Reply #11: Semantics is right! [View All]

[Bill Bored]

I think our thinking has evolved to the point where if the voter doesn't mark the paper by hand, or with an assist device, it's not a paper ballot.

But if the "trail" is VOTER-VERIFIED, it's an improvement over no voter-verified paper at all.

That said, you can hand count the paper ballots, or you can Op Scan them. Both would be initial counts, whereas the "trails" would only be used for audits and recounts.

But whether you have a DRE with a VVPT or a paper ballot, optically scanned, your law should require random auditing of some percentage of machines or precincts in order to catch fraud. I hope it does! And if not, get Bill Richardson to put it in there before he signs it!