AUGUSTA, Maine — Outgoing GOP Chairman Charlie Webster said Thursday he still believes there is ample evidence of voter irregularity in the Nov. 6 election, but he regrets his reference to black voters.

Earlier this week, Webster said during an interview with WCSH-TV that “dozens of black people” registered to vote in several small Maine towns on Election Day. Those people were unfamiliar to election clerks and others at the polls in those towns, he claimed.

He said at that time he planned to send out thousands of postcards to the addresses of those who recently registered to vote, believing that if they were fraudulent, the postcards would come back as undeliverable by the postal service, thereby providing evidence for his accusations.

But after the controversy that followed his comments, Webster said Thursday he was leaning toward not sending the postcards.

“At this point, I probably am not going to do it,” he said.

“I regret the comment when I said ‘black,’ “ Webster added. “I’m not racist.”

Secretary of State Charlie Summers was unavailable to comment on Webster’s accusations Thursday morning, but Barbara Redmond, the deputy secretary of state, said the office had not looked into them and had no plans to do so.

“Secretary Summers was shocked when he heard what was said,” she said, because were virtually no complaints or concerns had been raised by municipal clerks in the Nov. 6 election.

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