Our Tardy Guv

The State Board of Elections finally gave up on Gov. Easley. He was supposed to have appointed a new state Board of Elections -- two Republicans and three Democrats -- well before the terms of the old board ran out in May. Normally, the Guv appoints the State Board, and the State Board turns around and appoints local boards in all 100 counties. Not this year. Can you spell e.x.a.s.p.e.r.a.t.i.n.g? So the old State Board went ahead and made the appointments in the 100 counties in order that new members of county boards could attend a training conference in Chapel Hill on Aug. 18-19.