Mistaken vote gives dispute new twist
When Greg Mich'l left for work early Thursday morning from his Las Vegas home, he wasn't expecting to make news.
Shortly after 7 a.m., I met Mich'l in his driveway at 7867 Villa Pintura Ave. After introducing myself, I asked him if he'd voted in the Ward 4 City Council race in North Las Vegas.
"I did," the union stagehand replied.
When I pointed out the potential problem with living in Las Vegas and voting in a council ward located several miles away in North Las Vegas, he acknowledged the geographical dilemma. He offered that he's not that interested in politics and "isn't really up on the laws."
Something tells me he might soon learn more than he ever wanted to know.
Normally, the casting of a single ballot would go unnoticed and wouldn't be newsworthy. Although Clark County's political history has no shortage of suspected and confirmed examples of voter fraud, well-meaning people commonly cast technically flawed ballots out of ignorance and without any intention to deceive.
In this case, however, the vicious Ward 4 race was decided on June 7 by a single disputed vote. It ended with local dentist Wade Wagner defeating incumbent Richard Cherchio, who filed an official challenge on Wednesday.
Cherchio's documentation included an affidavit from Clark County Registrar of Voters Larry Lomax stating that one improper ballot had been cast in the election because of a poll worker's error regarding a change-of-address affidavit. At the time the affidavit was filed, it was officially considered the only discrepancy found in the Ward 4 contest.
Does Mich'l's admission make two?
In his defense, Mich'l said, "I didn't realize you had to be a resident of North Las Vegas. I thought it was a Clark County thing. The form showed up in the mail. I believed it was OK to use."
Mich'l explained that his voting material arrived at his brother's house, which is in Ward 4 at 1328 Dover Glen Drive.
Mich'l originally registered to vote in 2002 using a Las Vegas address on Fort West Road, according to the Clark County Registrar of Voters office. He went on inactive status, and his registration was canceled in 2006. He then reregistered to vote April 25 from the Dover Glen address at a time he was living at the Villa Pintura address.
Attempts to reach Michael Mich'l at his home were unsuccessful. When I mentioned to Greg Mich'l that several persons appeared to be registered at the Dover Glen home, he assured me the rest actually lived there.
Perhaps coincidentally, Dover Glen is a short walk from 6131 Rising Circle, the home of newly elected Councilman Wagner and a total of 10 registered voters. The Wagners are a big family and have almost enough registered voters at their home to qualify for their own precinct.
Over at Rising Circle, the polite woman who answered the door was expecting to usher in the housekeepers who waited there and was surprised at my presence. I explained that I didn't do windows, but wanted to ask whether the Wagners knew the Mich'l family. She declined to answer.
At the Clark County Election Department, Registrar Lomax said a voter must include his legal address on his registration form and signs the document under penalty of perjury. But Nevada law states that a voter who moves may legally vote at his previous address.
If evidence of fraud is present, Lomax said, his office turns over the issue to the district attorney's office for investigation. Lomax added, "This is a very transient community. People move around here all the time. People move and forget to update their voter registration form."
That's true. But the challenge for Greg Mich'l, I suspect, will be explaining why he registered to vote at his brother's address and not his own.
John L. Smith's column appears Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. E-mail him at Smith@reviewjournal.com or call (702) 383-0295. He also blogs at lvrj.com/blogs/Smith
