County’s vote umpire ready to call ’em as he sees ’em on Election Day

Behold the umpire.

When things go right, he's nearly invisible. The game breezes by. The rules are followed. The opposing teams and peanut-crunching crowd get their money's worth.

But when someone disputes a call, the umpire is the first to catch an earful of grief. His eyesight is questioned. His encyclopedic knowledge of the rules of the game is ridiculed. He goes from arbiter of the great American pastime to the bum of the month.

His title is Clark County Registrar of Voters, but these days I'd swear Larry Lomax is an umpire.

Every call he makes is important these days, and each is watched with unprecedented scrutiny.

The crowd count alone is enough to overwhelm the average public servant. At last count, 391,000 Clark County voters (out of about 815,000 registered) had cast ballots early. That's up from 271,000 (out of 684,000 registered) in 2004. In that year, 79.7 percent of registered county voters cast ballots.

With 1,000 more voting machines in place at 339 polling places throughout Southern Nevada, Lomax says it's very possible another 250,000 residents will vote. That would give Clark County an 85 percent turnout, which undoubtedly would rank among the highest in the nation in a metro area.

While political party bosses point to increased focus on voter registration, and pundits note Nevada's changing demographics and status as a swing state, the umpire says you can't lose sight of the fact the state has some of the most voter-friendly laws in the country. Early voting here was well advertised, professionally run, lasted two weeks, and was available even in some supermarkets. It was so successful CNN ran an unabashedly positive story on the program.

As usual, the umpire receives the nod of approval without much emotion.

"It's nice to get a compliment every now and then," Lomax allows, "because we sure get enough complaints."

Ah, yes, the jeers. From the left, Lomax hears of fears of voter suppression and intimidation. From the right, he is bombarded with theories about how registration outfits like ACORN have subverted the process.

His calls are bound to disappoint each.

"I really honestly do not believe there are a lot of people out there trying to vote illegally," Lomax says. "I just haven't seen any evidence of it."

He knows such statements will generate thunderous boos from partisans. But the 30-year U.S. Air Force officer calls them as he sees them. This year each call will be second-guessed. Thousands of official observers representing the political parties are expected to work the polling places. Their presence figures to cause fireworks.

The umpire, a military man, relies on that background for the big game.

"In the military, you plan, you train, you prepare to go to war," Lomax says. "In putting on an election, you plan, you prepare, you train, and if you just substitute Election Day for war, it's about the same thing."

He didn't laugh. The umpire takes this game seriously. He knows there are busloads of lawyers who'd like to question his eyesight and knowledge of the rulebook.

Speaking of the rules, when the dust of the Election 2008 finally settles, a couple key changes are in order.

First, he believes, something must be done to improve a voter registration system that allows private third-party organizations such as ACORN to pay people to register voters. While there's no evidence it has led to fraud, there's no question it has generated chaos.

A second concern: The deceptively simple Oct. 4 voter registration deadline. If someone registers within three days of the deadline, the registration is counted. With the dramatic voter registration increases, the law has fomented confusion and no shortage of catcalls.

And many voters, the umpire notes, wonder why no one at the polling place requests personal identification. In Arizona, it's required.

But, over all, he says, "I really think the people of Clark County can be proud of the way we conduct elections."

On Election Day, with the whole world watching and Nevada positioned as the ultimate swing state, I start the morning with a tip of the cap to the umpire.

Feel no pressure, sir. It's only the most important vote in the nation's history.

What could possibly go wrong?

John L. Smith's column appears Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. E-mail him at Smith@reviewjournal.com or call (702) 383-0295.