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Johnson Sought Job With Voting Company

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By ADAM EMERSON

aemerson@tampatrib.com

Published: February 7, 2009

TAMPA - Former Hillsborough County Elections Supervisor Buddy Johnson held a voting-machine company responsible for a bungled November election count, but it didn't stop him from asking the vendor for a job.

A spokesman with Premier Elections Solutions said Friday that Johnson twice sought work with the company after his November loss to challenger Phyllis Busansky.

But the company made it clear it wasn't interested, spokesman Chris Riggall said. Johnson never paid the nearly $2.2 million his office owed the vendor, leaving that bill for Busansky to settle.

Johnson sought employment with Premier twice while he managed an elections office still indebted to the vendor, Riggal said. During the week of Nov. 18, Johnson offered his services to the company. He made the same request three weeks later.

"It was not, in our judgment, even appropriate to consider," Riggall said.

When asked whether Premier would have considered Johnson if the debt had been paid, Riggall declined to answer.

Johnson, reached by phone Friday, declined to comment.

While not illegal, Johnson's inquiry only feeds the public perception that elected officials are trying to cash in on their positions, said Aubrey Jewett, associate professor of political science at the University of Central Florida.

"Most voters would think that it crosses a line," Jewett said. "It's not illegal, but most people don't think it's right."

Busansky, who took over the county elections office Jan. 6, said she thought it was wrong for Johnson to ask about a job.

"This isn't the kind of work that publicly elected officials should be doing," she said.

That kind of scrutiny continues to dog Johnson, whose actions in office may lead to a criminal investigation.
County commissioners this week said they wanted to ask law enforcement agencies to examine an audit showing that Johnson overspent his budget by nearly $1 million last year and then violated state law by failing to reimburse the county. Commissioners also gave Busansky the $2.18 million the county owed Premier.

The Texas-based company sold Hillsborough County nearly $6 million worth of voting equipment, which included ballot boxes and optical-scan systems.

When Hillsborough's vote count was delayed after the Nov. 4 election, Johnson laid the blame on Premier. He said the company failed to explain the challenges that came with the voting machines. Premier said it wasn't its job to provide instructions.

Reporter Adam Emerson can be reached at (813) 259-8285.

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