Yesterday, the California Secretary of State released a letter [PDF] to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) and a report of their findings with regards to the problem discovered in early December, in Humboldt Co., with disappearing ballots on the Diebold GEMS v. 1.18.19 voting system.

The letter actually challenges the EAC to take action in "requiring that, for every voting system certified by the EAC, the voting system vendor report any and all flaws and problems with the system to the EAC and to the elections officials in the states where the system is used when such flaws are discovered." And Secretary Bowen has taken the action herself by sponsoring legislation in California that will do what she has challenged the EAC to do.

The report is amazing in that it reveals why our voting systems are failing. The issues with the GEMS software go much deeper than just the fact that the system may lose votes. The state also found readily apparent violations of the federal voting system standards. These violations seem to have been ignored by federal test labs, by the National Assoc. of State Election Directors (NASED), and their consultants who qualified the voting system for use, and by-passed CA Secretaries of State and their consultants.

The big question is, will the EAC, staffed by people who were involved in the original NASED "rubber-stamp" of GEMS 1.18.19, take any action? Will they post the letter and report it in their "clearinghouse?" We certainly hope so. The present CA Secretary of State, Debra Bowen, and her staff deserve congratulations and appreciation for a job well done so far. It will be interesting to hear what follow-up actions will now be taken on the federal and state levels....

• National: The Perils of Internet Voting
  http://votingmatters.wor...rils-of-internet-voting/
• CA: Letter to Election Assistance Commission Chairwoman Gineen Beach "“ March 2, 2009
  http://www.sos.ca.gov/el...tter-to-eac-03-02-09.pdf
• CA: California Secretary of State Debra Bowen's Report to the Election Assistance Commission Concerning Errors and Deficiencies in Diebold/Premier GEMS Version 1.18.19
  http://www.sos.ca.gov/el...port-to-eac-03-02-09.pdf
• CA: Los Angeles - City Forgets to Send Secretary of State her Vote-By-Mail Ballot?
  http://laist.com/2009/03...ets_to_fails_to_send.php
• CA: Riverside County - Independent audit: County elections flawed, but fair
  http://www.mydesert.com/...90303/NEWS0301/903030318
• CA: San Benito County - County considers extra voting machine after delays
  http://hollisterfreelanc...ing-machine-after-delays
• CO: Coffman loses bid to block ethics hearing
  http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_11826358
• MN: Coleman camp asks that election result be 'set aside'
  http://www.startribune.c...O:DW3ckUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUUZ
• MN: Coleman Continues To Cast Doubt On Election Result
  http://tpmdc.talkingpoin...t-on-election-result.php
• MN: Franken Lawyers To Court: Throwing Out The Election Is Not A Legal Option
  http://tpmdc.talkingpoin...s-not-a-legal-option.php
• MO: Boone County's vote counting system is a model for other governments
  http://www.columbiamisso...03/03/elections-dummies/
• MS: Voter ID bills die in Mississippi Legislature
  http://www.wdam.com/Global/story.asp?S=9940207
• SC: Much ado about photo ID
  http://blogs.thestate.co...o-id-column-version.html
• TN: Bill will prevent vote manipulation
  http://www.tennessean.co...OPINION01/903030318/1008
• TN: Bill would require photo ID to vote
  http://www.jacksonsun.co...20090303/NEWS01/90303015
• UT: Identification may become required to vote in Utah
  http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/71501
• Germany: German Court Rules E-Voting Unconstitutional
  http://www.dw-world.de/d...ticle/0,,4069101,00.html
• Germany: German court rules against voting machines
  http://www.iht.com/artic...many-Voting-Machines.php
• Germany: Voting machines outlawed in Germany
  http://www.itexaminer.co...outlawed-in-germany.aspx

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Article Categories: Diebold/Premier, Election Irregularities, Daily Voting News, Debra Bowen, California, Voting System Certification, Election 2008, EAC, Humboldt County