Guest Blogged by John Gideon of VotersUnite.org and VoteTrustUSA.Org
From Alabama comes a report that ES&S had an internal communications problem and they provide the optical scan machines used in Belforest in their elections. “The company delivered “data packs” — the electronic devices in which the voters’ selections are stored — programmed for absentee voting, causing the two machines to reject the ballots, Johns said. The situation did not affect the voting, as voters filled out their ballots and slipped them in an emergency bin used for occasions such as this one, he said.” Imagine if that had been DREs instead of optical-scan. Just why is there an IrDA port on those Diebold machines? Just a reminder, that this will be the last Daily Voting News until next Tuesday evening. I will be off line until then. Have a great weekend….
NAtional: Why do Diebold’s Touch-Screen Voting Machines Have Built-In Wireless Infrared Data Transfer Ports? LINK
NAtional: The Politics of Honest Voting LINK
NAtional: Election Reforms May Be Missing in 2006 Midterm LINK
AL: Baldwin County – Belforest area votes for zoning LINK
CA: Voter Action Expresses Dissatisfaction with California’s Conditional Certification of Diebold LINK
CA: Man Pleads Not Guilty in Voting Device Case LINK
CA: Butte County – Funding To Be Sought For Touch-Screen Voting Devices LINK
CA: San Joaquin County – Diebold voting devices OK to use in SJ County LINK
CO: Larimer County – No new voting system in Larimer LINK
CO: Larimer County – State law could kill vote centers LINK
FL: Orange plans touch-screens for early voting. Volusia, Osceola and Seminole elections chiefs say they are still unsure what machines to use. LINK
FL: Volusia County – Paper ballots up for council vote LINK
FL: Volusia County – Editorial – Elections integrity at risk LINK
IL: Rock Island County – Potential for confusion exists in Illinois primary LINK
MO: St. Louis – St. Louis among state’s first to use touch-screen voting machines LINK
MS: Clark: New law means more voting machines for counties LINK
MS: Neshoba County – Precinct plan might miss deadline LINK
NM: For this election, it’s still electronic LINK
NY: Editorial – Democracy runs late. New York negligence will cost voters chance for new machines in 2006. LINK
NY: NY scraps updating voting machines, now faces scramble to save federal funds at risk after deadline passes LINK
NY: Casting his ballot for better access LINK
OH: Knox County – Testing under way for county’s new voting machines LINK
PA: Pennsylvania Counties Beating The Voting Machine Clock LINK
PA: Allegheny County – Onorato favors touch-screen voting (Sequoia Advantage) LINK
PA: Allegheny County – Onorato settles on an electronic voting machine LINK
PA: Northampton County – County hopes to escape election law Catch-22 LINK
TN: Hawkins County – Hawkins buying new voting machines for every precinct LINK
TX: Angelina County – Gohmert’s name accidentally left off first-day voters’ ballots LINK
TX: Bexar County – Elections boss says bungled ballot stays that way LINK
TX: Ft. Bend County – County election has impact on city, school votes LINK
UT: Cache County – County changing to electronic voting LINK
WA: Snohomish County – Opinion – Mail voting makes sense for Snohomish County 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**
John, You missed the important news in Ohio; the Libertarians have filed a motion of reinstatement for the recount suit citing the new clause that the procedures were ignored and again mishandled in 2005…
Its gotten interesting there. And Kathy pointed out something very good I read, the whole procedure behind the Diebold TSx all having IR ports is cited in the constitution for illegal grounds.
It should be possible just with the Diebold TSx machines alone, to file an injunction lawsuit in California, Utah and finally like Lynn Landes has done nationwide. Even with the conditional guidelines, Diebold has nothing to "protect" for the IR port manipulation; and other hacks which would make their certification null and void. According to the clause, that alone would disqualify it from being considered "useable" for state election races.
Now we force the California committee to issue subpoenas, and we will really get under that hood for the real deal this time.
Doug E.
The legal structure of our congress does not support a multi-party system, and is designed for a two party system. It is a winner take all affair.
This is not good, but it is reality.
Under the law of the House and Senate, "the Senate divides its tasks among 20 committees, 68 subcommittees, and 4 joint committees" … "The chair of each committee and a majority of its members represent the majority party. The chair primarily controls a committee’s business" (link here).
Take an example where republicans win 30 seats, independents win 28 seats, greens win 29 seats, and democrats win 13 seats. We can now easily see that this will not work well.
The republicans with 30 seats end up as the majority party. Remember that the majority party and the majority are not the same thing in our system. The majority, in this example, is 70 votes (greens, indys, and dems), but the majority party is the republicans because they got those 30 seats.
Therefore, they get the committee chair on each and every committee, and they get the majority number of members in each and every committee of congress.
So, in our system, the majority of seats would be governed by the minority republican 30 seats.
Anyone see any way to improve this?
I do. The polls show that the body politic favors democrats in the upcoming election, and voting democrats into the majority is the public will.
We would have an easier time prevailing upon them to change the rules.
It should be pro rata based upon percentage of seats.
Committees should be distributed to all parties based upon percentage of seats in a pro rata configuration.
Otherwise, when independents, greens, democrats, and other parties fight each other the republicans always remain the majority party and therefore always control the congress.
So …
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Click Here and Support Clint Curtis
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Doug #1
You said "the whole procedure behind the Diebold TSx all having IR ports is cited in the constitution for illegal grounds".
What???????
Brad: Someone wrote an article about election fraud on rense.com and mentioned you and your work several times. Congrats. You’re a one-man wrecking crew.
Dredd You still do not understand how the system really works. Once instant rankoff voting becomes law, then maybe you will. It doesn’t matter how many committees there are which way once you have full proportional representation…..and the InfraRed Ports are yet another step to proving the machine’s un-usability.
Doug E.
Doug #5
Your posts, for some reason, become more and more distorted on some issues about which you have no mental acumen.
It would be better if you just backed off and became more aware of what you think you are saying and what you are actually saying.
Way before you showed up here, and way before you ran into trouble with Jim March, and way before Brad suggested you listen to me on some issues, we here took pride in the careful construction of our posts.
When we link we link to relevant and intellectually honest support. You have given up the quality of posting BRAD BLOG is famous for.
I am only asking that you get back up to the quality of posts old timers here at Brad Blog are noted for.
Unless you do not want to be part of that.