Kentucky County Clerk Tony Brown sparked backlash online after dressing up as Hanging Chad for Halloween. The Halloween-themed social media post of Brown with a T-shirt that read, Hi! I’m Chad, with a noose around his neck was taken at a voting site in Kentucky.
The image seemingly struck a nerve with several social media users despite the costume being a quip referencing the Bush/Gore election’s Hanging Chad controversy.
Hanging Chad is a term used to refer to a fragment from a punch-card ballot paper that has not completely detached from the paper. The voter has succeeded in detaching only a portion of the paper. The incompletely punched ballot paper is called Hanging Chad, resulting in an incomplete voting process, thus invalidating the ballot paper.
The term originated in the 2000 George W. Bush and Al Gore presidential race in Florida, where Bush was leading Gore by about 1,700 votes. At the time, the winner in Florida would decide the next President of the United States.
The small vote margin triggered demands for a recount. The Florida Supreme Court sided with Gore and ordered the recount of all statewide “undervote” ballots, or punch-card ballots, that had been cast but not registered due to the Hanging Chad issue.
However, on December 12, 2000, the United States Supreme Court ordered the end of the recount.
Kentucky clerk Tony Brown issues apology over Hanging Chad Halloween-themed social media post
Despite the quip, Kentucky County Clerk Tony Brown’s Halloween-themed social media post, showing Brown with a noose around his neck at a voting site, was deemed offensive by several social media Users. While some indicated the costume was a hilarious reference to Hanging Chad, others perceived the noose as a link to racial violence.
In the wake of the backlash, Tony Brown took down the social media post and apologized via Facebook. He said:
"I want to apologize for my Halloween costume today. I was trying to be funny and make a joke about the Bush/Gore election and I did not think about how that could be offensive and insensitive. It was poor judgment on my part and I am truly sorry that I hurt people I care about.”
Tony Brown, a Laurel County Clerk, also made the headlines on Thursday, October 31, after he reported having to remove a ballot marking device that was supposedly malfunctioning (via WYMT).
On Thursday, social media erupted with conspiracy theories after video of the incident made the rounds online. Shortly after, Brown said this via Facebook Post:
“We've had an incident today with someone reporting one of the ballot marking devices malfunctioning. We checked it and couldn't make it recreate the incident reported. The machine has been taken out of service and is waiting for the Attorney General's Office representative to arrive.”
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In an update, Kentucky clerk Tony Brown said the attorney General’s office representative removed the machine. He added:
“There were no claims of any issues with the device prior, and none since it went back into service. The voter who posted the video did cast her ballot which she said was correct.”
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