Guest Blogged by John Gideon
Proving that local TV News stations actually can serve their viewers by actually investigating stuff that matters, and then reporting on it, Indianapolis’ WISH-TV 8 does it again. In yet another report on local election problems, WISH-TV has been keeping their viewers informed with a series of stories on voting issues.
“Well, once again, a Voting Machine Company is breaking Indiana law and violating county contracts,” the story by reporter Pam Elliot began.
Last night, WISH TV 8 reported on the failure of Elections Systems & Software (ES&S) to perform up to their contract with their customers. That contract: to provide ballots to voters and touch-screen voting equipment that actually works.
Johnson County Indiana was supposed to have their ES&S iVotronic DRE (touch-screen) machines set-up and in use for “absentee voting”. However, contrary to their contract and, as WISH TV reports, in violation of state law, ES&S has failed to program the counties “smart cards” with ballot definitions. Which means the voting machines are of no use.
Also missing are printed paper ballots for Johnson County and nearly two-dozen other counties across the state. Which means that in order for these counties to conduct “absentee voting” they will have to copy paper ballots and provide those to the voters.
But perhaps more troubling, as reported by the WISH-TV 8 “I Team” (Investigative Team):
I-Team 8 asked Jill Jackson whether it was time to rethink the county’s choice of vendor. “I am certain that the county commissioners are going to want to revisit this, probably along with a lot of other counties in the state of Indiana,” she replied.
And what does the Secretary of State have to say about this situation? He had the same reaction as many who have misinformed their counties into buying voting systems that were not really necessary…
And what does ES&S have to say about all of this? Why, they blamed the counties, of course.
But WISH TV didn’t let ’em get away with that. They concluded their report with just the facts m’am:
— WISH TV’s written report is here…
— WISH TV’s video report is here…
It seems ES&S has a long and proud history of failing the voters of Indiana. Back in late 2004, just two weeks after the Presidential Election, The BRAD BLOG ran a story highlighting a series of reports from WISH TV filed back in April of 2004. Here’s some of our coverage at the time…
In one of the reports, the Marion County Clerk Doris Anne Sadler is quoted as saying that ES&S “has willfully and purposely deceived me and the Marion County election board…[W]ith complete disregard for business ethics and with intent to deceive, [ES&S] deliberately worked to keep their actions from the Marion County election board and its employees.”
The county’s election board vice chair added, “Throughout the process, there have been missteps and outright fabrications and mistruths given to us by the vendor implementing the election process.”
“Outright fabrications and mistruths” from ES&S?! Knock us over with a feather. See our November ’04 story for more details and links to the excellent WISH TV video reports from April.
Feel free to write a thank you note to reporter Pam Elliot for knowing what important news looks like and then caring enough to actually report on it.
Other than that — sssshhhh — don’t tell anyone! It’s better if nobody learns about this stuff.
(Additional snark for this story provided by Brad)
Every single voting machine using battery operated memory cards should be decertified, destroyed, buried in a landfill and pissed on. The government officials that bought them should be thrown out of office for gross negligence, and the person who approved of this design should be prosecuted for being a dumbass.
Indiana has 92 counties, California has 58, and Alaska has 27.
These small states with large numbers of counties have to purchase more electronic voting machines than states as much as ten times their size.
And as BVAC #1 suggests, they are buying junk.
As I pointed out in the previous ES&S story, the taxpayers are being swindled to the tune of $50,000 for replacement memory cards alone. Not to mention the inflated cost of the piece of shit voting machines in the first place.
The engineers and programmers of these devices should be forced to testify to a congressional committee about the decisions they made and why. Democracy should not rest on a lithium battery.
but…mckinney poked a cop with her cellphone!
It’s just about time to roll-out a nationwide POP protest.
(PLAIN-OLD PAPER)
Legal elections, NOW.
John,
TV channel WTAE in Pittsburgh just reported on the 5 o’clock news that Allegheny County has switched to machines from ES & S because the Sequoia machines could not be certified for the May primary.
Talk about out of the frying pan into the fire! We tried to tell Chief Executive Dan Onorato that there were problems with each of this companies, but all he can see is the 12 million in federal money that he must spend or lose. Personally, I would have liked them to contract with AccuPoll to place one machine in each polling place to meet the HAVA requirements and have them supply the rest by November. I sent an email to Onorato and told him he should visit THE BRAD BLOG and read your reporting.
The Repugs today are trying to limit any 527’s because MoveOn was so successful.
The Repugs control the voting machine companies.
The Repugs control the State Election folks who turn a blind eye/ear to the reality of FRAUD with machines.
WHAT CAN PEOPLE DO?
Would you suggest that we complete paper ballots? I have done that for the last two big elections, however, I am not sure that they were counted?
If the Repugs steal another election – will the people – then – get it?
How can we stop this FRAUD before Nov. ’06?
The purpose of these electonic voting machines was to facilitate fraudulent voting results. If the American people allow electonic voting machines then it will prove that they have shit for brains and are virtual eunuchs and they deserve a Fascist government. I am convinced that most Americans are spineless, shit for brains cretins, cowards and eunuchs and they will indeed get what they deserve, which is a Fascist government within their lifetimes.
The government officials should also be pissed on!
Brad, John Gideon..
Any explanation as to why no government officials have been proverbially pissed on yet?
If ever there was a case for Eminent Domain (Boo! Hiss!), This would be IT. No part of our election systems should belong to any private company, just like our port security shouldn’t be privatized, regardless or the nationality of the corporation. Our votes can not be the private property of a corporation.
Problem is, If their systems worked, ED might be worth pursuing, but this stuff that Diebold, ES&S and Sequoia … are selling, because of it’s goal to be proprietary (and needlessly complicated), lock election officials into buying hokie hardware and iffy software.
How many readers of this blog (hat’s off to Brad & Co) could construct a ballot in a spread sheet and print a summary using office software? Just Asking.
Open, clear, publicly owned software, portable onto all manner of platforms with a voter-verified, voter carried paper ballot. The actual machines can be whatever the counties want to purchase, from Laptops to touchscreen Point-Of-Purchase displays. The machine retains the access advantages, but it’s just a printer in the booth, the Tabulator scans the summary’s barcode for reporting but the ballot is clearly printed, checked by the voter and locked in reserve for recount and history researchers.
But that’s for after, we’ve got to stop them now.
It’s encouraging to see local news tackling this. The more trumpets the better!
It’s hard to disprove Aeon and Matt, What we can do is keep up the pressure on decertifying and debunking the thug’s mousetrap. Support BradBlog and that Leon guy down in Florida, John Conyers and the bunch of other people that have been tenacious on this vital issue.
Election rigging is only one of the crimes that BushCheney&Co are guilty of. They need to be confronted on all fronts, each facet the concerted work of dedicated people, like swarms of bees.
Let’s hope that at the end of all this, we still have elections and that maybe we care a bit about who we elect. Maybe?
Peace
CV
Marian County includes Indianapolis.
IS it possible to have electronic voting machines that are honest & cannot be hacked?