If it's true that getting partisan politics out of the way we run elections would make elections better, then consider this from the state of Maine. The legislature there elects the Secretary of State, who serves as top elections official. Now that Democrats have taken over the legislature, they're bringing back Democrat Matthew Dunlap for another turn. From the Portland Press Herald:
Dunlap said he didn't plan to engage in politics even if it meant disappointing his party.
"I have a D after my name, so you know where I am politically on any issue you want to talk to me about," he said. "But the nature of my work cannot be partisan. It cannot be partisan. I can't emphasize that enough, especially because the work we do involves elections."
He added, "Sometimes it can be very difficult and painful and risky to say no to your friends, but you have to do it because there’s a public trust issue there. Nothing would make me happier than to leave office as a trivia question: Who was that guy?"
Dunlap owes his job to being a partisan, even as he says the work itself cannot be partisan. But that's how we run things in a lot of states now. For truly nonpartisan administration of elections, see Wisconsin.
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And I have to give credit to many of the local (R) election supervisors here in Florida who balked at Douchebag Rick Scott's attempt to purge voter rolls 4 weeks before the election . They couldn't do anything about the legislature's killing of early voting days , but they did protest and ask for extensions. Even here in Lake County (Redneckistan, 62-38 for Romney) there was a Republicans for Emogene Stegal (D)who has conducted 11 terms with the utmost integrity.
Election supervisors must be beyond reproach . One of our most sacred rights when the ballots in this case beat the money and suppression.
Here in Iowa, the Secretary of State Matt Schultz, attempted prior to the elections to purge voter polls and insists his fight is a righteous one as 2 - count 'em, 2 - illegal voters were found (they were immigrants who are in the process of citizenship that had not yet been granted). Here's hoping he is UNelected in 2014.
Many of our elected and appointed officials are there by reason of party affiliation. But that does not necessarily mean the official is partisan in the performance of their duties. The US Attorney General is a partisan appointment and some of them have acted in a partisan way while others have administered their jobs in a nonpartisan way. We need to credit officials in both parties that do their job without political motivations as the reason for taking action. But we also need to condemn those who use their office for political motives. People can reasonably disagree on policy but that does not mean an action an official takes is political because he or she acts in accordance with their political philosophy. An official charged with duties relating to elections should always be nonpartisan even if elected on the basis of party. There are many officials who value their integrity over political considerations so condemnation should be reserved for those that are using their office for an improper purpose.
It just seems to me that there are four constitutional offices where the candidates should have to be independents - they include Secretary of State, Treasurer, Auditor and Attorney General. All four of these offices require a high standard of non-partisanship and how can there not be a conflict of interest if an office holder is elected with the help of his/or/her party? Party affiliation should disqualify candidates.
The worst part about positions overseeing elections being partisan is that they're generally not very good jobs. In Colorado, Secretary of State is not a particularly well-paid position but it takes winning an expensive statewide election to get in. SoS almost never gains any positive press since well-run elections are invisible, so it's a dead end for a reasonably capable and ambitious pol. When you get somebody with ambition, the office almost requires serious tinkering with elections in order to please a partisan base.
Colorado and other states have veered between invisible, competent administrators and boisterous red-meat throwing partisans and it would be nice to get some competence back. Unfortunately, with the right wing investment in fixing elections, non-partisan election administration has weirdly become a partisan issue.
I don't expect him to purge GOP voters...just protect the RIGHT TO VOTE for all in Maine
And then there's Vermont, where the Secretary of State is elected, is (now) a second-term Democrat, and ran unopposed, so got enough write-in votes in the Republican primary and the party caucus endorsement of the Progressive Party (and of the Working Families Party) to actually appear on the ballot as a D/P/WF/R.
Jim Condos' passion is functionality and transparency. He believes in small-d democracy. And that's a good thing.
Barring scandal (not something he's ever been tainted with before), I suspect he's got the job as long as he wants it.