VENTURA, Calif. — At its Oct. 8 regular meeting, the Ventura County Board of Supervisors approved by a 3-2 vote a 9-year contract extension of Dominion Voting Machines for use during elections, despite 72 percent of public comments opposing such a vote.
Agenda Item 36 was brought forward for approval by board chair Kelly Long (District 3: Santa Paula/Piru/Fillmore) and by Matt LaVere (District 1: Ventura/Ojai Valley) and caught those opposing Dominion Voting Machines by surprise. The move will contractually bind future county boards of supervisors. The swing vote for the contract approval was Supervisor Vianey Lopez (District 5: Port Hueneme/Mandalay Bay). Strongly opposing was Supervisor Jeff Gorell (District 2: Thousand Oaks/Westlake Village) and Supervisor and Vice Chair Janice Parvin (District 4: Simi Valley/Moorpark). The actual motion was made by LaVere with a second by Lopez.
It authorizes “the County Clerk-Recorder and Registrar of Voters to sign two second amendments to two agreements with Dominion Voting Systems, Inc. for the County’s Voting System to upgrade voting equipment, annual license and hardware warranties, and extend the term of the agreements; and authorization for the County Clerk-Recorder & Registrar of Voters to sign addenda and additional amendments to agreements not-to-exceed ten percent of the agreement amount.”
According to Supervisor Gorell, “I have deep concerns. We are moving the wrong direction: First, there is no reason to act. We have a contract all the way through the end of 2027. There is no necessity to act today. There are currently three voting machines that are certified by the California Secretary of State. We don’t know those systems, nor what lessons have been learned from other jurisdictions. We don’t know the costs. We’re not experts.”
“There was no public process. This decision demands a public process. Yet there was no discussion, no matrix. We don’t know anything about other providers,” Gorell continued. “I am not a conspiracy theorist nor an election denier. I did not know about this until 48 hours ago, and I got the board letter at midnight last night. What we need is a public process, due diligence, a matrix to learn the good, bad, [and] ugly. I am a hard ‘no.’”
According to Supervisor Parvin, “Nine years is a long time. This has never been discussed. I’m taken aback by 2033. I am not comfortable with this length of time. It has never been discussed in any of our meetings. This is critically important to all voters.”
In introducing Agenda Item 36, Supervisor Long said, “It is important we have certified voting systems. Everything has been certified at the federal level as a designed closed system that doesn’t rely on internet connectivity. Remote access does not exist. At the state level, Dominion is widely regarded as a safe voting system.”
According to Supervisor LaVere, “We have stringent California requirements, heightened security protocols, compliance with the State and stringent audits with advanced encrypting and security protocols that safeguard against cyber threats.”
Still, most comments went strongly against the lengthy contract, with 18 objections and seven affirmatives.
Gloria Chinea, a county resident concerned about election integrity, said, “It is a travesty that the Board of Supervisors had to take such a rush decision to get this contract signed without proper time to study the contract and having community input as regards to the election division in Ventura County. There was not enough time to get feedback from experts.
“Technology upgrades are happening, and we don’t know the intricacies of the contract, and no disclosure was made for that information. There were people at the Board of Supervisors meeting not allowed to talk. Our First Amendment rights are being violated. We, the people, are being curtailed. The Board of Supervisors is controlling who speaks and how long they can speak.”
Rolando Chinea, a citizen with similar concerns, said, “This is a contract for nine years, and everything changes so fast in terms of the equipment. There is no urgency to sign this contract now. This new contract goes all the way to 2033. It might be millions of dollars that [are] being misused at this time. We, The People, are paying for it, and we are not properly informed. The Board of Supervisors are relying on the vendor to give them information. This is a conflict of interest.”
Nicholas Bernaski told the board, “I have been an election observer. There are problems in certifying our state and national elections. The statistics from the state show hundreds of violations of federal law and violations of the election code. Dominion systems do not allow for audits. … This was an election surprise by Supervisor Long. We should not rubber stamp it. I urge thoughtful and due diligence.”
Bruce McVicker commented, “Dominion voting systems can connect to the internet. The critical parts of these voting machines were made in China.”
Wendy Coyle said, “Some 60 percent of voters fear cheating in elections — 41 percent of these voters are Democrats and 45 percent are independents. … Trust is at an all-time low on the legitimacy of the voting process. This is a nightmare scenario. The Board of Supervisors needs to avert a potential crisis in Ventura County.”
Sheila Johnson told the board, “I have been involved in elections since 2018. There have been many anomalies. … We need a fair and transparent process. This is an opportunity to do the right thing. What we have witnessed is overwhelming corruption. If you are our representatives, We, The People, have spoken: No electronic machines. No tabulators. … Don’t vote to approve this.”
Kathy Morgan was one of those who spoke in favor of the Dominion Voting Machines, saying, “I support approval. Our national elections are safe. We have cyber security. Never have our elections been more secure. This is better than paper ballots, which are time-consuming and costlier.”
An Oct. 8 letter sent out by Supervisors Long and LaVere states that upgrading the voting system hardware would cost $258,854.64 for 2025-26 and that the appropriations for the 2024-25 voting budget is $12,314,267 with the adjusted budget requiring $12,858,659.
Michael Hernandez is co-founder of the Citizens Journal, an online news service. He is a former Southern California daily newspaper journalist and religion and news editor.
