Ex-Candidate Plans Suit In Vote Count

What's fair is fair.

That is the opinion of former city council candidate David Penoyer, who said he plans to file suit against the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections office after learning Friday that 440 ballots from precincts 626 and 651 went uncounted in the Nov. 4 election.

Newly seated Supervisor of Elections Phyllis Busansky said the ballots from the Temple Terrace Presbyterian Church precincts were discovered Thursday in the Falkenburg Road facility's warehouse.

Penoyer finished third in the election where four candidates competed for two seats. First place went to incumbent Ron Govin, who captured 5,622 votes of the 15,547 cast. Mary Jane Neale followed with 3,798. Penoyer, who tallied 3,714, lost by 84 votes.

"I do not want it to sound like sour grapes, but I feel it's something I need to pursue," Penoyer said about filing suit.

Neale had little to say, except that when she ran for office she never expected this to occur.

"It's a nightmare ... it really upsets me," she said. "But, he Penoyer told me he has to do what he has to do and in the meantime I'll continue to sit in my seat as a member of the Temple Terrace City Council."

David Lopez, a Temple Terrace resident since 2000, is disturbed because the error means his vote most likely was not counted.

"It is a tragedy and a violation of my rights as a citizen not to have an opportunity to know that my vote counts for at least something on that fateful day without someone filing a lawsuit," Lopez said in a letter to Temple Terrace Mayor Joe Affronti.

Lopez recommended that the city order that the votes be counted.

Vice Mayor Alison Fernandez said the count should be handled by the Supervisor of Elections office.

"Although it may have no impact on the outcome of the election, it's the supervisor's office that has complete control over the election. It should be in charge of paying for it," she said. "The city has absolutely no control over the voting at all."