Polk vs. Shields – Rubber Match Moves to Friday

April 14, 2009 by Cato  
Filed under Maryland, Salisbury Politics

While the overwhelming margins of victory won by both Salisbury Mayor-elect Jim Ireton and Councilwoman Debbie Campbell sound the death knell of the Barrie Comegys party, hope remains in District 1.  There, incumbent Shanie Shields is tied with Cynthia Polk after last Tuesday’s election, the Absentee I canvas and the Provisional canvas.  Friday’s Absentee II canvas, with five (5) District 1 ballots will prove to be the rubber match.

Voters throughout the city are asking, “How can this election possibly be so close?”  Scandalously low turnout is one obvious answer.  However, it is our opinion that turnout is only part of the answer.

While no charges of electoral impropriety have been leveled by the Polk camp – yet – there is certainly the appearance of impropriety on several fronts.  A family member of Shields served as an election judge – at the sole District 1 polling place.  Voters from the east side of District 1 were deliberately disenfranchised when the Tilghman administration and its rubber stamp council refused to allow those residents the opportunity to vote at Harvest Baptist Church – literally blocks from a very large block of District 1 voters.  The city electoral board, Barrie Tilghman appointees all, refused to segregate challenged absentee ballots.  Not leaving SAPOA out of the mix, one witness has come forward claiming that they were paid to vote and hauled to St. James AME Zion Church (the District 1 polling place) by their landlord.  This is in additon to the persistent rumors of such behavior by Salisbury’s leading slumlords.

Even if Shields manages to scratch out a 1 vote win, what little credibility she had maintained is effectively gone.  If the Barrie Comegys council bloc of Louise Smith and Gary Comegys acts to stop the change voters clearly want it will take little more than a warm body to defeat either in 2011.

Hold tight Salisbury.  Friday should be interesting.  While Polk could challenge a defeat on multiple fronts, Shields cannot challenge.  To date, Shields has failed to send a single representative to the Electoral Board canvasses.  Perhaps she assumed that City Attorney Paul Wilber and the Tilghman appointed electoral board would serve as her proxies.  Perhaps they did.  Unfortunately for Shields, I doubt any would publicly admit to error or wrongdoing to help her out.