LAKEPORT, Calif. – Nearly a year after she retired as Lake County’s registrar of voters, Diane Fridley on Tuesday was appointed by the Board of Supervisors as interim registrar.
The board came out of closed session on Tuesday afternoon, at which time the supervisors voted to appoint Fridley, Deputy County Administrative Officer Matthew Rothstein said.
Rothstein said the appointment became effective Wednesday, with Fridley to be paid at salary step eight.
Supervisor Simon moved the appointment, which was seconded by Supervisor Bruno Sabatier and approved unanimously, Rothstein said.
Fridley retired last December after more than 40 year working for Lake County.
Two months later, her longtime deputy, Maria Valadez – who had been appointed interim registrar after Fridley’s retirement but not offered the job on a permanent basis – left to take a job in Mendocino County.
Valadez had been viewed by many as Fridley’s successor, as she had spent nearly 30 years working in the elections office.
However, Valadez’s promotion had encountered resistance from County Administrative Officer Carol Huchingson, who last fall had attempted – unsuccessfully – to convince the board to change the educational requirements for the registrar to require a bachelor’s degree rather than experience, which would have disqualified Valadez and the rest of the registrar’s staff.
At that time, Huchingson also had proposed consolidating the elections office with the Auditor-Controller/County Clerk’s Office, which the board also had declined to do, thanks in part to Fridley’s input.
After Valadez’s departure, the board appointed Huchingson as interim registrar. The county then undertook a recruitment for registrar, the first round of which failed to find a candidate. A second recruitment led to the hiring of Catherine McMullen, who came from Portland, Oregon to Lake County – where she was raised – to take the job.
McMullen, who began as registrar on June 24, submitted her resignation letter on Nov. 7, in the midst of the official canvass for Northshore Fire’s Measure N sales tax. Originally, she was to leave on Nov. 22 but stayed until Dec. 2 to certify the election results, which showed the measure falling several points short of the needed supermajority of 66.7 percent.
In posts on her LinkedIn account, McMullen said the job as Lake County’s registrar of voters was to have been her dream job, “but instead has been a nightmare from day one.”
In a separate post, she said she and others experienced bullying in the county workplace.
Since McMullen announced her intention to leave, Huchingson once again proposed to the board that the Registrar of Voters Office be consolidated with the Auditor-Controller/County Clerk’s Office.
However, the board had directed that a recruitment begin for a new registrar, temporarily appointing Auditor-Controller/County Clerk Cathy Saderlund to be interim registrar from Dec. 3 to 10, as Lake County News has reported.
Board holds brief discussion ahead of closed session
Fridley was in the board chambers for a brief discussion on Tuesday morning, ahead of the closed session, that the supervisors held on the Registrar of Voters Office.
While Huchingson has led many of the past discussions on the registrar, on Tuesday, when Board Chair Tina Scott asked if she was leading them this time, Huchingson replied, “I don't have anything particular to offer.”
“I have something to offer,” said Supervisor Rob Brown, adding that he wanted to “cut right to the chase.”
He said they’ve discussed it and looked at all of the options available to them when it comes to structuring the elections office.
“I think the best option at this point, clearly, is leaving it a standalone,” he said.
Supervisor Bruno Sabatier said he concurred.
Supervisor Moke Simon said there could be another discussion down the road, but that they needed to get through the upcoming election, a reference to the California Super Tuesday presidential primary that will take place at the start of March.
“I agree with that,” said Scott.
During public comment, Michael Green, who has worked for the elections office, said there are a lot of balls in the air and time is of the essence. He said one possible issue is the possible consolidation of the Treasurer-Tax Collector’s Office with the Auditor-Controller’s Office.
In that event, the County Clerk’s Office and the Registrar of Voters Office would need to be split off. Green said that’s an issue that can be taken up later, but for now more immediate needs include getting staff.
Green added that he supported keeping the elections office independent right now and having it report to the Board of Supervisors.
The supervisors asked if they needed to take any action, and County Counsel Anita Grant said that because the Registrar of Voters Office is now a standalone office, “You need do nothing except by consensus you’ve indicated you want to keep it that way.”
Sabatier, noting they had appointed Saderlund as interim registrar until Dec. 10, asked if they needed to take action. Grant said that was part of the item the board was to take up during closed session.
County officials so far haven’t reported on the anticipated timeline for recruiting a new registrar. The job isn’t currently listed on the web page for the county’s Human Resources Department, also headed by Huchingson.
CalPERS retirement rules allow for retirees like Fridley to work less than 960 hours on an annual basis without jeopardizing their retirement benefits.
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Board of Supervisors appoints Fridley interim registrar of voters
- Elizabeth Larson
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