Update: At 12:00 noon on Saturday, I was notified by constable that our recount request of the original paper ballots has been accepted by the city and is happening this coming Thursday morning November 18th at 9:30am in the city councilor’s chambers of Somerville City Hall!

Win, lose or draw, I just want to ensure that the people of Somerville get to have their voices heard in a fair and clean election.

Billy

Somerville Residents Speak Out, Initiates Recount

A free and fair election involves political freedoms and fair processes leading up to the vote, a fair count of eligible voters who cast a ballot (including such aspects as electoral fraud or voter suppression), and acceptance of election results by all parties. …

Integrity is the practice of being honest and showing a consistent and uncompromising adherence to strong moral and ethical principles and values. In this context, integrity is the inner sense of “wholeness” deriving from qualities such as honesty and consistency of character.

Free and fair elections are the foundation of every healthy democracy, ensuring that government authority derives from the will of the people. But to have confidence that their elections are truly free and fair, voters need to be assured of more than just a well-managed day of polling.

The people of Somerville have spoken and they want an honest and proper hand count of the original paper ballots!

If all our elected officials when campaigning all campaigned on transparency, then none of them should have any problems with this recount if there is nothing to hide in our Somerville elections process!

Win, lose or draw, I want to make sure the people of Somerville get an honest and clean election! I owe it to my thousands of supporters and volunteers!

Sincerely,
William Tauro
Candidate for Mayor of Somerville
————————————-

Official Recount Request:

11/10/21

Somerville Election Department
Commissioner Nickolis Salerno
93 Highland Avenue
Somerville Massachusetts 02143

To the Immediate Attention of the City of Somerville Election Department

To Commissioner Nickolis Salerno/Whom It Concern,

Under the provisions of section 109 of chapter 54 of the Mass. General Laws, as, permitted by law, of which is the law that allows unsealing the ballots from a municipal election is chapter 54, section 135, which provides for a recount process.

I have reasons to believe and do believe that the records, or copies of records, made by the election officers of all wards are erroneous, and are in error, and that challenged votes were cast by persons not entitled to vote therein, and that I believe a recount of the ballots cast in all wards will affect the election outcome of one or more candidates voted for at the November 2nd, 2021 Somerville Municipal Election for the office of mayor. One of the reasons coming directly from the elections commissioner himself stating such before myself and one more person who was present and directly involved in our conversation. Other reasoning is that many ballots containing votes regarding write-in/stickers were not allowed and rejected.

There were multiple ballots cast in this election where many ballots were rejected because voters may not have filled in the circle and may not have put in the address or may not have done both or may have wrote in “Billy Tauro” instead of “William Tauro” or may have put the sticker on and not filled in the circle etc. etc. etc. But there is a court ruling stating that the voters intent to cast their vote for that candidate is there so it is allowable. Somerville is pushing the envelope by ignoring these facts and making the candidate beg for it forcing a recount of the actual physical paper ballot and/or court action.

According to the Massachusetts Secretary of State’s Official Website: “General Requirements
All write-in or sticker votes should include the correct name and address of the candidates. Courts have ruled that a vote should be counted whenever the intent of the voter can reasonably be determined, even if a voter omits the candidate’s address or makes a mistake in the name or address. In O’Brien v. Board of Election Commissioners, 257 Mass. 332, 338-339, 153 N.E. 553, 556 (1926) the court said “that if the intent of the voter can be determined with reasonable certainty from an inspection of the ballot, in the light of the generally known conditions attendant upon the election, effect must be given to that intent… The omission of the residence … on some ballots on which the name had been written by the voters rightly was found not to invalidate such votes.” Maiewski v. Board of Registrars of Voters, 347 Mass. 681, 199 N.E. 2d 680 (1964). This includes where a voter fails to complete the vote indicator next to the write-in space—the write-in or sticker vote will still be counted.” Clearly the City of Somerville were not following these rules during the counting of the ballots ignoring the facts and I am being denied that right.

According to the Somerville Election Department, my wife’s as well as my own ballots were rejected as well. After confronting the Somerville Elections Office, the representative on the phone did not have an answer for it. At that point I requested to speak to Nick Salerno, the Somerville Elections Commissioner who was not available nor ever returning my call from that moment forward.

After the examination and responses from many voters, indicating a false count reported, I William B. Tauro officially request a recount for the 2021 election to the office of Mayor. This would include the hand count of all ballots cast by all of the voting class of the City of Somerville, any allowed votes cast by illegal immigrants status voters, and, any other votes inserted in to the election process by electronic or other forms, for the November 2nd 2021 General Election to the office of the Mayor of the City Of Somerville. Also, that each vote be counted by hand with a representative from any and all campaigns involved.
Please notify me directly as to the time and place that this will commence so I can have a duly reprepresented person attend.

Regards,

William Tauro

Cc:

Michelle K. Tassinari
General Counsel
Director, Elections Division
Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth
One Ashburton Place, Room 1705
Boston, MA 02108

Massachusetts Secretary of State William Galvin
Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth
One Ashburton Place, Room 1705
Boston, MA 02108