Libertarian PartyA California Libertarian who filed a potentially groundbreaking lawsuit against "touchscreen" voting systems is now waiting to learn whether an appeals court will hear oral arguments in the case. ---
A ruling against DRE voting systems could halt their distribution in California, said Weber, and create a legal precedent that could slow their acceptance around the USA.
Weber, who is Chair of the Desert Area Libertarians (Riverside County Region), filed the lawsuit in August 2001. It named California Secretary of State Bill Jones and Riverside County Registrar of Voters Mischelle Townsend as defendants.
The suit was filed after Riverside County installed Sequoia Voting Systems' AVC Edge System DRE voting machines. ---
By contrast, touchscreen voting systems create "unobservable, unverifiable, non-recountable, untestable, non-public voter tallies," she said.
However, Weber lost the first round when Judge Stephen V. Wilson ruled against her on September 3, 2002.
In his decision, Wilson said "the state's interest in easy, attractive voting machines which might increase voter turnout outweighed the voters' interest in verifiable results," said Weber.
"We are baffled by his decision," she said. "Convenience won out over verifiability." ---