Hillsborough elections hopeful goes on attack

By BILL VARIAN, Times Staff Writer
Published August 30, 2007

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TAMPA - A Brandon man who wants to be Hillsborough County supervisor of elections described the current officeholder as "inept, dishonest and political" in announcing his own bid for the job Wednesday.

Lee Nelson, 30, a Democrat who works in information technology, said he plans to restore honesty to the supervisor's office.

He accused current Supervisor Buddy Johnson of losing votes, moving polling places without telling voters and surrounding himself with a partisan "cabal." The announcement was made at the Town 'N Country branch library, a former early voting site, to underscore Johnson's stated intention to eliminate some early voting sites at libraries.

Most of Nelson's accusations were based on stories from the St. Petersburg Times. His announcement was timed to coincide with the August 2004 primary when Johnson's lost 245 votes, which was blamed on a computer problem.

"Buddy does not understand technology," said Nelson, who ran unsuccessfully last year against state Rep. Trey Traviesa. "He is a cook with a degree in religion, not someone with proper training."