Golden State Today

Critics have raised concerns about the integrity of the recall election of Gov. Gavin Newsom as mail in-ballot envelopes have two holes in them.

However, one former adviser to the Recall California Gov. Gavin Newsom campaign said the holes are only there for the blind.

The process of the recall election of Newsom began in June 2020 and more than 1.7 million valid signatures were processed by the California Secretary of State's Office. The election is set for Sept. 14. 

The mail-in ballots received by voters have two holes in the envelope, and one Instagram video posted by Amy Cox sparked controversy as she alleged the holes allow anyone to see if the vote was for or against recalling Newsom. The video garnered major attention online and also sparked concerns about the integrity of the election. Some argued that election workers could screen the ballots before counting them, according to a press statement from The Amistad Project.

Phill Kline, director of The Amistad Project, said even if the envelope holes were not malicious by design, "A voter should never be forced to reveal their vote by negligent design."

But Randy Economy, a former senior adviser and media spokesman of the Recall Newsom 2020 campaign, told Golden State Today he is "still actively engaged in making sure that the governor is removed from office ... it's my life mission."

"I understand the situation and I'm a legally blind man," Economy said. "I have only partial vision in my left eye. I don't drive. I have very difficult times getting around and actually reading. And one of the things they teach you when you become blind is when you go to vote, you need to know where to sign the ballot." 

He said those two holes were put where they were so "when you're a blind person, to be able to navigate, to know exactly where to sign the ballot on the outside, so your vote will count. That's all it is. There's no conspiracy, it's not some crazy thing to get people to cheat. It's just it's a tool for blind people to be able to vote." 

Economy said he has no concerns about the integrity as a result of the design.

"I understand the conspiracy theories and people who are wanting to go ahead and say that this is a plot," he said. "It's not. It happens every election and people just need to calm down."  

State officials also have defended the design and indicated the holes serve two purposes, one for blind voters and the other to allow election workers to confirm quickly if an envelope is empty before discarding it, KCRA news reported.

"If people feel suspect about two holes in the back that were intentionally put there to allow blind people to figure out where to go ahead and send their ballots to make it valid, go to the polls," Economy said. 

Economy said every election held has had the two holes in the envelope but in the past there was a separate sleeve that went inside to cover the holes. Although this time the sleeve is not present, he said, adding, "I don't think it was a nefarious reason."

Economy said voters can ensure the integrity of the election by going to the polls and voting on Sept. 14. "Just go to to the polls and vote on Election Day and don't vote by mail," he said. 

Economy said no one objected to the state legislature's emergency legislation that changed how elections were held. 

"I fought tooth and nail. Nobody else did," he said. "People sat on the sidelines when democracy was being changed, the rules of democracy was being changed, and we yelled and screamed and we went on television, we made a big deal about it, but there was no outrage from the people. I think we need to do a better job in educating the electorate in regards to how campaigns and how elections are actually run in California."

He added, "Democracy is messy. It's a messy situation here in California. Rules are changed every single election to benefit the party in power. And at the end of the day, I don't know if it's going to matter. I think there's too much anger toward Gov. Newsom right now. I think that he's poked the California bear and the bear of the people."

Economy predicts the recall election will be close.

"Every vote counts, and I'd rather be on our side right now than on Gavin's side," he said. "I would not want to be in his shoes right now--in his very expensive loafers. And I don't know who's going to take his place, and I think at this point in the game it's not necessarily about who takes his place. It's about about the people taking control of of democracy here once again."

According to Economy, "This is a historic election. Thank God we have gotten to this point where democracy still works, it still is people that matter. The people who went out and spent thousands of hours collecting signatures and going door to door during a pandemic when Newsom shut us all down and locked us all in. That's a miracle. Now we have to just finish the job."