Election Reform, Fraud & News Wed 1/17/07 “GIVE US THE BALLOT”

[kpete]

Election Reform, Fraud & News Wed 1/17/07 “GIVE US THE BALLOT”

Give Us The Ballot

The following passage is excerpted from a speech that Dr. King delivered before the Lincoln Memorial at the March on Washington, on May 17, 1957, three years after Brown v. Board of Education and eight years before the enactment of the Voting Rights Act.

Give Us The Ballot
By Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
January 15, 2007


...................

Give us the ballot and we will no longer have to worry the federal government about our basic rights.

Give us the ballot and we will no longer plead to the federal government for passage of an anti-lynching law; we will by the power of our vote write the law on the statute books of the southern states and bring an end to the dastardly acts of the hooded perpetrators of violence.

Give us the ballot and we will transform the salient misdeeds of blood-thirsty mobs into calculated good deeds of orderly citizens.

Give us the ballot and we will fill our legislative halls with men of good will, and send to the sacred halls of Congressmen who will not sign a Southern Manifesto, because of their devotion to the manifesto of justice.

Give us the ballot and we will place judges on the benches of the South who will "do justly and love mercy," and we will place at the head of the southern states governors who have felt not only the tang of the human, but the glow of the divine.

Give us the ballot and we will quietly and nonviolently, without rancor or bitterness, implement the Supreme Court's decision of May 17, 1954.
http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=743&Itemid=26

This week, I am asking for quotes on Election Reform, Fraud & News

If you have any interesting quotes to share or if you can recommend any books or links on this topic,
please post them below or email to kpete at: [e-mail]


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.

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http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.ph...

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.

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[kpete]

1. Ciber-sleuthing in the secret world of voting machine accreditation

Ciber-sleuthing in the secret world of voting machine accreditation

by Michael Richardson


The mystery of Sarasota, Florida's 18,000 "undervotes" in the recent Congressional elections gets more confusing when one tries to penetrate the wall of secrecy surrounding testing of the controversial electronic voting machines at issue.

The day after the New York Times reported on the Election Assistance Commission ban on Ciber, Inc., the nation's largest so-called independent testing authority, Sterling Ivey, a spokesman for the Florida Division of Elections was quick to tell the Sarasota Herald Tribune that Ciber had no role in the minimum performance standards of the ES&S voting machines in Sarasota. Independent testing labs, including Ciber, are funded by the voting machine vendors and receive lax oversight from the EAC, which secretly pulled Ciber's permit to test voting machines last year.

According to Ivey's statement to the Herald Tribune, a different test lab, Wyle Laboratories, actually conducted a "review" of the ES&S iVotronic machines used in Sarasota. However, Ciber's role in approval of the iVotronic machines is not quite that simple to dismiss.

Joe Hall, a respected electronic voting machine authority and self-described "politechnologist", explains there is more to the hidden process of certification than meets the eye. "Since the test reports are not public, it is difficult to find information about who tested what when."

Hall explains that Ciber was the primary federal testing body for the ES&S iVotronic model voting machine. However, since Florida has its own standards the equipment sometimes has add-ons not tested by Ciber, as is the case in Sarasota where a different version of the "election management system" Unity program was added. Hall has written, "The software on the DRE itself should be the same (note the firmware versions for the iVotronic are the same)."

more at:
http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_michael__070116_ciber_sleuthing_in_t.htm

[kpete]

2. ELECTION CHALLEGE-RESTORING DEMOCRACY

ELECTION CHALLEGE
RESTORING DEMOCRACY
You may have already read about the election challenges all across Florida. Since 2002, this country has been plagued by electronic voting machines that can neither be verified nor audited.

Across Florida the election fiasco continues. 18,000 votes were lost on the west coast. Over 12,000 more votes were cast in south Florida than there were possible voters to cast them. In central Florida, every precinct that has been canvassed has shown a reduction in Democratic votes by at least 17% from the official results. In our district , the vote totals do not match any of the polling data taken just days before the election (Zogby Poll). Before, we could do nothing. This time, the citizens of this district can stand up and take our Democracy back.

Last week I attended several meetings in Washington DC and New York where Congressional leaders are ready to make sure that this never happens again. Congressman Conyers, Jackson, Meeks, Killpatrick, Nadler, Watson, Rangel, Holt, and Speaker of the House Pelosi were firm in their support of election reform that insures elections are decide by the voters and not secret machines. They have promised to make that a priority. Our task is to provide them with the information they need to make that happen. By providing them with hard data that shows Democratic candidates, such as myself, received more votes than the scanners and touch screens recorded; they can force the issue of true verifiable elections.

Canvassers have been Walking for Democracy asking citizens to sign affidavits letting us know for whom they voted for the Governor’s race, Congress and Amendment Three. This is occurring all across the state. The information provided remains private and will be used only to provide the essential data to Congress so that we choose our elected officials rather than let mistakes, glitches, or hackers choose them for us.

more at:
http://www.opednews.com/maxwrite/linkframe.php?linkpg=http://www.clintcurtis.com/&linkid=29372

[kpete]

3. THE LANDES REPORT: TO CONGRESS-AMERICA'S UNVERIFIABLE ELECTION RESULTS -

January 16, 2007 at 17:19:18

America's Unverifiable Election Results - The Case for A Return to 'Open Voting'

by Lynn Landes




THE LANDES REPORT: TO CONGRESS
Released: January 15, 2007

AMERICA'S UNVERIFIABLE ELECTION RESULTS -
THE CASE FOR A RETURN TO 'OPEN VOTING'
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY

What's wrong with America's voting system? Just about everything. Voting is the linchpin of democracy. And democracy demands transparency, not trust. Yet, there is no meaningful transparency to our current voting system.

While Congress, state legislatures, and town councils are required to vote publicly and openly, the American electorate is held to a different standard - a double standard. We vote privately and
anonymously by machine, early, absentee, and secret ballot.

Under our current system of voting, it is virtually impossible to detect vote fraud. Things weren't always this way.

Before the Civil War, Americans engaged in 'open voting'. People voted in public by raised hand, voice, or pen. Although limited to white males, it was a completely transparent process. After the Civil War, as Congress expanded the right to vote to African Americans and eventually to women, it began to shut-down meaningful public oversight of the process.

It started with Congressional approval of absentee voting in the 1870's, secret ballots in the 1880's, and voting machines in the 1890's. Today in America, 30% of all voting is by absentee or early, 95% of all votes are machine-processed, and 100% of all ballots are secret and anonymous.

more at:
http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_lynn_lan_070116_america_s_unverifiab.htm

[kpete]

4. Election Assistance Cheerleader

Election Assistance Cheerleader

The EAC and Its Outgoing Commissioner Paul DeGregorio's Campaign to Plant Misinformation in the American Media...
Guest Blogged by John Gideon, Executive Director, VotersUnite.Org

In the weeks following last November's mid-term election, the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) sent retiring Commissioner Paul DeGregorio out to cheerlead and to make the voters feel warm and cozy about the election.

The Commissioner keeps telling the voters that we should have confidence in the election process. He constantly states that everything worked just fine except for isolated incidents. Meanwhile, he ignores the facts about failures that happened across the nation. He ignores data such as that which is reported in "E-Voting Failures in the 2006 Mid-Term Elections" written by VotersUnite, VoteTrustUSA, VoterAction and Pollworkers For Democracy.

Early last week Commissioner DeGregorio had an Op-Ed posted by a McClatchy-Tribune News Service newspaper in Mississippi. In this Op-Ed he opens with the following paragraph:

more at:

[kpete]

5. Proponents say fusion voting allows votes for primary candidates from third-party voters

Voting method hits third-party voting
Proponents say fusion voting allows votes for primary candidates from third-party voters
T. Evans

Issue date: 1/16/07 Section: News

A panel of elected officials, nonprofit organizers and PSU professors discussed implementing a different method of voting in Oregon to a packed house at the Portland State Urban Studies Building on Friday.

Fusion voting, which is now legal in seven states and more commonly practiced in New York and Connecticut, allows voters to vote for a primary candidate under their own third party. Also known as "expressive voting," this practice is said to encourage voters to signal their ideals and values to the primary party candidates, panel members said.

Political science Professor Melody Rose said that fusion voting could cause some ballot confusion, referencing events like the 2000 presidential election, where confusion in Florida led many to contest President Bush's victory. There was little dissent against fusion voting in the panel of five.

Daniel Cantor, executive director of the Working Families Party of New York, and the other panelists said that fusion voting would benefit Oregon if actually enacted. Because there are not as many third-party voters as primary-party

more at:
http://media.www.dailyvanguard.com/media/storage/paper941/news/2007/01/16/News/Voting.Method.Hits.ThirdParty.Voting-2633020.shtml

[kpete]

6. Keeping Up Appearances: The EAC Does Damage Control

Keeping Up Appearances: The EAC Does Damage Control
By Warren Stewart, VoteTrustUSA
January 16, 2007

The Election Assistance Commission has released a statement that “strongly encourages”
voting machine testing laboratories “to adopt policies that prohibit the organization and its employees from engaging in activities that may create the appearance of a conflict of interest or partisan bias.” (emphasis mine)

The directive from the EAC no doubt comes in response to concerns expressed in a New York Times article about the recent engagement of Brian Phillips (pictured at left), president of SysTest Labs, as an expert for the campaign of Republican Buchanan in the legal challenge to Florida's 13th Congressional District election.

Last week, a Denver Post article quoted incoming EAC chair Donetta Davidson saying, "When there's a conflict over an election, like there was in Florida, we don't want (these companies) to be hired by one party or another."



However, a conflict of interest statement is already present in the interim certification document signed by Wyle and SysTest. The statement was signed 'under penalty of Federal law'. Phillips would appear to be in clear violation of a law that he had to know he had signed and was in effect at the time he went to work for ES&S in Sarasota County. Why hasn't the EAC enforced this law?


more at:
http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2191&Itemid=26

[kpete]

7. CO: Coffman Reviews Voting Machine Security Standards

Jan 16, 2007 10:52 am US/Mountain

Coffman Reviews Voting Machine Security Standards
(AP) DENVER Secretary of State Mike Coffman on Monday began reviewing proposed security standards for electronic voting machines designed to ensure the devices meet state and federal specifications.

Coffman said the state must amend its current rules to comply with a district court order after security experts testified that electronic voting machines like those approved for Colorado can be tampered with quickly.

In late September, Denver District Judge Lawrence Manzanares issued a verbal ruling faulting the state for failing to come up with minimum security standards to make sure the machines couldn't be hacked.

But with the Nov. 7 election looming, he decided against barring the machines and instead told the state to work with counties on a plan to make sure the machines are closely monitored before and during voting.

Manzanares ordered the secretary of state to work with county officials to implement minimum security standards developed with the help of the voters who sued to stop the use of the machines.

After the election, Manzanares said new standards would have to be developed and each machine would have to be recertified.

http://cbs4denver.com/local/local_story_016125426.html

[kpete]

8. Connecticut: Bysiewicz Calls For Mandatory 20% Audit

Connecticut: Bysiewicz Calls For Mandatory 20% Audit
By Warren Stewart, VoteTrustUSA
January 16, 2007

Connecticut Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz announced that she will submit a proposal to the state legislature's Government Administration and Elections Committee that would require audits in at least 20 percent of the state's 769 voting precincts, to be selected randomly.

In a Hartford Journal-Inquirer article, Secretary Bysiewicz stated "We owe it to the voters to allow them to always feel confident that they have an fair and transparent election process.”



"We have the capacity to do it, and I want the taxpayers to know that we've spent money on machines that work," she added.



While at least two states have adopted mandatory audit requirements of 10% of the vote, Bysiewicz’ proposal would set a new standard and would certainly go a long way her stated goal of making Connecticut a “national leader” in election administration.

After advocating touchscreen voting machines immediately after the passage of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA), Bysiewicz eventually came to the conclusion that touchscreen voting machines were “not ready for prime time”. Last summer the state decided to implement a paper ballot optical scan system statewide. Twenty-five towns used Diebold AccuVote optical scanners for the November, 2006 elections and the rest of the state will use them in future elections.

Following a closely-watched recount of the state’s Second Congressional district race, Bysiewicz conducted a 20% audit of the remainder of the state.

http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2193&Itemid=113

[kpete]

9. KY: Campbell poll workers may get ax over new machines

Campbell poll workers may get ax over new machines
BY CHRIS MAYHEW | COMMUNITY RECORDER STAFF WRITER

Between 50-60 volunteer poll workers probably won't be invited back to work the next election in Campbell County.

The introduction of new touch screen voting machines last year and requirements to learn new federal voting regulations means it's become more of a technical job, said Campbell County Clerk Jack Snodgrass.

People need to have some type of computer knowledge and be able to show voters how to use the new machines, he said.


"If they're not willing to learn, or for some reason they can't learn, we're going to have make changes," Snodgrass said.

Each poll worker receives required training from Snodgrass' office.

more at:
http://news.communitypress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070116/NEWS01/701160355

[kpete]

10. NY: Your Stories Q&A: Electronic Voting Machines

Your Stories Q&A: Electronic Voting Machines
Last Update: 1/16/2007 4:54:57 PM



Syracuse (WSYR-TV) – We have a Your Stories Q&A, about the new high-tech voting machines set to replace those old lever-action machines we're used to using at election time.

New York is actually the last state in the country to replace the old with the new and some of you are wondering what's on the way.

The State Board of Elections is busy testing the electronic machines, to make sure they work properly. Then they'll certify them. New York requires that all of the new electronic machines print out a receipt, so that you, the voter, can verify the selections you've made.

Once all of the machines are certified, then every county in New York can decide which vendors they'll go with.

The certification process should wrap up by the end of March, so there's enough time to pick and purchase new machines, to have them ready to go in November 2007. The funding for the electronic machines comes from New York State.

http://www.9wsyr.com/content/news/your_stories/story.aspx?content_id=f9e726f2-db81-4754-bc5c-0a979c263304

[Algorem]

11. Ohio- How Low Kenny Go?

http://www.freetimes.com/story/4643

http://www.freetimes.com.nyud.net:8090/images/issues/1439/ChatterFeet.jpg
PRECIOUS FEET - Religious dudes love morbid images.

Blackwell Spent Final Weeks In Office Campaigning For Biggest A-hole In Ohio

Columbus continues to gasp at the audacity, arrogance and sheer sore loser-ness former Republican Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell displayed toward Democratic successor Jennifer Brunner and her staff during the transition. We already knew that he'd failed to return Brunner's calls for weeks after the election, didn't meet with her for almost a month and refused to provide access to the offices ("Secretary of Spite," December 6, 2006). The other four state-office transitions, including three other Republican-to-Democrat handoffs, reported no such problems.

His intransigence continued up until the last minute. He insisted on turning the keys over to her no earlier than 12:01 a.m. Monday, January 8, her first day in office. Since she was in Arizona for the Ohio State game, Assistant Secretary of State Chris Nance collected them.

But wait! There's more. Before leaving office, Blackwell's office spent $12 million of its allotted $18 million budget for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2007. That included awarding his staff generous bonuses — your tax dollars at work! And to the very end, Blackwell attempted to place his unique stamp on the office. When Brunner was finally able to occupy her offices and official car, she found that Blackwell had left some nice parting gifts: prayer books and "precious feet" — anti-abortion pins featuring baby feet encircled in a crown of thorns. — Anastasia Pantsios


Blackwell staff got goodbye bonuses
Secretary of State Brunner says office’s bills were a shock

http://www.columbusdispatch.com/news-story.php?story=dispatch/2007/01/17/20070117-A1-02.html

Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Mark Niquette
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Before leaving office this month, Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell gave parting payments totaling more than $80,000 to 19 top staffers who were not kept by new Secretary Jennifer Brunner.

Blackwell is calling them severance packages. But Brunner considers the payments — ranging from $1,044 to nearly $8,000 for Blackwell’s assistant secretary of state — questionable bonuses.

"For a lot of the employees, it was almost like a golden parachute," Brunner told The Dispatch. "I just think that taxpayers’ expectation of how the government operates is that bonuses aren’t generally considered to be something that government does."

Spokesmen for Gov. Ted Strickland, Attorney General Marc Dann and Treasurer Richard Cordray said they were not aware of any severance packages or bonuses paid by their Republican predecessors...



Article published Wednesday, January 17, 2007

Brunner questions Blackwell staff bonuses

By JIM PROVANCE
BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU

COLUMBUS - On his way out the door, former Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell handed 19 of his key employees more than $80,000 in bonuses, even as his replacement said she's $1 million short of what's necessary to meet her office's obligations through June 30.

Jennifer Brunner, a Democrat and former Franklin County Common Pleas Court judge, took office Jan. 8.

Although the secretary of state paid year-end bonuses in the past, Ms. Brunner said her research showed the amounts paid just before Mr. Blackwell's departure were much higher, in some cases more than double, past bonuses.

"It appears he was giving his top folks a golden parachute," she told The Blade. "They're not as big as Enron, so maybe we'll call them bronze."...










Taft torches papers

Last days in office fiery for Taft
Former governor in stove mishap

Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Mark Naymik
Plain Dealer Politics Writer

No one can accuse former Ohio Gov. Bob Taft, who had record-low approval ratings during much of his second term, of leaving office in a blaze of glory.

But after living in the governor's mansion for eight years, his transition back to civilian life is off to a burning start.

Moving into a rented ranch house in the Columbus suburb of Upper Arlington on Jan. 6, the great-grandson of President William Howard Taft placed a box of paper and miscellaneous kitchen items on a stove that was inadvertently turned on during the commotion of the move. Just before 1 p.m. that day, Taft called 9-1-1 to report that his kitchen was on fire.

A police officer extinguished most of the blaze before the Fire Department arrived, though smoke filled the house. Fire officials estimated damage at about $5,000. Taft, whose term ended Jan. 8, was unharmed...

[Kurovski]

17. Bonuses? Oh well--I still know in my heart that crime doesn't pay,

appearances aside.

[kpete]

12. Don’t Settle for Superficial Ethics Changes

Don’t Settle for Superficial Ethics Changes
By Norman Ornstein
Roll Call Contributing Writer
January 17, 2007

Last week, prosecutors indicated that former Interior Department official J. Steven Griles is a target of their Jack Abramoff investigation. I hope Members of both the House and the Senate saw that story, and understand fully its implications, as they begin to grapple directly with ethics reform. Here is the reality: The Public Integrity Section of the Justice Department is moving ahead full-steam with its investigations into corruption and bribery in Washington, D.C., with a special focus on Congress. It may be surprising that we have not yet seen indictments of Members such as Rep. William Jefferson (D-La.). But indictments are coming, and it is very likely there will be a bunch. And that bunch likely will include a number of Members of Congress and staff.

http://www.rollcall.com/issues/52_64/ornstein/16567-1.html

[kpete]

13. FEC’s Top Two Attorneys Leaving Agency

FEC’s Top Two Attorneys Leaving Agency
By Matthew Murray
Roll Call Staff
January 17, 2007

The Federal Election Commission’s top two lawyers announced Tuesday that they will leave the agency in March to work together in private practice.

http://www.rollcall.com/issues/52_64/news/16578-1.html

[kpete]

14. SENATE TABLES TRIBAL CAMPAIGN LIMITS

SENATE TABLES TRIBAL CAMPAIGN LIMITS

American Indian leaders applaud as a "major victory" the Jan. 11 tabling by the U.S. Senate of an effort to amend federal campaign election laws to limit participation by tribal governments.

The amendment by Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) would have changed the Federal Election Campaign Act to define tribes as corporations, thereby prohibiting tribal campaign contributions. The Senate voted 56-40 to table the amendment, which Vitter tried to attach it to an ethics and lobby reform package by congressional Democrats.

Vitter said "unfettered access to money" by Indian tribes operating government casinos was the cause of the scandal surrounding former lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-Hi) objected to the proposal, claiming Vitter wrongly placed the blame for the Abramoff scandal on tribes.

"We must ensure that the tribes, who were the victims of illegal acts, are not penalized in the name of reform," Inouye said.

more at:
http://www.ascendgaming.com/headline_detail.htm?news=&id=6573

[autorank]

15. Thanks so much for that King OP - what a great reminder & K-R, great thread. n/t

[Kurovski]

16. The first quote that comes to mind is the Stalin classic:

"It's not who votes that counts, it's who counts the votes"

And the book that lays-out the many little ways that elections are stolen: "Fooled Again: How the Right Stole the 2004 Election & Why They'll Steal the Next One Too (Unless We Stop Them)", by Mark Crispin Miller.

But perhaps others will have some hidden treasures to reveal.

Thanks, kpete.