Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News Thursday 8/24/2006

[EFerrari]

Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News Thursday 8/24/2006

All members welcome and encouraged to participate.



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




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

[EFerrari]

1. Zogby: Americans concerned about election fraud

Americans concerned about election fraud By: Zogby Wed Aug 23, 2006 6:17 PM ET

New poll shows more than 60% have heard news reports of flaws in new electronic voting equipment

MACON,GA. (Zogby)- A majority of Americans—61%—are aware of news reports of flaws in electronic voting machines and want members of the general public to be able to watch votes be counted following an election, a new Zogby International poll shows.

The telephone survey of 1,018 likely voters was conducted Aug. 11-15, 2006. It carries a margin of error of +/- 3.1 percentage points.

Asked whether Americans have the right to view and obtain information about how elections officials count votes, 92% of respondents concurred.

"The 92% support for the public's right to view vote counting and obtain information about it is a very strong political value of transparency and against secret vote counting outside the observation of the public," said Paul Lehto, a lawyer and sponsor of the survey. "To put this figure in context, support for election transparency exceeds the support for tax cuts, exceeds the approval of Pres. Bush immediately after 9-11, and virtually all other political values being measured." Mr. Lehto is counsel in the 50th Congressional District election contest in California.

http://www.maconareaonline.com/news.asp?id=14942

[EFerrari]

2. AL: Judge rules state can't stop ex-felons from voting

Judge rules state can't stop ex-felons from voting
BOB JOHNSON
Associated Press

MONTGOMERY, Ala. - A Jefferson County judge ordered Wednesday the state of Alabama to allow ex-felons to vote, saying a state law that denies voting rights to felons convicted of crimes of moral turpitude does not identify which crimes fit that definition.

Circuit Court Judge Robert Vance Jr. stayed portions of his order until it could be cleared by the U.S. Justice Department. The federal Voting Rights Act requires that changes in voting law in Alabama be cleared through the Justice Department.

Vance ordered voter registrars in Alabama counties to register ex-felons until "the Alabama Legislature passes, and the governor signs into law, legislation specifically identifying which felonies involve moral turpitude."

http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/mld/ledgerenquirer/news/local/15343967.htm

[EFerrari]

3. CT: New voting machines for November elections

New voting machines for November elections

By: Marilyn Moss, Special to the Bulletin
08/24/2006

The Connecticut Secretary of the State, Susan Bysiewicz, has announced plans to implement new voting systems for the state. The change was undertaken to satisfy the Help America Vote Act, which went into effect Jan. 1 for federal elections. The law mandates that accessible, private and independent voting privileges be provided to all voters, including voters with disabilities.

The state will invest in two types of voting systems to meet the needs of Connecticut voters. One system, the AccuVote optical scanner, a Diebold machine supplied by LHS Associates, has been in use for a number of years in several towns in Connecticut. This will replace the former lever machines which can no longer be used.


The AccuVote scanner is compact and user-friendly, requiring little training. The voter must fill in small ovals that correspond to the candidate of their choice, much like marking a standardized test. Once the ballot is completed, it is fed into the scanning machine to be counted. A paper receipt is printed to be reviewed, but not removed, by the voter. This ballot is then deposited into a sealed area for use if a recount is necessary.

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1661&dept_id=9538&newsid=17095115&PAG=461&rfi=9

[EFerrari]

4. FL: Security advocate says voting machine test inadequate

Security advocate says voting machine test inadequate

By George Bennett

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Thursday, August 24, 2006

An initial plan to test some of Palm Beach County's electronic voting machines by conducting a "parallel election" during the Sept. 5 primary doesn't go far enough toward simulating election-day conditions, a security advocate who advised the county says.

The parallel election was among the measures suggested in March by the Brennan Center for Justice to an elections technology panel put together by county Elections Supervisor Arthur Anderson.

The exercise involves randomly taking machines that have been programmed for a real election and voting on them according to a predetermined script to see if the machines accurately record votes.

An elections office plan calls for a test of 41 of the approximately 4,300 machines to be used in the primary. A testing team is to cast 14 ballots on each machine while another team watches and a third team videotapes the process to make sure the testers accurately follow the scripts.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/politics/content/local_news/epaper/2006/08/24/m4b_parallel_0824.html

[EFerrari]

5. IL: Early voting polls limited to just 32 locations

Early voting polls limited to just 32 locations

BY JOHN HUSTON | STAFF WRITER
[e-mail]

Polls to be open Oct. 16-Nov. 2 for Nov. 7 election

Suburban Cook County residents wishing to vote early in the general election will have far fewer sites to do so.

The county will provide 32 suburban locations for "early voting" Oct. 16-Nov. 2 for the Nov. 7 general election, a deep drop from the 142 sites available prior to the March primary.

"This is an appropriate number given the size of Cook County, and we couldn't deploy more than that," said Cook County Clerk David Orr. "There is no money to do more sites than this."

The locations and their hours of operation, which have not been released by Orr's office, were chosen by dividing the county into regions based on population to provide the most convenient positions possible, Orr said. Suburban voters can vote at any of them. Each will have five voting stations.

http://www.pioneerlocal.com/cgi-bin/ppo-story/localnews/current/no/08-24-06-1009315.html

[EFerrari]

6. MD: Machines will delay Montgomery vote results

Machines will delay Montgomery vote results

By Arlo Wagner
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
August 24, 2006

Montgomery County election officials say they probably will not provide results from the Sept. 12 primary before midnight.

Security and technology issues involved with electronic touch-screen voting machines -- which will be used statewide for the first time next month -- will slow the gathering of counted votes from the county's 238 precincts, they said.

"The election results will be late, maybe by midnight," said Nancy H. Dacek, president of the Montgomery County Board of Elections.

http://washingtontimes.com/metro/20060823-103731-4689r.htm

[EFerrari]

7. MA: Write-in candidates face tougher time on paper ballots

Write-in candidates face tougher time on paper ballots


By STEVE LeBLANC
Associated Press Writer


BOSTON— Write-in and sticker candidates in this fall's elections are facing a unique hurdle in many of the state's smaller communities.

Unlike the optical scan ballots used in most larger cities and towns, the paper ballets in 71 of the state's 351 cities and towns don't have a separate line where voters can write in a candidate's name or place a sticker for sticker campaigns.

Instead voters have to squeeze the name in the blank spaces between office-seekers whose names are printed on the ballot.

Critics say that's a disadvantage for write-in candidates running for county or statewide seats and who must compete in many different communities. They say it's harder for voters to know where on the ballot to write in the name of a candidate.

http://www.telegram.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060823/APN/608230907

[EFerrari]

8. OH: Officials say vote discrepancies resolved in Cuyahoga

Officials say vote discrepancies resolved in Cuyahoga
Associated Press

CLEVELAND - Election officials in the state's most populous county say a review of vote totals from the May primary shows that Diebold Inc.'s touch-screen machines were accurate.

The review comes after an independent study released last week by California-based Election Science Institute found vote totals did not always match. The study raised concerns about the reliability of the systems, used by more than half of Ohio's voters in 46 other counties.

"The damage has been done," said Bob Bennett, chairman of the Cuyahoga County elections board. "That stays out there in the public's mind."

Working with Diebold technicians, Cuyahoga officials spent the weekend reviewing the discrepancies between vote totals recorded on the machines' internal memory and the removable memory cards in 13 of the 50 polling locations studied by ESI.

http://www.ohio.com/mld/beaconjournal/15343950.htm

[EFerrari]

9. PA: Voting machines pass review

Voting machines pass review
Study showing inaccuracies was flawed, say Diebold, Cuyahoga County board
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Mark Niquette
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Cuyahoga County election officials and Diebold said yesterday they have resolved vote discrepancies identified in an independent study of the company’s electronic touch-screen machines — thus proving that the system is accurate.

But the study’s project director countered that other troubling discrepancies remain and should be addressed before the Nov. 7 election.

The study released last week by California-based Election Science Institute concluded that the four ways votes were recorded on the Diebold touchscreen systems used in the May primary in Cuyahoga County did not always match.

The results raised concerns about the reliability of the systems, used by more than half of Ohio’s voters in 46 other counties, including Fairfield and Licking.

http://www.ohioelects.com/?story=dispatch/2006/08/23/20060823-C3-00.html

[EFerrari]

10. TN: Voter registration group with GOP ties banned

Voter registration group with GOP ties banned from Wal-Mart stores in Tenn.
By Erik Schelzig
ASSOCIATED PRESS

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - A voter registration group with Republican ties has been banished from Wal-Mart stores in Tennessee for failing to meet the retailer's standards of nonpartisanship and may soon be shut out of stores in California and Nevada, the retailer's spokesman said Tuesday.

Liberty Consultants wanted to register Wal-Mart shoppers in seven traditionally Republican suburban counties around Nashville. But the request was denied after the company's owner, Gary Thompson, acknowledged to Wal-Mart that he had been hired by Tempe, Ariz.-based Sproul & Associates.

Headed by Nathan Sproul, a former Christian Coalition activist and executive director of the Arizona GOP, Sproul & Associates was paid $7.9 million by the Republican National Committee for consulting and voter registration drives in the 2004 election cycle, according to data compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics.

http://www.contracostatimes.com/mld/cctimes/news/15339336.htm

[EFerrari]

11. WV: Picture ID needed for vote to count

Picture ID needed for vote to count

By David E. Malloy
The Lawrence Herald

IRONTON -- Voters who want to ensure that their ballots are counted on election night need to bring a picture identification showing an address that matches with what poll workers have on voter rolls in the Nov. 7 general election.

Mary "Sis" Wipert, director of the county's board of elections, said that, without proof of identity, the voter will have to cast a provisional ballot that won't be counted on election night. Provisional ballots will be counted between Nov. 18 and 22, Wipert said. "We could have thousands of provisional ballots," she said."These changes don't apply (only) to new voters, they apply to every voter," Wipert said.
ADVERTISEMENT

The board is sending out notices this week to 41,000 registered voters reminding them of the election and telling them their precinct name and where they vote on election day.

http://www.herald-dispatch.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060824/LAWRENCE01/608240317/1001/NEWS10

[EFerrari]

12. WI: Many changes in store for voters in 2006 election

Many changes in store for voters in 2006 election
August 23, 2006

Voters heading to the polls this fall for the November general elections should be aware of new laws involving polling hours and voter registration, according to Karn Moe, Town of Prairie Lake clerk. Voters who are not aware of the changes, may be on the outside looking in when it comes to participating in the right of voting.

New law closes registration early

The last day of voter registration by mail or by special voter registration deputy in Wisconsin this year is now one week earlier-20 days before election day, according to Town of Prairie Lake clerk Karn Moe.

Wednesday, Aug. 23, will be the last day Wisconsinites can register outside of the municipal clerk's office prior to the state's partisan primary on Sept. 12.
Wednesday, Oct. 18, will be the last day for registration outside a municipal clerk's office for the Nov. 7 general election.

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=17100200&BRD=1134&PAG=461&dept_id=150853&rfi=6

[EFerrari]

13. WY: County “recalculates” election results

County “recalculates” election results


By Cara Froedge
August 23, 2006

A “glitch” in Teton County’s voting machines caused errors in unofficial results of the Jackson Town Council’s primary race released by election officials Tuesday night, county officials said Wednesday morning.

As a result, figures released at 8:31 p.m. Tuesday night showed that voters had ousted incumbent Jackson Town Councilman Steve Harrington. A “recalculation” showed that Harrington will advance to the general election along with Melissa Turley, Bob Lenz and Paul Vogelheim, according to the Teton County Web site.

Incumbent council member Scott Anderson will not advance, according to recalculated results posted by the county on the Internet at 8 a.m. on Wednesday morning.

http://www.jacksonholenews.com/article.php?art_id=829

[GuvWurld]

15. Is the ballot definition file the culprit here? (eom)

[JimDandy]

16. Yes. The Teton County Clerk programmed the ballots incorrectly.

The county used ES&S AutoMark machines to mark the voters' paper ballots and ES&S M100 Op Scanners to count them. This election was the first time Teton County had deployed these machines. (Prior to this election, the county used ES&S Optech Eagle machines.)

Sharon Daigle, the Teton County Clerk, and Mary Antrobus, from the County Clerk's office, programmed the ballots with the help of ES&S trainer, Tom Brace. While Ms. Daigle said she takes full responsibility for the programming error, she acknowledged that Mr. Brace was present during the ballot programming. She insists, though, that he was there only in a training capacity and that he was a good trainer. (Geez, our country can't take the strain of any more good trainers like him!)

During tabulation, the county noticed that, in six precincts, the write-in category came in fourth place -- an unusual anomaly. Fortunately, there were just two races in those six precincts: one for Mayor and the other for the Jackson Town Council. The fallout was limited even further, because the candidate for mayor was running unopposed and therefore his position on the ballot didn't change from precinct to precinct. Only the candidates' names in the town council race changed positions.

The poll workers conducted a hand count of the paper ballots (not a "recalculation" as the newspaper calls it) for that race and caught the error. The next morning, after studying the ballot files, the county discovered the reason for the errors. Ms. Daigle agrees that this type of error would have been a disaster had it occurred in Chicago, instead of in a county like hers that has a tiny voting population and a small number of races.

According to Ms. Daigle, the Logic and Accuracy Tests they ran on their machines prior to the election came out correct. Assuming there was no fraud involved, they must have either ran a very limited test deck on every machine, or they didn't check every machine. Had they used a robust test deck and checked even one machine from any of those precincts, they should have caught the ballot definition programming error, right?

Because the increased use of e-voting machines will increase the number of ballot programming errors, we should insist that all counties not only train poll workers to hand-count the paper ballots/records, but be ready to actually do so!

[EFerrari]

14. Mexico: Chiapas results expected this weekend

Chiapas results expected this weekend

August 23, 2006

TUXTLA GUTIERREZ, Mexico --Final results of the tight governor's race in Chiapas state, in which Mexico's main leftist party holds a slight lead over a candidate backed by President Vicente Fox, won't be available until the weekend, electoral officials said Wednesday.


Preliminary results from last weekend's election showed Juan Sabines of the leftist Democratic Revolution Party, or PRD, leading Jose Antonio Aguilar Bodegas of the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, by just over 2,000 votes.

With 94 percent of Chiapas' 4,761 polling places counted, Sabines had 48.39 percent, or 518,118 votes, compared with 48.17 percent, or 515,713 votes, for Aguilar.

Both candidates claimed victory late Sunday, holding celebrations within blocks of each other in the steamy state capital of Tuxtla Gutierrez.

http://www.boston.com/news/world/latinamerica/articles/2006/08/23/chiapas_results_expected_this_weekend/

[Kurovski]

17. A kick and a hug.

Just like a real-life love affair! :hug: