hall did not allow him to take a picture of the sign-in sheet but confirmed it is public record. Hall has been under major fire this week for the county's delayed election results.

Secretary of State Shemia Fagan and the Clackamas County Chair both say the clerk didn't accept help soon enough. In a statement, McLeod-Skinner said "Most of the uncounted votes are in Clackamas County. We expect all county offices to uphold the integrity of our elections, including compliance with their elections security plans and providing equal access to our elections observers, as it builds trust in our election process."