Broward's elections office has been hijacked by Republican activists

Blame local Democrats
How did Broward County , a crucial Kerry bastion where Democrats outnumber Republicans almost two-to-one, wind up in such shape? Why would the Dem-dominated County Commission spend more than $20 million for machines that scare the dickens out of its people? How on Earth did Brenda Snipes, who is surrounded by the most rabid and unscrupulous band of GOP opportunists imaginable, come to be the Supervisor of Elections? The Democrats did it to themselves. For starters, look at Mike Moskowitz, one of the leaders of Kerry's dream team in Broward. The Democratic committeeman and political insider is organizing dozens of lawyers to make sure those dastardly touch screens work. But guess what he was doing three years ago: Hawking those same machines as a lobbyist for the GOP-connected company that made them. Nebraska-based Election Systems & Software paid Moskowitz about $18,600 for helping sway the county to buy the machines. It's a conflict of interest that begs the question: Does Moskowitz, who didn't return repeated phone calls, really side with the voters, or will he remain allegiant to the company that paid him? And then there's the terrible saga of Snipes. Jeb installed her after the Democratic leadership chased out Miriam Oliphant, a fellow party member who was elected by the people. Petty politics drove that train. Ironically, Oliphant had urged the county to buy an optical scanner system, which is less expensive and more accurate than touch screens and allows for a paper recount that Democrats now so badly wish they had. [more]

• Pictured Above: Brenda Snipes calls herself a Democrat, but Jeb Bush and local Republican powerbrokers like William Scherer pull the strings.