Reply #3: NC suit: EFF: "This is about the rule of law,"

[FogerRox]

December 9, 2005
E-voting Dispute Hits North Carolina Courts
By Roy Mark


With midterm elections less than a year away, e-voting is again stirring controversy among voting rights advocates. North Carolina -- again -- finds itself in the crosshairs.

>snip<

"This is about the rule of law," EFF staff attorney Matt Zimmerman said in a statement. "The Board of Elections has simply ignored its mandatory obligations under North Carolina election law."

North Carolina law requires the Board of Elections to review all voting system code "prior to certification." Ignoring this requirement, the Board of Elections on Dec. 1 certified voting systems offered by Diebold Election Systems, Sequoia Voting Systems and Election Systems and Software (ESS) without having first obtained the system code.

"This statute was enacted to require election officials to investigate the quality and security of voting systems before approval, and only approve those that are safe and secure," Zimmerman said. "By certifying without a full review of all relevant code, the Board of Elections has now opened the door for North Carolina counties to purchase untested and potentially insecure voting equipment."

>snip<
More-

http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3569871