Sedgwick County election officer says secretary of state told her she’s losing her job

Sedgwick County’s election commissioner says she is losing her job because she knowingly violated a Kansas policy while working from home while fighting cancer during the coronavirus pandemic.

Tabitha Lehman said she stands by her decision to violate a policy on remote access to the state’s voter registration database.

“On January 5th, 2021, Secretary of State Scott Schwab met with me to inform me that when my term as election commissioner expires on July 19th, 2021, he did not intend to reappoint me to another term,” Lehman said Wednesday in a news release.

Lehman said Schwab, an Olathe Republican, instituted a policy in March that “restricted remote access, including county provided VPN connectivity. Subsequent to this policy, I was diagnosed with an aggressive Lymphoma and initiated chemotherapy. As a result of that diagnosis and ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, I was under medical advice not to go into the office.”

Prior to the presidential election, Schwab’s office alternated between rejecting and ignoring Lehman’s appeals, she said. Technology experts told her the county’s remote access “was as secure as physically being at my desk.”

“Because of my oath to uphold the laws and constitution of both United States and the State of Kansas, I knowingly chose to violate the policy of the Secretary of State in order to direct a fair and accurate Presidential election,” Lehman said. “That violation of policy is the rationale for not reappointing me.”

Schwab’s office provided a written statement Wednesday evening.

“This was not a hasty decision,” Schwab said, according to the news release. “We understand the difficult circumstances election officials encountered throughout the fall. Ultimately, we could not jeopardize the safety of Kansas election systems to the benefit of one.”

Schwab’s office did not cite any security breaches nor did he question the results of the November election in Sedgwick County, where Republicans President Donald Trump, Sen. Roger Marshall and Rep. Ron Estes won by wide margins.

“The security of the statewide voter registration system is a top priority of the Secretary of State and is, in no way, under the purview of the Sedgwick County IT officials,” Schwab’s statement said. “There is never a reason to compromise that system. Unfortunately, Mrs. Lehman thought there was.”

Lehman, a Republican, was appointed by former Secretary of State Kris Kobach in 2011 after working in the election office for the prior two years. She served as the top election official in the county during three presidential elections, multiple statewide races and city elections. She oversaw implementation of controversial state voter ID laws, helped expand poll locations and early voting, and handled a massive increase of mail-in ballots during the coronavirus pandemic.

Securing the state’s voter information was a focus of the secretary of state prior to the first case of COVID-19 in Kansas.

The Associated Press reported in February that Schwab had told county election officials that he wanted them to use dedicated tablets, laptops or computers isolated from their counties’ networks to access the state’s voter registration database.

Schwab’s action against the Sedgwick County Election Commissioner comes after the county has been at odds with the secretary of state over the implementation of a law that would make it easier for people to vote.

A 2019 law, proposed and shepherded through the Legislature by Sedgwick County government officials, is designed to allow residents to vote at any polling place in their county, instead of just at their assigned voting precinct. Rules that are being finalized would delay implementation of the law until 2023 — more than 4 1/2 years after it passed.

County explores state law change

Lehman’s announcement came a few hours after the Sedgwick County Commissioners Jim Howell and David Dennis moved to forward legislation to the statehouse that would strip the secretary of state’s authority to hire and fire election commissioners.

Out of the state’s 105 county election officers, only four are selected by the secretary of state. Those four counties — Johnson, Sedgwick, Shawnee and Wyandotte — are the largest in the state by population. The other, smaller counties select their own top election official.

The proposed bill would allow the Sedgwick County Commission or the county clerk to appoint an election commissioner.

“If you believe in local control, this is local control,” Dennis said. “We are very proud here in Sedgwick County. Our election commissioner has been outstanding. We can control it here. The Board of County Commissioners are each elected, we can make the best decision locally.”

The Commission ultimately postponed action on the legislation until next week after Commission Chair Pete Meitzner and Vice Chair Lacey Cruse objected to the timing of the proposal.

“This was sent to all of us at 10 p.m. last night, and while I do agree we should discuss this, making a decision today, I think, would be unwise,” Cruse said Wednesday.

“I understand the urgency of this, but this is a really big deal and to make a decision right now after giving us this at 10 o’clock last night, and then giving us a copy this morning, I don’t believe is the best way to go about this,” she said.

Howell said the bill was a single page and easily understood. It was necessary to move fast so lawmakers can begin the legislative process in Topeka, he said.

“We need to hurry up if there’s any hope of getting this passed this session,” he said.

Howell, who is related to Lehman through his spouse, said he thinks Schwab made the wrong decision.

“I disagree with the Secretary of State’s decision,” Howell said. “I think he had other options, whether that’s a reprimand or something else — but to remove (Lehman) seems like a nuclear option.”

Contributing: Dion Lefler of The Eagle.

This story was originally published January 20, 2021 at 6:32 PM.