Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News Friday 9/30/05

[Wilms]

All members welcome and encouraged to participate.

Please post Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News on this thread.

If you can:

1. Post stories and announcements you find on the web.

2. Post stories using the "Election Fraud and Reform News Sources" listed here:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x371233

3. Re-post stories and announcements you find on DU, providing a link to the original thread with thanks to the Original Poster, too.

4. Start a discussion thread by re-posting a story you see on this thread.


If you want to know how post "News Banners" or other images, go here:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=203&topic_id=371233#371391

Link to previous Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x395236


Please "Recommend" for the Greatest Page (it's the link just below).

[Wilms]

1. New Mexico lawsuit update

Thanks to garybeck.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x395408

[Wilms]

2. CA: Voting machines near certification, but paper ballots to be used Nov.

Voting machines near certification, but paper ballots to be used Nov. 8

By Roman Gokhman

San Joaquin News Service

Wednesday, Sep 28, 2005

Twelve paper jams and 21 screen freezes are the reasons why voters will once again use paper ballots during the Nov. 8 election.

Despite county efforts to get its 96 electronic-voting machines certified this summer, several glitches - that have reportedly been fixed but still need certification - will keep the machines in storage until at least next spring, San Joaquin County Registrar of Voters Deborah Hench said.

The county bought 96 TSX Voting System machines from manufacturer Diebold in 2002. They were used, successfully, for the first time in the March 2004 primary election. But the following month, the Secretary of State's Office decertified all e-voting machines in the state and mandated that that all machines have a paper audit trail.

The audit trail is a print-out that a voter looks at to make sure everything is OK, but the voter does not take the form; it is kept as information for future audits.

snip/more

http://www.lodinews.com/articles/2005/09/28/news/7_voting_050928.txt

[Wilms]

3. NJ: Warren Co. freeholders check out yet another new voting machine

Warren Co. freeholders check out yet another new voting machine

Thursday, September 29, 2005

By SARA LEITCH
The Express-Times

WHITE TWP. -- Warren County freeholders on Wednesday examined an electronic voting machine very different from the model the county board of elections recommended as its choice.

The machine, made by Albany, N.Y.-based Liberty Election Systems, doesn't use computer software to record votes. Instead, as company president Robert Witko explained, it works more like an electronic calculator.

"This machine is not PC driven," Witko said. "It's not connected to the Internet, there's no smart card."

Voters who use the machine find a paper ballot printed with races and candidates' names, as they would on a lever voting machine. Instead of moving little arrows, they push squares to select candidates, lighting up blue lights beneath the ballot. A ballot module recorded beforehand and inserted in the back of the machine records their selections and is removed when polls close so votes can be counted.

snip/more

http://www.nj.com/news/expresstimes/nj/index.ssf?/base/news-1/11279848016490.xml&coll=2

[Wilms]

4. NY: Voting machine options displayed

09/29/05

Voting machine options displayed

By Tom Grace

Cooperstown News Bureau

COOPERSTOWN — A hundred or more people came to Cooperstown on Wednesday afternoon to see a demonstration of voting machines organized by the county’s Board of Elections.

Machines from Sequoia Voting Systems, Elections Systems and Software, and LibertyVote were set up in the county office building and adjacent courthouse. Each company had its own room, and groups of people went from one to the next, listening to the vendors.

Sequoia and ESS each had two types of machines on display — optical scanners that read the paper ballots voters mark, and computerized devices called direct recording electronic machines, or DREs. Liberty, a firm based in the Netherlands and represented in the state by Voting Machine Service Center Inc. of Gerry, had a DRE.


All the DREs cost between $8,000 and $9,000 apiece. ESS’s scanner sells for about $5,000 and Sequoia’s for about $6,500, but both must be outfitted with other equipment to comply with federal standards for handicapped accessibility. This device, popularly known as an AutoMark, costs about $5,000, according to vendors.

snip/more

http://www.thedailystar.com/news/stories/2005/09/29/voting3.html

[Wilms]

5. WI: Elections Board mulls action against private contractor

Posted on Wed, Sep. 28, 2005

Elections Board mulls action against private contractor

RYAN J. FOLEY

Associated Press

MADISON, Wis. - The state Elections Board is considering penalties against a contractor for delays that will cause Wisconsin to miss a federal mandate for creating a voter registration system.

The board met in closed session Wednesday to consider its options to force private contractor Accenture LLP to speed up the development of software needed for the new statewide system.

Wisconsin is the first state to acknowledge it will miss the Jan. 1 federal deadline for the system. As many as one-third of the states are expected to follow suit, said Doug Chapin, executive director of Electionline.org, a nonpartisan group tracking the process.

Wisconsin has a $13.9 million contract with Accenture to create the system, which is required under the federal Help America Vote Act. The company has missed some deadlines in the contract and its software has been plagued by errors.

snip/more

http://www.duluthsuperior.com/mld/duluthsuperior/news/politics/12765451.htm

[Wilms]

6. WTF?: '04 election most accurate of modern times, study finds

WASHINGTON

'04 election most accurate of modern times, study finds

By THOMAS HARGROVE

Scripps Howard News Service
September 27, 2005

WASHINGTON - The 2004 national elections were the most accurate of modern times with nearly 99 percent of all ballots cast registering a vote for president, according to a new study by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.

The panel - created by Congress to correct the electoral shortcomings uncovered in Florida five years ago - reported Tuesday that 1,160,985 ballots cast Nov. 2 did not tally a presidential vote, about 1.02 percent of all eligible ballots.

"This will assist us in making certain that every vote is counted fairly and accurately," said Commission Chairwoman Gracia Hillman.

The finding marks a considerable improvement over the 2000 elections, when at least 1.6 million ballots, or about 2 percent of the vote, didn't register for president, according to a Scripps Howard News Service study of that election.

snip/more

http://www.knoxstudio.com/shns/story.cfm?pk=ELECTION-09-27-05&cat=WW


EAC Report

http://eac.gov/election_survey_2004/intro.htm

[Wilms]

7. EAC finds education, income key to turnout

EAC finds education, income key to turnout

WASHINGTON, Sept. 27 (UPI) -- The U.S. Election Assistance Commission said Tuesday income and education level proved to be key factors in voter turnout for the 2004 election.

The EAC surveyed election offices in all U.S states and territories to compile its data on the 2004 election. The commission, in a release, officially set the 2004 election turnout at 60.7 percent of the U.S. voting age population.

The study said 121,862,353 ballots were counted in the 2004 election. Because the race for president was so highly contested the drop-off rate -- those who voted for other races but left the presidential line unvoted -- was 1.02 percent, which was the lowest figure since World War II.

The EAC said its analysis supported academic findings voting jurisdictions with lower education and income tend to have a lower voter turnout, higher number of overvotes or undervotes and a great percentage of inadequately staffed polling places. The data can be used to help even out any inequities.

snip/more

http://www.sciencedaily.com/upi/?feed=TopNews&article=UPI-1-20050927-14134600-bc-us-elections.xml

[Wilms]

8. Jersey: Voting rights sought for parolees, others

Voting rights sought for parolees, others

State: Denial already written into constitution

Published in the Asbury Park Press 09/28/05

BY TOM BALDWIN
GANNETT STATE BUREAU

MORRISTOWN — Lawyers seeking to win voting rights for people on probation or parole went before a state appeals court panel Tuesday, saying the issue discriminates against minorities who dominate the prison population.

Countering their arguments was state Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey Burstein, who said, "Here we have a state statute that makes no distinction and was created without discriminatory intent."

But law professor Frank Askin of Rutgers University in Newark said the case "has a direct impact on the right to vote."

Askin and other lawyers said disenfranchising people on parole and probation denies the state constitution's guarantee of equal protections.

snip/more

http://www.sciencedaily.com/upi/?feed=TopNews&article=UPI-1-20050927-14134600-bc-us-elections.xml

[Wilms]

9. EAC: EAC Releases 2004 Election Day Survey Results

For Immediate Release

Contact: Jeannie Layson

September 27, 2005

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) today released the 2004 Election Day Survey, the largest and most comprehensive survey on election administration ever conducted by a U.S. governmental organization. The survey is available at www.eac.gov.

"The 2004 Election Day Survey tells us a great deal about voting and elections practices throughout the country," said EAC Chair Gracia Hillman. "The survey provides critical statistics on voter registration and turnout, voting equipment and locations, and other information about the voting process. All of this will assist us in making certain that every vote is counted fairly and accurately.

"EAC thanks the thousands of election officials throughout the country who provided data for this survey. We sincerely appreciate their input and cooperation."

Key 2004 Election Facts (As reported by the states)

60.7 percent voter turnout rate (based on citizen voting age population)

96.9 percent of absentee ballots were counted

64.5 percent of provisional ballots were counted

Lowest presidential drop-off rate since World War II at 1.02 percent

snip/more

http://eac.gov/news_092705.asp

[Wilms]

10. CA:November election results vulnerable to tampering

Thursday, September 29, 2005

November election results vulnerable to tampering

California Secretary of State Bruce McPherson and investigators may have lots to do to ensure voting integrity.

By Tom Elias

Skeptics began warning that vote counting might not be reliable in some parts of California this fall almost as soon as it became clear that plenty of counties will be using electronic voting machines made by Diebold Election Systems in the November special election.

Never mind that no one has ever proved a single electronic vote was ever stolen or hacked anywhere in America.

Because many machines in use this fall lack voter-verified paper trails and have not been certified by Secretary of State Bruce McPherson for use in next year's primary election, citizen groups like the California Election Protection Coalition warn any results this fall will be unreliable, no matter what county officials may say.

That would be especially true if there were any repeats of what happened in July in San Diego, where poll workers took home optical scan voting machines with removable memory cards for several days prior to that city's mayoral primary election. Whatever is on those memory cards at the end of Election Day gets loaded into a county's central vote-counting computer. It could have been a case of garbage in, garbage out.

snip/more

http://www.dailybreeze.com/opinion/articles/1861602.html

[Wilms]

11. Not sure where: County Discovers BI (Optical) Ballot Counting Mistake

County Discovers BI Ballot Counting Mistake

By Rachel Pritchett

Kitsap Sun

September 29, 2005

Bainbridge Island

snip

A jam in a Kitsap County ballot-counting machine on primary election day Sept. 20 caused an miscount of 203 ballots too many, all from Bainbridge Island, according to county Auditor Karen Flynn.

The counting error was discovered during a ballot reconciliation process.

"We had more ballots counted than we had cast," Flynn said Wednesday.

snip

The machine, called an optical scan ballot tabulator, is one of three at Givens Community Center. A stack of ballots is placed in a hopper on the machine and the ballots are fed through, one at a time. Two stuck together or one going in crooked is enough to cause a jam, Flynn said.

It's an occasional problem, apparently.

snip/more

http://www.votersunite.org/article.asp?id=6084

[Wilms]

12. Equal Vote: Young and Overton on Voter ID

Equal Vote

Thursday, September 29

Young and Overton on Voter ID

Andrew Young has this letter to the editor in today's N.Y. Times, and Professor Spencer Overton has this op-ed published in Roll Call. Both address the voter ID issue. Professor Overton was a member of the Carter-Baker Commission, who dissented on the requirement that voters show "REAL ID" in order to vote. Mr. Young supported the voter ID requirement and apparently was instrumental behind the scenes in persuading some of the other commissioners to support this requirement. (On that point, see this post from Professor Overton.)

Mr. Young's letter to the editor is puzzling. He attempts to justify his support for the requirement that all voters show a state-issued "REAL ID" on the ground that "there is already a photo ID requirement in federal law: the new Real ID requirement imposed by Congress as part of homeland security policy." This is misleading. There is no federal law that requires that photo ID be presented in order to vote. HAVA requires only that first time voters who registered by mail present one of several documents, including but not limited to voter ID. The acceptable documents include things like utility bills that those who don't drive are likely to have. The "REAL ID" law passed by Congress requires that states verify certain information before driver's licenses are issued. It doesn't require that all voters be issued ID, and doesn't make state-issued photo ID more available. To the contrary, it makes it marginally more difficult to obtain.

Mr. Young suggests that state-issued photo ID should be made "widely available, easily accessible and free of cost." I agree that this is essential ... if photo ID is required. But this deftly avoids the primary question of whether photo ID should be required at all. Moreover, if states are responsible for providing the mandated photo ID, how are we going to ensure that states really do this in good faith. Can we really trust partisan Secretaries of State to go out of their way to register new voters? And even if we can, is it plausible to expect state legislative bodies to appropriate the monies needed to make this happen? Mr. Young's arguments are particularly ironic in light of the EAC's 2004 election day survey, which reveal large disparities in our election system based on race, language, and class. The proposal he endorses would make things worse rather than better, by imposing an additional barrier on those whose votes are already disproportionately diminished. One can only conclude that Mr. Young failed to do his homework before being coaxed into appearing before the Carter-Baker Commission to assure them that the "REAL ID" proposal really isn't the new poll tax.

In contrast to Mr. Young, Mr. Overton is in command of his facts and cogent in his arguments. He takes a much more realistic approach to the ID issue, one that takes account of both existing law and the evidence. Overton notes that the "REAL ID" proposal is " more exclusionary than any state ID law -- including Georgia's." Moreover, Young and the Carter-Baker Commission ignore the indirect costs of voter ID. As Overton points out: "A certified copy of a birth certificate costs from $10 to $45 depending on the state, a passport costs $85 and certified naturalization papers cost $19.95. About 12 percent of voting-age Americans currently lack a driver's license, and the hassle and cost of the supporting documents required under the Real ID law will only increase these numbers. "

snip/more

http://moritzlaw.osu.edu/blogs/tokaji/2005/09/young-and-overton-on-voter-id.html

[Wilms]

13. Race, Language, Class, and Voting

Equal Vote

Wednesday, September 28

Race, Language, Class, and Voting

One of the most striking aspects of the 2004 Election Day Survey released yesterday are the substantial disparities based on race, language, and class in a wide range of areas. As set forth in the report's executive summary:

Jurisdictions with low education and income, compared with other jurisdictions, tend to report more inactive voter registration, lower voter turnout, higher number of provisional ballots cast, higher drop-off and associated components of overvotes and undervotes, lower average number of poll workers per polling place, and greater percentage of inadequately staffed polling places. While these patterns present a challenge to election administrators, they are consistent with a large body of academic literature that equates higher levels of civic participation to higher levels of education and income.

To take just one example, African American jurisdictions report a greater percentage of polling places with inadequate numbers of poll workers. Conversely, jurisdictions with higher income and education levels report a higher average number of poll workers.

The report also discusses disparities affecting places covered by section 203 of the Voting Rights Act, which applies to jurisdictions with a substantial number or percentage of non-English proficient residents:

Jurisdictions covered by the Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act tended to report more inactive voter registration, lower voter turnout, fewer returned absentee ballots, and much greater numbers of provisional ballots cast. These patterns were often similar to those found among predominantly Hispanic and predominantly non-Hispanic Native American jurisdictions. These findings appear to be consistent with voters within these jurisdictions having difficulty in navigating the electoral process in a language that is not their native tongue.

snip/more

http://moritzlaw.osu.edu/blogs/tokaji/2005/09/race-language-class-and-voting.html

[Wilms]

14. Equal Vote: Nonpartisan Election Administration

Equal Vote

Monday, September 26, 2005

Nonpartisan Election Administration

My colleague Ned Foley has this op-ed from today's Columbus Dispatch on the issue of partisanship in the administration of elections. This was the subject of a recent conference held at the Moritz College of Law, a webcast of which is now available here.

Because we are after all in Columbus, Professor Foley compares our present election system to a football game, in which one side's coaching staff also referees. This most recently because an issue in Ohio during the 2004 election, when Secretary of State Ken Blackwell was accused of making decisions to benefit his own party. Although Professor Foley favors nonpartisan election administration, he supports the proposed Reform Ohio Now amendment (Issue 5) that would create a bipartisan structure. Specifically, it would transfer the Secretary of State's election responsibilities to a bipartisan board, composed of four Democrats, four Republicans, and a ninth member appointed by unanimous vote of the state supreme court. It would also create a chief administrator chosen by the board to run things on a day-to-day basis.

snip/more/links

http://moritzlaw.osu.edu/blogs/tokaji/2005/09/nonpartisan-election-administration.html

[Wilms]

15. Sensenbrenner Announces Extensive Hearings on Voting Rights Act Extension

Contact: Jeff Lungren or Terry Shawn, 202-225-2492, both of the House Committee on the Judiciary, Web: http://judiciary.house.gov

WASHINGTON, Sept. 23 /U.S. Newswire/ -- House Judiciary Committee Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr. (R-Wis.) today announced an extensive and detailed Committee examination of the Voting Rights Act will begin later this year, including plans for more than a half-dozen Committee hearings.

Chairman Sensenbrenner stated, "The Voting Rights Act has brought voting rights to millions of Americans previously denied their right to vote. While some sections of the law will not expire until 2007, I strongly believe now is the time for the Judiciary Committee to begin a thorough examination to reauthorize this critical legislation. Therefore, after extensive consultations with Ranking Member Conyers, Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Watt, Constitution Subcommittee Chairman Chabot, Constitution Subcommittee Ranking Member Nadler, and many others, the Judiciary Committee will commence oversight hearings later this fall. This bipartisan effort should educate Members about the complex nuances of the Voting Rights Act and build a solid legislative record towards our goal of a long-term Voting Rights Act extension."

The following topics will be among the issues discussed during these hearings:

-- The history of the Voting Rights Act, including the 1970, 1975, 1982, and 1992 amendments.

-- Section 5's preclearance procedures and retrogression standard as interpreted by the U.S. Supreme Court.

-- Bilingual election assistance for language minorities under the Voting Rights Act.

-- The structure and operation of Section 4: trigger and bailout.

-- Litigation, compliance and enforcement of the Voting Rights Act.

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=53958

Thanks to CatholicEdHead:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2113248

[FogerRox]

16. Prosecutor seeks delay in vote case, The Roanoke Times

Thursday, September 29, 2005

Prosecutor seeks delay in vote case

The Appalachia vote-buying case isn't ready for a special grand jury, the prosecutor said.


By Laurence Hammack
 
The Roanoke Times


A special prosecutor said Wednesday he needs more time to assess allegations that some votes were bought and others were stolen in last year's Appalachia town elections.

"On a scale of 1 to 100, we're like a 1? in terms of where we need to be," Tim McAfee said of an investigation that is already more than a year old.

Last week, the Norton attorney was appointed by Wise County Circuit Judge Tammy McElyea to oversee a special grand jury that had been scheduled to begin hearing testimony Monday about complaints of election fraud in the May 4, 2004, race for three seats on Appalachia Town Council.

After meeting with investigators from the Virginia State Police and the county sheriff's office, McAfee decided to postpone the proceeding.
Rest of Article--
http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/wb/xp-34095

[FogerRox]

17. USAID Official Cites U.S. Support for Democracy in Latin America

28 September 2005

USAID Official Cites U.S. Support for Democracy in Latin America

But Franco warns against corruption, inequality, weak institutions

Latin America has made great progress toward democratic consolidation over the last 25 years, but corruption, weak public institutions and inequality and poverty undermine this progress, says Adolfo A. Franco, assistant administrator for Latin America and the Caribbean at the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

In his September 28 testimony before the House International Relations Committee Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, Franco outlined the challenges to democracy in Latin America and explained how USAID is working to address these challenges in such countries as Bolivia, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Haiti and Venezuela.

Franco observed that 25 years ago only three countries in the region had democratically elected leaders, yet only Cuba continues under a dictatorship today.  However, even though Latin America largely has adopted democratic practices such as elected civilian governments, peaceful transitions of power and basic civil liberties, Franco warned that corruption, weak institutions and economic inequality are undermining democratic consolidation.  He told legislators that these problems, coupled with the inability of regional governments to provide basic services, are beginning to give rise to radical populism.

"Many LAC countries are held back by the powerful elite, weak government institutions and self-protecting political parties wielding unchecked authority fortified through amended constitutions, legal immunity, porous regulations and corruption," he said.  "This contributes to the inability of Latin American countries to create opportunities for its citizenry and to provide the services needed to enable them to take advantage of these opportunities, and it makes the rhetoric of undemocratic, populist campaigns very enticing."

Rst of article--

http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2005&m=September&x=20050928171718ASrelliM0.4334223&t=livefeeds/wf-latest.html

[FogerRox]

18. Ohio, Issue 2. Ohioans will vote Nov. 8 on five constitutional amendments

Issue 2 would allow early vote by mail or in person

Thursday, September 29, 2005

By MICHAEL J. MAURER
ThisWeek Staff Writer

Ohioans will vote Nov. 8 on five constitutional amendments, the most since 1976, when seven constitutional amendments were proposed, of which three passed and four failed.

Issue 1 is a combined renewal of public works bond authority for local government capital expenditures and new bond authority for high-technology companies.

Issue 2 authorizes mail-in or in-person early voting.

Issue 3 reduces the maximum amount of some campaign contributions.

Issue 4 removes redistricting authority from the General Assembly and establishes it with a commission.

Issue 5 removes elections administration authority from the secretary of state and establishes it with a commission.

Issue 2 is one of four proposed constitutional amendments placed on the ballot by initiative petition, with the purpose -- as described in the official ballot language -- "to expand to all electors the choice to vote by absentee ballot in all elections."

If approved, it would allow voters to vote by mail or in person as established by their county boards of elections during the 35 days preceding election day.

The approved, official language arguing in favor of the amendment states that long lines, bad weather and work conflicts discourage people from voting, that allowing voting by mail or in person will increase voter participation, and that voter participation will make government more accountable and "combat undue influence by a few and the corruption that currently pervades state governmen

Rest of article--

http://www.thisweeknews.com/thisweek.php?edition=common&story=thisweeknews/092905/Clintonville/News/092905-News-17861.html

------------------------

[FogerRox]

19. GOP: Put state's dead in coffins, not voting booths, the Jersey journal

GOP: Put state's dead in coffins, not voting booths
The Jersey Journal
Thursday, September 29, 2005


New Jersey Republicans finally have developed an election campaign issue - and it stretches into graves in all 21 counties.

Tom Wilson, chairman of the Republican State Committee, orchestrated a summer-long analysis of the 4.7 million names registered to vote in New Jersey. His analysis culminated with his Sept. 16 suggestion that there is "widespread fraud."

The evidence Wilson cited is unparalleled in any New Jersey election.
First, there was the graveyard shift: 4,755 persons listed in county records as deceased were listed as voting in the 2004 presidential election.

And then were the versatile: 54,601 were registered in more than one county, including 4,397 who apparently voted twice last year.

And then there were the really ambitious: 170,558 were registered to vote in New Jersey and at least one other state. Of those, more than half - 90,025 - voted here, including 6,572 who apparently voted here and in at least one other state.

rest of article--
http://www.nj.com/columns/jjournal/albright/index.ssf?/base/columns-0/112798589719700.xml&coll=3

[Algorem]

20. Commercial aims to get your goat;Reformers push 4 election proposals

http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/news/1128072659185001.xml&coll=2

Friday, September 30, 2005
Sandy Theis
Plain Dealer Bureau Chief
Columbus

-- With money from MoveOn.org and humor from a talking billy goat, a group that advocates sweeping changes in Ohio's elections debuted a TV ad Thursday designed to convince voters that Ohio needs a good housecleaning.

The commercial notes that America's least-popular governor, Bob Taft, has said -- despite a recent ethics conviction -- that the reforms are not needed because he does not think there is a problem in Ohio.

A billy goat responds to Taft's assertion by bleating "Really."

Even opponents of the reforms concede that Taft is among supporters' greatest weapons...

[FogerRox]

21. Study a boost for paper ballots

Study a boost for paper ballots
Report casts doubt on voting machines
09/29/05
By KAUKAB JHUMRA SMITH
Capital News Service




A federal election reform committee, headed by former President Carter, recommends that voting machines issue a paper ballot.

Maryland advocates of paper records for electronic voting machines are renewing their cause after a report last week from a panel headed by former President Carter recommended that the machines issue paper ballot records to alleviate security issues.

Critics of the Maryland State Board of Elections were buoyed by federal election reform recommendations released this week by the Carter-Baker commission - named for its leaders, Carter, and former Secretary of State James Baker III - and by the unexpected softening of two former opponents toward voter-verified paper records.

"Voting machines must be both accessible and transparent," the report said, adding that direct recording electronic machines, of the kind Maryland - and Howard County - uses, usually don't allow voters to check if their ballot was recorded correctly. Some can't be used for an independent recount, it said.

The Carter-Baker report will affect Howard County's voting systems only if Maryland officials decide to change statewide policy, said Betty Nordaas, Director of the Howard County Board of Elections.

Rest of article--
http://news.mywebpal.com/news_tool_v2.cfm?pnpID=573&NewsID=664242&CategoryID=742&show=localnews&om=1

[DemReadingDU]

22. Recommended

[Wilms]

23. MD: Study a boost for paper ballots

Study a boost for paper ballots

Report casts doubt on voting machines

09/29/05

By KAUKAB JHUMRA SMITH
Capital News Service

A federal election reform committee, headed by former President Carter, recommends that voting machines issue a paper ballot.
Maryland advocates of paper records for electronic voting machines are renewing their cause after a report last week from a panel headed by former President Carter recommended that the machines issue paper ballot records to alleviate security issues.

Critics of the Maryland State Board of Elections were buoyed by federal election reform recommendations released this week by the Carter-Baker commission - named for its leaders, Carter, and former Secretary of State James Baker III - and by the unexpected softening of two former opponents toward voter-verified paper records.

snip/more

http://news.mywebpal.com/news_tool_v2.cfm?pnpID=573&NewsID=664242&CategoryID=742&show=localnews&om=1

[Wilms]

24. Early Returns on Election Reform

Early Returns on Election Reform

DANIEL P. TOKAJI
Ohio State University - Michael E. Moritz College of Law

Ohio State Public Law Working Paper No. 42
Center for Interdisciplinary Law and Policy Studies Working Paper Series No. 29
George Washington Law Review, Vol. 74, 2005

Abstract:

The United States was fortunate to avoid another protracted post-election fight in 2004. Although the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) promised substantial changes in the way that elections are conducted in the United States, these changes in federal law did not prevent serious problems from occurring in Ohio and other states. The only reason that these problems did not lead to another contested election is because the margin of victory exceeded the margin of litigation. This Article examines how the changes commonly referred to as election reform contributed to the difficulties that emerged in 2004, focusing especially on Ohio's experience with respect to voting equipment, voter registration, provisional voting, ID requirements, challenges to voter eligibility, and polling place operations. The article then considers what should be done to deal with the problems that the 2004 election revealed, drawing five lessons for the future:

(1) while HAVA's changes with respect to voting equipment have had a beneficial effect, there is a continuing need for improvement in those states that have not yet upgraded their technology;

(2) pre-election litigation challenging election administration practices should be brought as far in advance of election day as practicable;

(3) courts should act swiftly in issuing injunctive relief where it is appropriate;

(4) states should prescribe clear rules governing the administration of elections, as far in advance of election day as possible; and

(5) courts should take a skeptical view of election administration rules that are promulgated unilaterally by partisan election officials, as opposed to those enacted by the legislature or by some other bipartisan or nonpartisan body.

Download from here:
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=801204#PaperDownload

[Wilms]

25. EAC Submission on behalf of CEPN

The CALIFORNIA ELECTION PROTECTION NETWORK, a non-partisan organization of over 25 groups coming together to achieve their mutual election integrity goals has voted to:

1) Affirm the audit protocol standards set forth in Pennsylvania’s HB 2000.
(See: http://tinyurl.com/8uazc )

2) Further, in honor of all those who have given their lives in the name of democracy, we respectfully request that Section 6.8 be amended to require the following:

Gold Standard Audit Protocol
All state elections shall have (at the State’s expense):

• PAPER BALLOTS: Accessible, voter-verifiable, paper ballots, meeting at least the following minimum specifications: paper ballots printed with 14 pt. type using individual 8.5 x 11 20 lb. archival paper stock (which shall be kept for at least 5 years as proof of the election result).

• HAND COUNTS: A manual audit which relies on human eyes.

• STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT SAMPLING: Select a minimum of 5% of all precincts (and precincts cannot exceed 1000 voters). Within these selected precincts, audit 100% of the paper ballots; or in their absence, the paper trails.

• GENUINELY RANDOM: Genuinely random selected samples (not at the discretion of election officials).

• PUBLIC OVERSIGHT: Each political participating political party may form delegations to witness every step of the election process. Results of each tally posted publicly on a public-accessible posting at the precinct site, as well as on a public-accessible portion of the Secretary of State’s web site in a comma-delimited format (e.g. a format that may easily be extracted into a word processing or spreadsheet software), BEFORE the data is transferred from the precinct (e.g. to the county’s central tabulator).

• RECOURSE: Any discrepancies between the machine tally and the audit Gold Standard audit protocol shall require the State to repeat this Gold Standard Audit protocol; however, each time the sample size shall increase by 10%. The final result of this audit process supersedes the finding of the initial tally and is binding.

• EQUIPMENT: All voting system equipment must be guaranteed by manufacturer for 30 years, and a full disclosure of ALL equipment used in our voting systems must be posted on the Secretary of State’s web site in an easy-to-access publicly announced location, along with the equipment’ true total cost (including maintenance contracts, supplies). In addition this same web site location will disclose the equipment certification(s) of system integrity, person(s) who sign off on the purchase agreement, purchase agreement and cost of the equipment. Failure of election officials to keep this information current shall be grounds for their dismissal.

Separation of Church and State AND Corporation

Thanks to Einsteinia for posting:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x395591

[Wilms]

26. VoteTrustUSA: This is it, folks! Let's get HR550 out of committee now!

This may be our last chance folks! Rush Holt's Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act (HR 550) now has 157 co-sponsors and there is some indication that the bill may actually be marked up in October.

There is concern, though, that the House Administration Committee may use the recommendations of the Carter-Baker Report to weaken Holt's language. VoteTrustUSA has set up a legislative action page where concerned citizens can sign up and automatically send an email to their Representative and urging them to pass HR 550 as written.

snip/more

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x395594

and

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x4937062

[Wilms]

27. FL: Paper or electronic: Ballot debate lives on

Paper or electronic: Ballot debate lives on

By George Bennett

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Friday, September 30, 2005

Opponents of paperless electronic voting helped Arthur Anderson become Palm Beach County's elections supervisor, but so far they don't seem to be scoring many points with members of a technology panel that Anderson assembled.

At Thursday night's meeting of the Election Technology Advisory Committee, advocates for a ballot paper trail found themselves at odds with other panelists and with the consultant Anderson hired to help run the committee.

That consultant, Richard Giorgio, noted some factual errors in a handout to the committee from the Palm Beach Coalition for Election Reform. The part of the handout Giorgio mentioned highlighted controversies over Emil Danciu's loss in a 2002 Boca Raton council race in which Giorgio worked for one of Danciu's rivals.

"I object to Mr. Giorgio's comments," said Bruce Serell, the coalition's representative on the technology committee. "It just doesn't seem appropriate for him to make comments on it and go on about it."

snip/more

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/pbcsouth/content/local_news/epaper/2005/09/30/s3b_elections_0930.html

Thanks to Freddie Stubbs for posting:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x395584

[Wilms]

28. Sadly, Dieb-Throat doesn't disappoint

Thursday, Sep 29, 2005 - 11:08:00 pm PDT

Sadly, Dieb-Throat doesn't disappoint

by Debra LoGuercio

When I wrote last week's Dieb-Throat column about a whistleblower revealing security risks in Diebold touch-screen voting machines, I was deliberately setting myself up for a sucker punch. Go ahead, clean my clock. Make me see stars.

I awaited a deluge of feedback, ridiculing me for believing anything posted on a blog (www.bradblog.com), along with mountains of evidence showing that Diebold's machines are perfectly reliable and completely tamper-free, and that our election results were never and could never be secretly altered. I desperately wanted some snarky software geek to explain this to me in one of those "Jane, you ignorant slut" diatribes.

Why beg for such abuse, particularly when it's often offered freely without my prompting? Because I really, really, really wanted Dieb-Throat's allegations to be untrue. Wistful dreamer that I am, I believe in the democratic process. I believe my vote counts. I believe your vote counts. We may not vote the same way, but the fact that we vote at all matters. It's the very foundation of everything our country stands for. If our votes are meaningless, democracy is meaningless. Our country is meaningless. All you folks out there flying Old Glory on your front porches and SUV antennae, guess what - if our votes don't mean anything, then that flag's nothing more than a piece of colored cloth.

So, there I sat waiting, hoping to be cold-cocked. I wasn't. Not even a slap. Nor a pinch.

snip/more

http://www.dailyrepublic.com/articles/2005/09/30/opinion_columnists/opinloguercio.txt

[rhite5]

29. Portland OR Summit Conference on Election Reform BIG -broadcasts available

Link to thread announcing that Brad will be broadcasting from the big Portland Conference on Election Reform that is taking place this weekend. I was surprised I couldn't see any announcement about the conference itself here?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topics&forum=203

I will make a separate post or thread with more information and more links. The conference started today (Friday 9/30) in the afternoon and ends Sunday. Lots of workshops. All the big names working on many pieces of the Fraud story.

We have had an excellent report on the ongoing litigation in New Mexico from one of the litigants, I am eager to learn more about that one. It's big with very serious problems and coverups and it will be expensive.

There was also a good presentation this afternoon on alternative voting methods that come closer to electing the actual choices of people. Several types were demonstrated including IRV and proportional representation and others.

There were other sessions going on concurrently this afternoon and tonight on other election topics in another room,

The focus in all cases is preparing for the future and learning all we can about things that have gone wrong, so we can take our country back for the people.

[rhite5]

30. Whoops! I see the BradShow broadcast has been announced here after all.

It must have happened after I looked. I will get the info on other broadcasts which are supposed to occur during the day, ahead of when the BradShow broadcasts at 4 PM.