Recall organizers question Registrar of Voters certification process

By WDSU Staff

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    NEW ORLEANS (WDSU) — Two of the main organizers behind the recall effort against New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell held a news conference on Thursday where they passionately defended their effort in gathering signatures.

Eileen Carter and Belden Batiste were visibly upset by the Orleans Parish Registrar of Voter’s comments made at a separate news conference regarding the documents turned over by them.

According to Carter, the Orleans Parish Registrar Sandra Wilson’s math did not add up with the signatures they turned in.

Carter said that they turned over 100,000 signatures, and knew that some of those signatures were duplicates because they didn’t trust Wilson’s office would count them.

Carter also claimed that Wilson was not transparent on deadlines, and that volunteers were rushed to package documents within the supplemental signature grace period.

Both Carter and Batiste believe a page full of Disney character signatures must have slipped into the batch during the rush to get all documents submitted.

Carter and Batiste claim they have proof that will back up the documents they sent in and said that due to pending litigation, they would not release that evidence without speaking with their attorneys.

Carter said she and Batiste have just as many questions as the public on how the signatures were handled.

Wilson and her Chief Deputy Registrar Danielle Duplessis Hammond spoke about some of the signatures included in the submitted list from recall organizers.

According to Hammond, several pages of signatures included Disney characters like Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Tiana, and more. Many signatures were profane, according to Hammond.

Hammond also said that the list of supplemental signatures provided was a duplication list of the signatures originally submitted, which is why 90 percent of the second batch was not included in the final signature count.

Hammond said that many signatures had to be tossed because they were missing information like addresses, and some weren’t legible.

According to the Registrar’s Office, the recall organizers did not submit the necessary paperwork before turning over the signatures, specifically a document that is required for certification.

This form is called the Registrar’s Certification Form.

Wilson also said that the recall organizers did not keep original copies of the signatures they gathered, and expected those involved to be more organized.

Wilson said her office is confident they followed the law and that the results of their certification process are accurate.

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