Broward County reconsidering BBV

[alfredo]

Drip drip drip drip

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-celect24sep24,0,6441190.story

Broward considers dumping $17 million in touch voting machines
By Scott Wyman Staff writer
Posted September 24 2003



Less than two years after spending $17 million to replace Broward County's election system, county commissioners expressed growing apprehension Tuesday about electronic voting and decided to rethink what they had done.

Commissioners ordered their staff to explore retrofitting the new touch-screen voting machines to print copies of each ballot or ditching the machinery in favor of paper ballots read by optical scanners. They want the study completed in the next couple of months so they can make any changes before next year's presidential elections.


The ATM-style touch screens replaced the punch-card ballots that were banned in Florida after the 2000 presidential election recount. But critics complain electronic voting could be prone to tampering and also is impossible to recount during a disputed election.

"There is no confidence in the equipment and no confidence that it will work properly," Commissioner John Rodstrom said. "We were rushed into making a decision, and now we need to figure out a better way because there is no way to go back and recount. We need to have integrity in our voting system."

[sonias]

1. Great news

It certainly is important for Broward, one of the hanging chad counties, to care about getting it right. They should absolutely make sure they stay on top of ES&S.

"We need to have integrity in our voting system." You said it.

Sonia

[alfredo]

2. One victory at a time.

We cannot fold under Diebold's pressure tactics.

the hard they push, the hard we become. Keep fighting.

[sunscreened]

3. This is not a victory yet!

It is only to undertake a study. I posted in a thread in LBN that I have already talked to one commissioner's aide. Am waiting on a callback from the Broward Administrator's office - they will be conducting the study.

I told the woman I spoke with that I wanted to know where the $1,000 figure they estimated the cost to provide a printer came from. (HAVA meeting transcripts show they estimated $400-500 plus other so called administrative costs and admitted that was from a newspaper article they had seen!)I also said I would like to participate on the committee. Still waiting on the callback.

There seems to be a lot of commission support for the paper audit trail, but it is going to take some real education of the public for it to get the steam it needs to bring this to reality. I was told the study would take "a couple of months" - so I continue to pound away every chance I get!

[alfredo]

5. Just to get them to consider this it is a small victory

It is just the beginning.

[FlaGranny]

4. Broward and Palm Beach

Counties are probably better informed about the issue than the rest of the country. Randi Rhoades is the reason.