Attacking the Foundation of Freedom: An OP ed from the desk of Supervisor Hays

Friday, October 8, 2021
Attacking the Foundation of Freedom

Our republic has weathered many storms. Typically, these storms come from outside our country 
(enemy attacks, weather, and more recently the internet). External assaults bring us together, 
promote a united response, and bring out the best of who we are as a people. However, when we are 
attacked internally (riots, social degeneration, rewriting of our history, and now the erosion of 
trust in our institutions and our elections), our ability to unite becomes so frayed that we are 
unable to overcome the division and hatred permeating our current society.

We are subjected to manufactured news, online editorial bias, and political leaders determined to 
destroy our capitalistic economy. A current effort to manipulate a political party to the extent of 
being subjugated as pawns to a conspiracy which belittles and uses them, and actually affects the 
purveyor’s prescribed outcomes through their deception. Today, many Americans ascribe to the belief 
that an election was stolen. Much of this is promoted through a continuous false narrative 
supported by flimsy arguments and even weaker statistical analysis. This purpose is to secure a 
“forensic audit” to validate the election results as they believe them to be.

One of the stolen elections theories is a belief that election equipment has been modified to 
incorrectly report tabulation of votes contrary to the voted ballot. This latest ruse was developed 
through the promulgating of sloppy analysis of population growth, coupled with voter registration 
data and voting trends to persuade the belief that the presidential election of 2020 was stolen, 
with the claim that the “proof is in the numbers.” Rather than test the theory and verify the 
statistical modeling and analysis, and ultimately the facts of election data, the promoters demand 
a hand recount of the ballots for proof.  Proof has two aims - firstly to convince, and secondly to 
explain the proposition through peer and public review (see; Gold, B. Simons, R.A. (2008) Proof and 
other dilemmas: mathematics and philosophy).

Many have been convinced without the need to explain or review.  They have been convinced without 
inquiry to the office, or a request of any data from the same, that Lake County was a “red zone” on 
the “heat map” of voting outcomes, and therefore something was wrong.

The theory claims that during the 2020 Presidential election, over 17,000 votes in Lake County were 
removed from Donald Trump's vote total and placed into Joe Biden's vote totals. This supposed 
modification was done purportedly through software manipulation via outside nefarious agents. 
Neither our voter demographics, nor operational procedures, support this fallacy.

All tabulation equipment authorized for use in Florida elections undergoes vigorous testing and is 
certified by the Florida Bureau of Voting Systems Certification. None of Lake County's voting 
equipment utilizes the internet, nor does any outside agency have contact with equipment during any 
election. This has been explained to those trying to lead others to believe their statistical 
models. Our equipment is stored in our warehouse under constant video surveillance, monitored by 
our professional staff.

Our office completely complies with Florida Statutes, which require us to test tabulation equipment 
at a publicly noticed Logic and Accuracy test. Those same statutes also require us to test 100% of 
the tabulation devices to be used in the upcoming election. Upon completion of the election, the 
machines are tested again to verify the results previously reported.

Each election is audited by randomly selecting a contest to audit then randomly choosing the 
prescribed number of precincts for the audit. Then ballots are hand counted in those precincts 
related to the selected contest. We have a long-running record of 100% accuracy!

Let us use our time, effort, and money to promote confidence in a system that has proven its 
accuracy, authenticity, and reliability. Lake County has such a system. We believe Lake County 
deserves nothing less. More information on election security can be found at www.lakevotes.gov.

D. Alan Hays, D.M.D., MFCEP
Lake County Supervisor of Elections