Broward Elections Boss Brenda Snipes’ Questionable Campaign Money From Employees
BY BUDDY NEVINS
Property Appraiser Lori Parrish refused campaign contributions from employees when she ran for re-election.
Broward Sheriff Scott Israel has a policy banning political donations.
Yet Broward Supervisor of Elections Brenda Snipes accepted 25 contributions to her re-election worth up to $4,165 from employees at her office. Although it is a small fraction of her total contributions of roughly $49,000, her opponent David Brown said taking such donations is wrong.
Brenda Snipes
“It’s unethical to take money from the people who work for you,” Brown said. “It can lead to allegations of favoritism in the office.”
Parrish agrees.
“It puts undo pressure on employees,” Parrish said.
Snipes camouflaged that the donors worked for her by not listing the employees’ workplace on the campaign financial forms.
Although the law only requires that the occupation of a contributor be listed on state forms, many other candidates list the workplace to offer voters more transparency. Snipes lists many as “administrator,” technically accurate but not in the spirit of full disclosure.
In addition to donating $500 to the re-election as illustrated below, Snipes’ executive assistant Fred Bellis is managing her campaign. Browardbeat.com and RedBroward has written posts about Bellis’ role in her campaign.
Bellis is paid $110,000-a-year. One employee donating to the re-election is paid $42,000 annually.
When challenged about her employees’ donations, Snipes told one endorsement meeting that she didn’t know the names or origins of her contributions, according to Brown. That is either unbelievable or she is more disengaged that critics ever imagined.
Gathering campaign contribution from employees is nothing new for government officials. The most prominent Broward example was former Public Defender Alan Schreiber, whose deputies reportedly asked co-worker to give 1 percent of their salary to his re-election.
Brown has vowed to institute a broad based ethics policy in the Elections Office for the first time. His website states the following:
“On my first day in office I will establish a comprehensive ethics policy to curtail the involvement of Supervisor’s employees and contract attorneys in any elections in which Broward voters cast ballots. I was flabbergasted at the recent disclosure that there is no ethics policy in the Supervisor’s office and that the contract legal counsel has been contributing to and participating in campaigns about which she has been called upon to advise the Supervisor and litigate on behalf of the Supervisor’s office.”
August 19th, 2016 at 11:23 am
Brenda Snipes is a Delta. If she doesn’t know who contributed to her campaign then she has not sent thank you notes to her contributors.
I know dozens of Deltas they are gracious and elegant in their red outfits. A real Delta sends thank yous.
August 19th, 2016 at 11:57 am
Here are just three reasons:
It puts pressure on employees who think they must contribute to stay in their boss’s favor.
It creates dissension in the ranks where those able to donate appear to get special privilege.
If the incumbent loses, all those who appeared on a donation list usually get fired.
Snipes is too blind to see the first one and does not care about the last two.
August 19th, 2016 at 12:04 pm
Lori Parrish is endorsing Brown, so to get a quote from her, that response is expected. Brown would be also expected to disagree with the contributions.
Could it be the contributors actually like working for Brenda, believe her to be the Best person for the job, and show it financially?
Where do employees get left out of the Political process because of……..any reason. As far as the sheriff or Lori, so the spouses contribute, not the employee, there is a way around it I guess.
Rico Petrocelli
Plantation Councilman 2005-2009
August 19th, 2016 at 12:46 pm
just vote her out.
August 19th, 2016 at 1:42 pm
Of course accepting campaign course accepting contrbutions from people who work for you should be an ethical no-no.
But for DECADES non-profits that are LEGALLY BARRED FROM MAKING POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS GET AROUND THE LAW BY HAVING THEIR EMPLOYEES N BOARD MEMBERS CONTRIBUTE TO POLITICIANS WHO FUND THEM OR SET UP CAPTIVE POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEES. ALL THESE PRACTICES ARE MORALLY N ETHICALLY REPREHENSIBLE.
August 19th, 2016 at 2:55 pm
I am confused by this story you printed. Why is it unethical to have employees give a donation to dr. snipes if a person wants to. So its ok to have David Browns wife who is a dentist be able to donate and have her dentist friends also donate is ok and gee even those that have been arrested and serving time in prison that its ok for them also. David Brown has shown himself to be a lowlife loser unlike Dr. Snipes who gas shown herself to be professional
August 19th, 2016 at 3:01 pm
Buddy, I’ve followed you a long time and used to really look forward to, and respect your opinion. Have you not studied Scott Israel’s donor lists this election cycle? Have you not seen the media coverage of the elaborate fundraising gathering hosted in an employee’s home? Yes, Israel may say he has a policy against accepting donations from employees, but what Israel says and does are two different things! Wake up!
August 19th, 2016 at 3:24 pm
Another thing about criminals that David Brown has been connected to. He worked on Sharukh Dhanjis campaign when he was running for sheriff and fled the country when it was discovered that Shahrukh was running a crooked campaign and yep David Brown was running his election so another minus 1 against David Brown
August 19th, 2016 at 3:51 pm
@6 Mr Price REALLY doesn’t see the DIFFERENCE between EMPLOYEES making contributions and friends of a spouse? REALLY?
August 19th, 2016 at 4:08 pm
Interesting story rumored to be coming out about Dave Brown printing palm cards for people and despite being told to list Judge Evans as Kal Evans, David is using a name not on the ballot. Hmm i wonder if this has to do with many snipes supporters supporting Judge Evans.
If true,David Brown will be a the sleaze he was as a campaign guy as SOE.
If true, why Judge Evans? He was the only black Democrat picked by Governor Scott? The man cam up from homelessness to become a lawyer and Judge, why would anyone want to take such an accomplished and grounded person off the bench?
FROM BUDDY:
Kal Evans is a terrific candidate. I’m told he is a very, very good judge.
August 19th, 2016 at 4:54 pm
@10 – Judge Evans does have an opponent, Phyllis Pritcher, and Pritcher is at least as well qualified as Evans. Pritcher has done pro bono (free of charge) work in the defense of Pastor Dwayne Black of Sanctuary Church in Fort Lauderdale who was arrested for feeding the homeless in accordance with his religious beliefs, in addition to a very strong resume which includes over 100 jury or bench trials done personally and thousands more managed by her and done by her law firm. In this race, both candidates are well qualified and the voters will get a good judge regardless of the outcome, but I think Phyllis Pritcher is the better choice here.
I have brought attention to the racial disparities in Broward’s judiciary in my past comments here at BrowardBeat and advocated moving toward a more balanced judiciary, but in this particular contest Phyllis Pritcher is nevertheless the better choice.
Whomever loses the County Court Group 2 race should certainly run again! There are quite a few judicial races in this election in which all of the available choices are weak, and either of these candidates running in one of those races would be far and away the best choice.
~~~~~
Based on my own independent research, I recommend the following picks on August 30th:
US Senator: Alan Grayson
US Congress: Tim Canova
State Attorney: Teresa Elizabeth Williams
Clerk of Circuit Court: Elizabeth Ann McHugh
Sheriff: Scott Israel
Supervisor of Elections: David Brown
County Commissioner: Nan Rich
Circuit Judge 9 – Lea P. Krauss
Circuit Judge 15 – Brian Frederick Greenwald
Circuit Judge 23 – David A. Salomon
Circuit Judge 24 – Michael Lynch
County Judge 2 – Phyllis Pritcher
County Judge 3 – W. Dale Miller
County Judge 7 – Ian Richards
County Judge 8 – Kathleen McCarthy
County Judge 13 – Elizabeth “Betsy” Benson
County Judge 14 – Bradford A. Peterson
County Judge 21 – Deborah Carpenter-Toye
School Board 5 – Nathalie Lynch-Walsh
School Board – Robin Bartleman
Solar Energy Amendment – YES!!!
August 23rd, 2016 at 4:46 pm
It’s great that the employees of Dr. Snipes support her. Not every boss is so excellent to work for. That they freely give of their money and their spare time speaks volumes to her good nature. We don’t buy into the argument that they are trying to curry favor. And it is their right to donate. For people who don’t like this law, then they should lobby to change the law. As long as the contribution limits are not exceeded, then there is no problem here. Don’t deny people their right to donate to their boss. Dr. Snipes is doing a good job. Her staff is professional and knowledgeable. We look forward to her continuing for another term.
August 23rd, 2016 at 6:40 pm
I have just gone back and read all of the articles that this website BrowardBeat.com has written about Dr. Snipes and David Brown. It is obvious to me that the publisher has a bias against this fine African American lady, Dr. Brenda Snipes. Everything is attack, criticize, slanted against negative against Dr. Snipes and then everything about the caucasian man David Brown is slanted in his favor, positive, praising/ one article after the next,,,, this is so dishonest. Now the author/publisher of these articles I am sure will deny that he is in the tank for Brown, but it sure does appear that way, it is apparent. In any case, I am sure that Dr. Snipes will win big, but I just wanted to get this off my chest. Dr. Snipes is so well loved in our community, she is a great source of pride for all of us.
August 26th, 2016 at 2:57 pm
@13 to be clear
1. I support Dr Snipes BUT
2. Do you sanction contributions from her staff
September 10th, 2016 at 9:56 am
A nuisance candidate or something else. Stein in the 20th for Congress. Up to voters to decide. I hope they vote their frustrations in larger numbers than previous elections. OK. Duly filed an action against the Supervisor of Elections yesterday. This web page helps explain. Thanks.
http://www.chasingalceehastings.com/snipes-v-stein.html
September 10th, 2016 at 2:16 pm
#13 I have met Dr Snipes a number of times. And I believe she and a vast majority of her workers do a very good job. In any professional when employees needs to deal with the public, plenty of negative comments will occur. But for this election very few were reported. I have also followed David Brown’s campaign. He unfortunately did not use the numerous voters of Broward County that actually informed him they would be most willing to volunteer for him. He failed to go out there and grasp all the brass rings just laying about.
Not only did the female Black win; she won by a Donald Trump: “HUUUUGEEEEE amount!”