By james art RENO, Nev. — The manager of a key Northern Nevada county is on sick leave, a departure announced just days before the election.
Washoe County has drawn attention in recent weeks after a change at the top of the election office there. Now, with the departure of manager Eric Brown, both the election and county government operations will be overseen by MPs during what is expected to be a very close election in this politically important county.
The county confirmed Tuesday that Brown is on leave for a planned medical procedure and will be out until the end of November. Assistant County Manager Dave Solaro will step in until Brown returns.
County officials are trying to quell any concerns that the staffing shift will affect operations in Nevada’s second-most populous county. County spokeswoman Bethany Drysdale said Solaro served as interim manager for several months before Brown was hired in 2019, and that he has worked for the county for more than two decades.
“(Solaro) joins the rest of the county team in wishing Manager Brown well and looking forward to taking on the tasks at hand during the short period of time,” she said in an email to The Associated Press.
Last month, the district announced that Registrar Carrie-Ann Burgess had requested medical leave to deal with stress. But Burgess said she was forced out after she refused to agree to staffing changes requested by Brown’s office. She said she repeatedly begged to stay, even provided a doctor’s note vouching for her health and hired a lawyer.
Overseeing the office now is Burgess’s deputy — the fifth person in four years to lead the county’s election operation. The turnover is one symptom of a district that has been closely divided politically and has been subject to conspiracy theories about the election since Republican Donald Trump lost the state to Democrat Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election.
The county claims it is “focused on conducting smooth and fair elections.”
George Guthrie, a spokesman for the Registrar of Voters’ office, said in an interview Tuesday before Brown’s medical leave was revealed that employees in that office appeared to be in good spirits as they worked hard.
“Election time is time for us. This is our Super Bowl. The primary is the playoffs,” Guthrie said. “Our people are locked in, working long hours, 12-hour days and weekends.”