WASHINGTON – U.S. Election Assistance Commissioners (EAC) Paul DeGregorio and Ray Martinez III today were sworn in today as chairman and vice chairman of the agency for 2006.

DeGregorio, former director of elections for St. Louis County, Missouri, was sworn in as chairman by Washington Secretary of State Sam Reed, who is also the president of the National Association of Secretaries of State. Martinez was sworn in as vice chairman by Peggy Nighswonger, Wyoming’s state elections director and chair of EAC’s Standards Board.

“The Election Assistance Commission has come a long way in a short period of time thanks to great leadership and a lot of hard work,” said DeGregorio. “I intend to build upon this solid foundation and draw upon my experience as an elections official to make sure the nation is prepared for the 2006 elections.

“Under the Help America Vote Act of 2002, many significant changes have been made to the way we conduct elections, such as upgrading voting equipment, implementing provisional voting and developing statewide voter registration lists,” said Martinez. “I stand ready to work with election administrators and advocates alike to continue to improve the process of election administration – always keeping in mind the best interests of the American public.”

Prior to his appointment to the EAC and confirmation by the US Senate in December 2003, DeGregorio was executive vice president and chief operating officer of the International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES), a leading institution involved in the promotion of democracy worldwide. In 2001, DeGregorio was appointed by then-Secretary of State Matt Blunt to serves as co-Chair of the Missouri Commission on Election Reform. From 1985 to 1993, he was director of elections for St. Louis County, Missouri’s largest jurisdiction. DeGregorio was also a special assistant in President Ronald Reagan’s administration and a former assistant to John Ashcroft during his first term as Missouri attorney general.
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Martinez, a native of Alice, Texas, has devoted almost his entire career to public service. Prior to his appointment to EAC, Martinez ran a solo law practice in Austin focused on legislative and regulatory matters with a client base consisting primarily of county governments. Prior to starting his own law practice, Martinez worked for President Bill Clinton in the White House as deputy assistant for intergovernmental affairs, and also served as regional director for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in Dallas. In 1993, Martinez was appointed White House liaison to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and later as special assistant to the President in the White House Office of Political Affairs. Martinez began his career in public service working in the Texas Legislature, first as a legislative aide to State Representative Sylvester Turner (D-Houston) and later as a legislative liaison in the Texas attorney general’s office.

EAC is an independent bipartisan commission created by the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA). It is charged with administering payments to states and developing guidance to meet HAVA requirements, implementing election administration improvements, adopting voluntary voting system guidelines, certifying voting systems and serving as a national clearinghouse and resource of information regarding election administration.

The four EAC commissioners are Paul DeGregorio, chairman; Ray Martinez III, vice chairman; Donetta Davidson and Gracia Hillman.