Audits help ensure votes cast and tabulated are accurate

Top election officials of Oconee and Pickens concede that, in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential vote, there remains public skepticism in the accuracy of the country’s elections, but they are confident that local elections are accurate, secure, and accessible.  Accurate, secure and accessible elections were in focus last night in a Clemson meeting where the League of Women Voters held a public forum with five election officials from the two counties.  Kristi Burr and Jim Murray represented Oconee County, while Cary Kaye, Jim Liddle, and Dr. Amy Sams represented Pickens County. Kristi Burr, the Oconee elections director, said to the surprise of some skeptics, audits are a staple of 21st century elections and election offices routinely receive recommendations from the Department of Homeland Security.  Burr’s Pickens County counterpart, Dr. Amy Sams, says much in the voting process is laid bare to the public, with certain exceptions such as the computer codes that help officials check the accuracy of voting machines and vote tabulation equipment.  The importance of keeping those codes secret, Sams explained, is tantamount to the importance of keeping confidential the personal banking information of a private citizen.