Coming Back From Working/Vacation Election Reform & Related News Tuesday, 6/19/07

[Melissa G]

Coming Back From Working/Vacation...All Help Welcome!
Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News Tuesday, 6/19/07


All members Welcome and GREATLY encouraged to participate.
Pretty Please!
(Eeek! I have 500 plus emails to go through and I was only gone 4 days!)



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 new Spring 2006 Edition of "Election Fraud and Reform News Directory" listed here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x407240

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.




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

[Melissa G]

1. Broward commission agrees to dump touch-screen voting machines

Broward commission agrees to dump touch-screen voting machines

By Scott Wyman
Sun-Sentinel.com
Posted June 19 2007, 1:15 PM EDT


FORT LAUDERDALE -- Say goodbye to touch-screen voting in Broward County.

Five years after buying ATM-style voting machines, Broward County began another election changeover Tuesday. County commissioners agreed to buy new voting machines that use paper ballots and to turn over to the state nearly all of the county's 4,500 touch-screen machines.

The switch won't be cheap. Although the state will foot most of the bill through federal aid, almost $10 million in county tax money is also needed.

The changeover was ordered as part of sweeping election overhaul legislation that Gov. Charlie Crist signed last month. Broward, Palm Beach, Miami-Dade and 12 other counties must replace the touch-screen machines they purchased to replace punch-card ballots following the disputed 2000 presidential recount.

The state intends to sell the used touch-screen machines.

When purchased, elections officials considered the touch-screens to be more accurate than punch cards, but the machines faced growing criticism from voting rights advocates because of the lack of a paper trail needed to verify votes cast on individual ballots.
"You cannot fix history, but you can learn from it," Commissioner Ilene Lieberman said.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-touchscreen0619,0,7622086.story?coll=sfla-news-broward

[Melissa G]

2. Citing cash shortfall, PBC may reject paper-trail voting

Citing cash shortfall, PBC may reject paper-trail voting
By George Bennett

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

WEST PALM BEACH — Saying a $5 million state grant isn't enough to pay for a ballot paper-trail in Palm Beach County, frustrated county commissioners this morning raised the possibility of rejecting the money and keeping the county's paperless electronic voting machines.

Commissioners asked their legal staff to research what would happen if the county doesn't comply with the new state law requiring paper optical-scan ballots at all polling places beginning next fall.

The discussion arose after Elections Supervisor Arthur Anderson said implementing the new paper-trail law will cost $5.9 million more than the $5 million the state is providing.

Commissioner Mary McCarty said the shortfall is part of a pattern of the state passing laws and requiring local governments to come up with the money to pay for them.

snip
Anderson has complained for months that the state isn't providing enough money to pay for a new paper-based voting system. But he said he wasn't comfortable with the idea of rejecting paper ballots.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/politics/content/local_news/epaper/2007/06/19/0619voting.html

[Melissa G]

3. Florida Court Rules in Favor of ES&S Trade Secret Protection

Around the States




Florida Court Rules in Favor of ES&S Trade Secret Protection
By Warren Stewart, VoteTrustUSA
June 19, 2007
Focus Now Shifts to GAO and Congressional Task Force

A Florida appellate court has ruled that Congressional candidate Christine Jennings (pictured at right) may not have access to the software that counted votes in the last November’s disputed contest for Florida’s 13th District. Citing Jennings’ failure to prove the "extraordinary burden" of proving that the December decision of a lower court ruling denying her access to the source code of the ES&S iVotronic machines used in Sarasota County had been wrong.

National attention was drawn to the irregularly high undervote rate on the iVotronic machines used in Sarasota County last November. While absentee ballots in Sarasota County and paper ballots used in other counties in the 13th District reflected a typical Congressional undervote rate of around 2% in the election, the iVotronics reflected an undervote rate of over 16%. While different explanations for the anomaly have been offered, without access to the source code from which the software on the machines was generated, it is impossible to rule out the role that software may have played.

In the December ruling, Florida Circuit Judge William Gary had determined that ES&S’s trade secret protection overrode Jennings' contention that access to the source code was necessary to determine with certainty the cause of over 18,000 undervotes in the hotly contested race for the 13th District.

Though the option of further appeal at the state level has not been ruled out, Jennings' spokesman David Kochman noted that the focus of the contest has shifted to Congress, where a task force of the Committee on House Administration has been formed to investigate the formally contested election.


http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2498&Itemid=113

[Melissa G]

4. Ohio to Test Voting Machine Security

Ohio to Test Voting Machine Security

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner is seeking a firm to determine whether Ohio's voting machines work, are secure, and can function under heavy volume, her office announced.

Brunner is asking companies to submit proposals, including cost, on how they would evaluate both the touch-screen and optical scan machines operating around the state, as well as review the software.

The deadline for proposals is July 9 and Brunner hopes to have the evaluations done by Sept. 20, or another mutually agreeable date this fall. The results will be used to make any improvements needed before the 2008 presidential election.

"With Ohio's pivotal role in the last presidential election and the likely emphasis that will be placed on our vote in the next, we owe it to our state and the nation to bring in the best experts available to examine these systems," Brunner, a Democrat, said in a statement Monday.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/fn/4901855.html

[Melissa G]

5. Polling-place change draws complaints

Polling-place change draws complaints


By JOE LOTEMPLIO
Staff Writer


PLATTSBURGH — Workers of polling stations in AuSable say the new voting site is not suited for the elderly.

Ida Spooner, who works for the town during elections, told Clinton County legislators recently that the new polling site, the Keeseville Fire Station, is too difficult for elderly voters to get to.

She wondered why AuSable Valley Central School could not continue to be the polling place.

“A lot of people are upset, and they might not vote,” Spooner said.

Clinton County Board of Elections Republican Commissioner Judith Layhee said elections officials have been trying to remove polling sites from all schools in recent years.

She said schools do not make for good polling places for several reasons.

A school could be forced to lock down because of an incident, which would keep voters from gaining entrance to the polls.

http://www.pressrepublican.com/midday/local_story_170110005.html

[Melissa G]

6. Decision pending on primary election dispute

Decision pending on primary election dispute

By CHRIS ENGLISH
phillyBurbs.com

Bucks County Judge Clyde Waite probably will decide within the next 10 days whether results from the Democratic primary election for Tullytown Council will stand.

Waite made that announcement after a hearing in Doylestown Monday on a recount request filed by borough councilman Rick Adams and residents Matthew and Ida Pirolli.

Councilwoman Beth Pirolli, the daughter of Ida and sister of Matthew, lost her bid to keep her seat by four votes, 272 to 268, to challenger George Fox Jr. Incumbent Edward Czyzyk (339 votes) and challenger Edmund Armstrong (307) were the other winners in the primary race for three council seats.

If the results stand, incumbent May Kucher (238 votes) will also lose her seat. Challenger Hal Lefcourt got 65 votes in the Democratic Primary. No Republicans filed to run.

The vote totals didn't change Monday after county Board of Elections Director Deena Dean and her staff double-checked the written records available from the three electronic voting machines used in Tullytown. After waiting through the recount process and hearing arguments from the petitioners' attorney, Larry Otter, and county solicitor Guy Matthews, Waite said he wanted a little more time to issue a ruling.
http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/113-06192007-1365324.html

[Melissa G]

7. Play game of politics – virtually

Play game of politics – virtually
By Mike Musgrove
Washington Post
OK, wonks: Think you know how the political game works?

Now you can actually play it, or at least one part of it, from within the window of a computer browser.

A new, free game developed by a team at the University of Southern California makes a simple, quickly graspable point for those of us with short attention spans: It’s not always the issues that determine the outcome of an election; it’s how the congressional district map was drawn in the first place.

The Redistricting Game lets players bend the borders of congressional districts in a series of missions set in fictional states. Protect the incumbents, oust the opposition – it’s amazing what a few mouse-clicks can do. You read about gerrymandering in civics class, but it’s much more involving to actually try your hand at it.

No game has ever made me think about the political process before, it’s safe to say, but this one has me a little concerned about how the system works.

And that’s the idea. This educational diversion, targeted partly at high school classrooms, is part of an emerging genre of games designed to make a social or political point while educating players about a real-world situation.

http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/journalgazette/17388921.htm

[Melissa G]

8. Yepsen: Smaller field puts Ames straw poll in perspective

Yepsen: Smaller field puts Ames straw poll in perspective
By DAVID YEPSEN
REGISTER POLITICAL COLUMNIST


June 19, 2007

The decision by Rudy Giuliani and John McCain not to compete for votes in the Iowa Republican Party's August straw poll of presidential candidates in Ames will diminish the importance of that event. But it won't kill it.

And that's good. Their decision serves to put the event in better perspective. Too much was being made of it by candidates and media people starved for summertime political news. Now, some of the second tier candidates will get a chance to shine - or be knocked out of the race.

Giuliani and McCain are front-runners in the GOP contest and don't need to waste money winning a straw poll that adds nothing to their name recognition or national fund-raising.

They could be embarrassed if they got in the competition and lost. As it is, each candidate is facing unique challenges, and a loss simply wouldn't help.

But according to state party officials, Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, Sam Brownback, Tom Tancredo and Tommy Thompson are all planning to battle for votes, so that still adds a little drama. No one is certain what Fred Thompson will do. Newt Gingrich, who will decide in the fall whether to run, also plans to attend, as will Duncan Hunter.

http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070619/OPINION01/706190366/1035/OPINION

[Melissa G]

9. Brunner seeks bids to test voting machines

Brunner seeks bids to test voting machines
Tuesday, June 19, 2007 3:25 AM
By Mark Niquette

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner issued a request for proposals yesterday to test the technology and software of the voting systems used in Ohio.

She had announced the plan before taking office in response to several recent high-profile election problems, to improve the security and handling of the systems and to assure voters the devices can be trusted.

"With Ohio's pivotal role in the last presidential election and the likely emphasis that will be placed on our vote in the next, we owe it to our state and the nation to bring in the best experts available to examine these systems," she said.

Her office wants all proposals returned by July 9, with the goal of having the testing of both electronic touch-screen and optical-scan devices done by Sept. 20. The office hopes to get between 10 and 20 responses, spokesman Patrick Gallaway said.

Brunner has said she's prepared to consider the options for replacing voting machines if the tests show them to be unreliable, but she thinks that's unlikely.

It's unclear how much the testing will cost or what the source of the money would be, but Brunner is expected to seek approval from the state Controlling Board for the work, Gallaway said.
http://www.columbusdispatch.com/dispatch/content/local_news/stories/2007/06/19/forb2.ART_ART_06-19-07_B2_PJ729RS.html

[Melissa G]

10. Senate hangs up on 'robo' political call

Senate hangs up on 'robo' political call
Legislation - People on the federal do-not-call list soon won't be on the receiving end of prerecorded campaigning Tuesday, June 19, 2007JANIE HAR
SALEM -- Oregonians who sign up for the federal do-not-call list can now shed canned political calls along with those unwanted telemarketing pitches.

On Monday, the Oregon Senate gave final approval to a bill reining in prerecorded automated political phone messages -- also called robo calls -- that flourish during campaign season. Gov. Ted Kulongoski is expected to approve the bill, despite grumblings by political groups that the new restrictions could dampen get-out-the-vote efforts.

Nationally, voter outrage over the calls has grown since last year's election, when people complained of prerecorded pitches that interrupted their sleep, gave fuzzy information or straight-up lied.

At least 15 states took up the issue this year, introducing legislation to outlaw the machines that punch the calls through or to expand the National Do Not Call Registry to include automated political calls. Oregon would join a handful of states that already regulate or ban the calls.

snip


A bit of luck, and a lot of political maneuvering, helped the bill in its quest to become law. Voting on an earlier version of the bill last month, senators would have killed the bill but for a badly timed robo calling campaign by the Oregon Education Association on another issue that tied up senators' phone lines and ticked them off.

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1182219936165880.xml&coll=7

[Melissa G]

11. Election Reform Daily News Thread still needs some help!

PM Me, Melissa G, if you would like to help out or Post on this thread here to have your questions answered.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x473346

It's fun and easy! Volunteers needed now for a daily shift or just once in while back up like today when I got in at one in the morning and would have loved some help!...

Feel free to practice by posting news items on this thread!

[Kurovski]

12. Kick to the top. ONE MORE RECOMMEND, please.

:-) Send this puppy out into the world.

Thanks, Melissa G!

[Kurovski]

13. Kick. (nt)

[Melissa G]

14. Waiting for the mail

Waiting for the mail
Posted by Mark Rollenhagen June 19, 2007 18:08PM
The prospect of conducting elections by mail may be inching forward in Ohio.

State Sen. Gary Cates, a West Chester Republican, last week introduced a bill that would allow counties to conduct elections by mail if there are only issues and no candidates on a ballot.

Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner told a gathering of elections officials in Columbus on Tuesday that the bill isn't expected to move forward until fall.

Brunner said she was concerned that under Cates' bill the only voters who would get ballots would be those request absentee ballots.

"I am not certain of the constitutionality of that," she said, adding that she had spoken to Cates and he's willing to hear her concerns.

http://blog.cleveland.com/openers/2007/06/waiting_for_the_mail.html

[Melissa G]

15. Bedford County Republican Primary Votes To Be Recounted

Bedford County Republican Primary Votes To Be Recounted

POSTED: 1:40 pm EDT June 19, 2007
UPDATED: 1:49 pm EDT June 19, 2007

The entire Republican primary election results in Bedford County will be recounted this weekend, officials said Tuesday.

Bedford incumbent Commissioner Mike Shaffer lost the Republican primary by eight votes to Michael Herline. Shaffer later requested a recount of about 20 precincts after voting machine problems, a request Judge Daniel Howsare granted.

Peg Koenig, director of elections in Bedford County, said there was a memory card problem in voting machines on Election Day.

Koenig said the Northern Bedford County School District had a massive write-in campaign that was much larger than expected. She said the memory cards in the e-scan voting machines became so full that the machines spit the ballots out.

She said the recount will be time consuming but -- even without the voting machine problems -- she said a recount was needed.
http://www.wjactv.com/news/13530242/detail.html

[Melissa G]

16. Studies show provisional ballots an increasing problem

Studies show provisional ballots an increasing problem
By DEE DIXON, The Enterprise
06/18/2007

BEAUMONT - Provisional ballots are designed to be the last resort to insure that a vote that should count actually does.


But in the recent Jefferson County election, Port Arthur resident Virginia Dudley's provisional ballot was rejected even though it probably should have counted.

In the May 12 election, the county received 55 provisional ballots and all but eight were rejected.

Seventeen were rejected because people "registered to vote in a different precinct within the county," according to the reason checked on their provisional ballot.

Five of the eight accepted provisional ballots were marked indicating the voter registered in the wrong precinct, but they were later scratched out for approval.
http://www.beaumontenterprise.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=18487594&BRD=2287&PAG=461&dept_id=512588&rfi=6

[Melissa G]

17. A reliable, verifiable vote in 2008

A reliable, verifiable vote in 2008
By Bill Richardson
June 19, 2007
In November 2008, voters will go to the polls and choose the next president of the United States and their representatives to Congress — or will they?


According to Common Cause, more than a third of our states still use voting machines that do not support hand recounts and provide no auditable paper trail. “One person, one vote” is the hallmark of America’s democracy, but to make sure that our next president is elected by people, not by the malfunction of an electronic voting machine, we must immediately move to a durable paper-ballot system backed by regular audits in every state in the nation. For these reasons, Congress should quickly pass H.R. 811, the Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act of 2007, introduced by Rep. Rush Holt (D-N.J.) and cosponsored by more than 220 Democratic and Republican members of Congress.


Every federal election since 2000 has clearly shown that these machines can and do malfunction. In New Mexico, in 2002 these voting systems lost the votes of almost 13,000 citizens, and in 2004 they failed to register the candidate of choice for many voters. If there is no accurate and verifiable paper record of voter intent, there is no accountable means of determining a winner. Worse still, voter confidence is damaged and diminished. Any elected official’s authority is only as strong as the voter’s belief that the election was won fair and square.


In 2005 a grassroots coalition of concerned New Mexicans demanded action — and we acted. Working together with these citizens and the state legislature, I fought for legislation to increase voter confidence in our democracy through specific and concrete measures. We improved and standardized training for poll workers. We established statewide standards for provisional ballots to ensure that voters in low-income areas will not be disenfranchised. We made absentee voting fair, simple and uniform. And we established a random, statewide 2 percent audit of voting machines.


One year later, I signed a bill to move New Mexico to an all-paper-ballot system using optical scanners to count votes. We ended the hodgepodge of systems that confused voters and raised questions about reliability.
http://thehill.com/op-eds/a-reliable-verifiable-vote-in-2008-2007-06-19.html

[Kurovski]

18. Kick to the top. (nt)