Prince William County's top election official surprised the community when he suddenly announced plans to retire after the election in November less than a year after he took the job.
Prince William County Registrar Eric Olsen said election officials are under attack for trying to do the right thing.
He aired his frustrations at last week's electoral board meeting.
“If this is how the general registrars are treated when they are trying to do the right thing, my God, what happens when something goes wrong?" he asked.
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Unprecedented political tension is exasperating a health concern, Olsen said, and he needs to step away.
“The current environment is, you know, significantly worse than what we've seen in the past," Olsen said.
He said some issues with the previous administration could be fueling that environment.
Decision 2022
Coverage of the 2022 elections
The county's previous registrar, Michele White, has been indicted on three charges alleging corruption by an election official. News4 attempted to contact White Monday and did not hear back, but she has previously denied the allegations.
Olsen said his frustration also stems from a Virginia law that gives local political parties oversight into who serves as election officers. For the first time in decades, each party has balanced representation, Olsen said, but party officials are pushing for more.
“That's interfering with our ability to do the election,” he said. “That's partisan injection into nonpartisan officers who take an oath to go out to the polling place and do their job."
Olsen said there is legitimate fear among local election officials and officers. He said he hasn’t been threatened but colleagues have.
“You know, honestly, doing interviews like these, it's actually more likely, but I think it's important for people to know kind of what's going on," Olsen said.
After Olsen's resignation, the electoral board will appoint a replacement.
The investigation into the previous Prince William County registrar is ongoing.
