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Claeys Advises Elections Commission
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, December 8th, 2009
Contact: Scott Paradise
(913) 485-9266
Hi-Res Photo: Color | B&W
Claeys counts voters entering the polling place and calculates wait times for voters.
Claeys counts voters entering the polling place and calculates wait times for voters.
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La Paz, Bolivia -- J.R. Claeys, Republican candidate for Kansas Secretary of State and Certified International Observer, participated in an elections observation mission to Bolivia for their presidential elections this past Sunday.
"It is important that our next secretary of state understand the impact of policy at the polls," said Claeys. "By witnessing firsthand the technology available to secure our vote, we can make informed decisions about procedures that are effective and those that are not."
Claeys reviewed the biometric voter identification program being used in Bolivia to secure elections from voter fraud. He also visited the company in south Florida that implemented the systems used in Bolivia. The biometric scanning machines are built in to mobile voter registration and enrollment stations that were used to register over four million voters.
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In preparation for Bolivia's national elections this month, voter registration and biometric enrollment was completed by several thousand trained personnel who hand-carried the portable enrollment kits throughout the country.
"The vote may have been secure, but in this election the people had legitimate fears that if they voted against the sitting president, they would be punished," said Claeys. "Often fraud isn't as transparent as double-voting or false registration. It can also take a much quieter form of threats and intimidation by those in power."
A crowd forms as results become clear Sunday night.
A crowd forms as results become clear Sunday night.
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Bolivia is recovering from several years of political instability. The country has had five presidents over a four year period and two internal wars over natural resources in 2003 and 2005. In 2007 Bolivian police killed protestors of the current president's policies. In late 2008, a recall effort was attempted, but failed to remove the current president, Evo Morales. Morales and his party won the election on Sunday.
Claeys advised the National Electoral Commission (CNE) of Bolivia on their voter registration policies and methods to increase security and participation. Though largely unenforced, voting is compulsory for those over the age of 21, unless married where the age is set at 18.
Claeys is an advocate of voter identification and registration security procedures. He has released Securing Our Vote, a detailed plan for securing Kansas elections.
In March of this year, Claeys served as an elections observer in the presidential elections in El Salvador, a country recovering from a bloody civil war and decades of alleged voter fraud. El Salvador uses photo voter identification procedures in national elections.
ABOUT J.R. CLAEYS
J.R. Claeys is a fifth-generation Kansan born and raised in Salina, Kans. He is seeking the Republican nomination for Kansas Secretary of State in the primary election on August 3, 2010. Claeys graduated from Kansas State University, worked as a fundraiser for the Repubican National Committee and served as CEO of a major national business organization. He is a longtime volunteer and serves as a certified international elections observer. Claeys currently lives in Salina and owns a small business that helps nonprofit organizations with their fundraising efforts. Continuing his commitment to Republican causes, Claeys serves on the executive board of the Kansas Young Republicans. For more information, visit www.JRClaeys.com.
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