On MSNBC Keith just said we can't get a good count of the uncommitted

[EFerrari]

DEMOCRATIC vote 20 counties because of a COMPUTER PROGRAMMING ERROR.

(No errors yet reported in the Republic vote.)

[The Magistrate]

1. Could You Be So Kind, Ma'am

As to find a link to video or transcript of this?

Confirmation would be appreciated.

[EFerrari]

3. I'm listening to it live on MSNBC.

I certainly don't want to inflame anything that shouldn't be inflamed. If I find something, I certainly will post something.

Will go look.

[The Magistrate]

4. Thank You, Ma'am

Not for a moment would I doubt your word, but it is helpful to have this sort of thing nailed down.

[EFerrari]

7. I don't know what to search. It's an ad hoc group of talking heads.

Not "Countdown". Keith said "a bono fide" voting machine problem.

Argh. Well, it will come to me or it won't. They might post a transcript of the program.

[The Magistrate]

10. Here Are the Listings By County, Ma'am

http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/primaries/results/county/#MIDEM

It sounds as if you are listening to a re-broadcast of their earlier discussion.

[EFerrari]

11. I found the MSNBC page for the primary but there is no mention.

I'm "rewinding" my TiVo right now. This may well be a re-broadcast. It's odd that Mr. Obermann could make such a statement and have it register nowhere. :shrug:

I've searched "Michigan primary computer" and all of its progeny. Nada.

[The Magistrate]

13. It Could Have Been An Early Evening Hiccough, Ma'am

[orleans]

5. they're on live NOW? n/t

[EFerrari]

9. Yes, sorry to be slow. I have MSNBC on. They're live. n/t

[Lucinda]

2. Yep...I saw that posted earlier. CNN is showing 100% of the count in now.

I don't know if there were more developments on the story...

[Bright Eyes]

6. What kind of computer error?

The diebold kind?

[EFerrari]

8. Michigan uses op scan, Diebold and ES&S, so that means

there are paper ballots to scan. At least, in theory.

DUer livvy's Michigan primary election information here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=203&topic_id=494074&mesg_id=494083

[kenfrequed]

15. Well...

The voting sheets for optical scanners are only helpful, as a protection against computer error or fraud, if someone actually counts them them physically to check the numbers.

[EFerrari]

19. As I found out today, some locations went to hand counts BUT

others reprogrammed.

I'm not a geek. Doesn't reprogramming in the middle of an election mess up live votes?

[Breeze54]

12. How does one count non-existant votes?

:shrug:

What a sham! :(

[EFerrari]

14. I'm sorry I can't find a link. But when I rewind my TiVo,

Keith says at almost exactly 12 a.m. (that may just be when I recorded it): "We even had a bona fide voting machine malfunction in Michigan where 20 counties were not enabled to, ah, initially report the uncommitted ballots in the Democratic "unauthorized" if you will primary due to a computer programming error."'

[EFerrari]

17. I called the MI SoS's office and spoke to one of their

"election specialists".

She confirmed that there was a problem in about twenty counties where Diebold scanners were counting Democratic Uncommitted votes as "Write In" votes.

At first she said they hand counted the ballots when the problem was found but later she said some locations were able to reprogram and some went to hand counts.

It really doesn't matter this time out but, so far in the two states that have used Diebold OpScan systems there have been problems. Technicians were servicing equipment throughout the day in New Hampshire and now this. Where there is access to the machines that count our votes, there is a window for tampering.

/clarity

[suffragette]

16. I knew I heard or saw that on MSNBC earlier, sometime around the end

of the debate, very briefly.

Poked around a bit on the web last night, but couldn't find mention of it either.

Closest I've found is this from over at Daily Kos:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/1/14/20256/4735

(2) One vendor's error in programming will cause Election Night headaches in about 27 counties.

According to the state Bureau of Elections, due to an error in ballot programming, Uncommitted and Write-in votes will be counted together in many counties. In order to untangle the mess, they will have to do hand counts. In most cases, the precincts won't close and the results won't be reported until the hand counts are done.

All Michigan jurisdictions use optical scan paper ballots, so hand counts are always an option.

This will affect a significant proportion of Democratic primary ballots in those areas. That's because many Edwards and Obama and Draft-Gore people are urging votes for "uncommitted". Meanwhile, less-informed voters are likely to write-in the names of candidates not on the ballot, such as Edwards and Obama. The write-in votes are not going to be counted in the final canvass, but the ballot software normally does produce Election Night statistics on how many people voted for write-ins.

Here's a pretty good, but probably not perfect, list of the counties affected by the programming error:

Alger, Alpena, Antrim, Arenac, Baraga, Cheboygan, Chippewa, Gogebic, Grand Traverse, Houghton, Iron, Jackson, Keweenaw, Leelanau, Lenawee, Luce, Mackinac, Manistee, Marquette, Montmorency, Ontonagon, Oscoda, Otsego, Presque Isle, Roscommon, Schoolcraft, Wexford.

Most of these are smaller than average counties, including 12 of the 15 counties in the remote Upper Peninsula region. Larger counties have staff to do their own ballot programming, and so probably avoided this error.

Bottom line, if this is a close election, returns from many counties will be delayed, so it will be a very long night for the candidates and media.


From Kos entry, which was posted on Mon Jan 14, 2008, it sounds this was expected to happen, then from MSNBC, sounds like it did. But, find reporting on it -not so much :shrug:

[EFerrari]

18. The vendor was Diebold. And the elections person told me

it wasn't up on their website anywhere. I didn't ask why not because I might have to call her again sometime!

The elections people out of the SoS's office have an interest in preserving the public's faith in the process, no matter how unearned it looks like.

[suffragette]

20. I had tried searching the SOS website

No wonder I couldn't find it.

Incidents like this that reveal some of the fundamental issues of using these systems are important. Everyone can understand them. And this one lasted as long as vapor and is as hard to track down.

:hug: to you for posting on it. I was going to, then when I couldn't find any info on it initially, I didn't.

[EFerrari]

21. I sort of panicked when I couldn't find anything. But

there was Keith, lol, saying it in English and he's pretty careful.