Guest Blogged by John Gideon of VotersUnite.org
I want to take this opportunity to wish all of the readers of “Daily Voting News” a wonderful holiday season. As long as there is voting news over this weekend DVN will continue to publish it. It is with a mixture of sadness and immense pride in my associate of over two years that I post this announcement regarding VotersUnite: “December 23, 2005. After two years of providing the public with accurate information about voting systems and related issues, Ellen Theisen is now working toward election transparency in a different way – by offering the Vote-PAD as an accessible alternative to computerized voting devices. To avoid any potential conflict of interest, Ellen is terminating her association with VotersUnite.Org, effective immediately.” In today’s news the AP has announced that the SoS of CA has warned ES&S about problems with their voting machines and has threatened that proceedings to decertify will begin if the problems are not solved….
NAtional: With Nowhere Left to Hide, Diebold Pulls Out of North Carolina (Note: This is about NC in particular but it is really about the national problem with vendors and many elections officials) LINK
NAtional: An Open Letter To The Election Assistance Commission LINK
AR: Benton County – Quorum Court approves new voting system (ES&S) LINK
AR: White County – Electronic voting coming LINK
CA: UNCOVERED: CA Sec. of State Threatened Decertification for ES&S After Failures in Recent Election! LINK
CA: Errors lead California officials to warn voting-machine company (ES&S) LINK
CA: Regional officials vow confidence in vote machines LINK
CA: Alameda County – Voting Machine Certification Delays Raise Concerns LINK
CA: Humboldt County – Diebold’s state certification pending further tests of company’s voting machines LINK
CA: San Francisco – Instant Runoff Voting was a success in Nov election. LINK
CO: Boulder County – Voters’ help is needed LINK
MN: The piano player brings a message (SoS Mary Kiffmeyer) LINK
MS: Coahoma County – New voting machines arrive (Diebold TSx) LINK
NC: Voting machine maker leaves N.C. LINK
NC: Beaufort County – Public to test new voting machine (ES&S) LINK
NC: Bladen County – Elections board chooses optical scanning devices LINK
NC: Durham County – Diebold drops out of competition LINK
NC: Forsyth County – Optical-scan voting machines to be used in county elections LINK
NC: McDowell County – Voting machine law burdens counties LINK
NC: Moore County – County Faces Voting Machine Quandary LINK
NC: Vance County – Vance approves voting equipment purchase (ES&S and AutoMARK) LINK
OH: Knox County – New voting machines coming in Jan. (MicroVote being replaced by ES&S iVotronic) LINK
TX: Montgomery County – County’s new voting system to be used for first time for early voting and Election Day LINK
VA: Recount law due a tweak LINK
**”Daily Voting News” is meant as a comprehensive listing of reports each day concerning issues related to election and voting news around the country regardless of quality or political slant. Therefore, items listed in “Daily Voting News” may not reflect the opinions of VotersUnite.Org or BradBlog.Com**
I want to take this opportunity to wish all of the readers of “Daily Voting News” a wonderful holiday season. As long as there is voting news over this weekend DVN will continue to publish it. It is with a mixture of sadness and immense pride in my associate of over two years that I post this announcement regarding VotersUnite: “December 23, 2005. After two years of providing the public with accurate information about voting systems and related issues, Ellen Theisen is now working toward election transparency in a different way – by offering the Vote-PAD as an accessible alternative to computerized voting devices. To avoid any potential conflict of interest, Ellen is terminating her association with VotersUnite.Org, effective immediately.” In today’s news the AP has announced that the SoS of CA has warned ES&S about problems with their voting machines and has threatened that proceedings to decertify will begin if the problems are not solved….
"The state should recount the ballots available to be rerun through machines. A too-vague standard in the new law instead allows counting totals from machines unless three judges divine the machines appear to have flawed counts.
Different types of machines have different problems, but the optical scan devices should have a clearer standard for recounts that errs on the side of actually recounting."
Bravo Virginia!! Every state should follow this example, so we can get complete accurate recounts and be sure each vote is counted right.
This is the only way anyone can find out if Sequoia’s machines (or any machine) did not malfunction or was sabatoged ala Florida. Secrecy is the number one thing that must end.
Secrecy of public records, vote counting, and all form of government. By passing laws that take away the secrecy we can have a true functioning democracy.
Andy was right-paper ballots are our best experiment.
Doug E
Doug,
I’m concerned about what is being proposed in Virginia. They’re only suggesting that optical scan ballots be run through the machines again. Since we know that at least some optical scan machines can be hacked via their memory card without leaving a trace, it’s not clear that this represents any real advantage to voters who want an accurate counting. In fact, memory cards could be reprogrammed to ensure the "right" result for the "recount".
If there is enough pressure in VA to stipulate that all recounts must be carried out by hand, that would be of far greater value to those desiring fair and transparent elections.
In fact it is significant that the losing candidate did not ask for a full recount by hand, but rather just that ballots be run through the optical scan machine again. Does he know something we don’t know?
Why was neither candidate looking for a hand recount of all the votes?
I’m for paper & pencil.
Keep up the work on the machines Brad – We have the votes to save America if we can just get them counted.
Exposing these machines for what they really are is America’s only hope.
Catherine-
I’m only talking about the recount law if the votoscope tool is used because obviously, there is alot of problems with the scanners.
But having a proper recount law in place first is the most important thing. Whether its using the scanner or not they need to count the ballots, AND have the audit tools VotoScope to catch the errors. If you have over 900,000 ballots obviously the only best way to count them all is on the machine, but then there’s the problem of tampering etc.
That’s why both methods are actually the only real solution. It takes too long otherwise and is too difficult when you have millions of votes, in an election. Other than to have proper hand counting rules in place as well as use VotoScope audits on the scanners there is no faster or better solution at this time.
Doug