Touch screens worry voters

[Judi Lynn]

Posted on Mon, Nov. 10, 2003

ELECTIONS
Touch screens worry voters
South Florida voter opinions reflect increasing national concern about the security of electronic voting and the desire for a paper record.
BY ERIKA BOLSTAD
[e-mail]

As voting reform sweeps the nation, its main mechanism -- the electronic voting machine -- is increasingly under fire.

Miami-Dade and Broward counties already are exploring ways to enhance voter confidence in the machines, and 25 percent of likely voters polled in Broward said they were ''not confident at all'' that the electronic system would accurately tally their vote.

While most people who had used the machines said they were ''very satisfied,'' more than half said it was important to have a paper record of their vote -- something that does not exist at present. The telephone survey was conducted last week for The Herald by Florida Voter.

''I think if people knew more about the potential problems associated with the machines, the number would actually be higher,'' said U.S. Rep. Robert Wexler, a Boca Raton Democrat who has been advocating paper records for the voting machines used in South Florida. (snip/...)

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/7224229.htm

[ibegurpard]

1. They should worry voters.

What I can't figure out is why they don't worry more of our congress people.

[Spazito]

2. This is good news!

The BBV issue is mainstream, big time, now!

[leanstreets23]

3. Back for a moment to Jim Crow & paperpunch logic

Thanks apparently to the ruling elite's longtime planning, much good business has come of Florida voters' original complaints about the old machines. Back then, hearing citizens' accounts, it seemed pretty clear someone'd gone around and plugged up certain holes, maybe came back through later and unplugged 'em too.

Therefore the chads. Oh, and bad layouts on the printmatter. Simple enugh?

A coup d'etat changes everything, turns the simple complex, the obvious into 'conspiracy', the wildly coincidental into everyday partyline gospel.

[newyawker99]

9. Hi leanstreets23!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[BloodyWilliam]

4. We need to do our own massive push-poll on this.

"Do you favor conventional electrion methods, where your vote is carefully recorded and you are given a reciept or similar confirmation of your vote, or an electronic situation with no possible way of confirming your actual vote?"

[BigLed]

5. flock

"Electronic voting is not only prone to errors and susceptible to fraud, but leaves no paper trail for a recount, Dill said.

And that seems to be the biggest obstacle to the faith of the voting flock"

flock? I have stopped calling the people "sheeple" but I guess others think that it's is an appropriate appellation. heh.

[gauguin57]

6. on this american life ...

There was a very disturbing report on this past weekend's "This American Life" radio show about touchscreen voting. The highlights of the segment (on a show with the theme "The Annoying Gap Between Theory and Practice") were:

1) a computer consultant showing how easy it is to hack into election software (two of the companies "accidentally" left copies of their software downloadable on the Internet!!!) and change data.

2) a policy consultant who has been advocating computer printouts of the touchscreen voting (you'd vote on the machine, and also put the paper printout into a ballot box -- for you to check, and in case of a recount). She keeps running into brick walls because she believes election officials -- paradoxically -- don't want to have a repeat of the Florida 2000 situation (with individual ballots being examined in front of the news cameras).

She also noted that a vital step that pollwatchers used to perform -- checking the inside of the old-fashioned voting machines (and doing a test vote) at the beginning of the election day -- is impossible with computers (mainly because the companies that produce the software say it's "proprietary," and therefore secret).

VERY SCARY REPORT!! I actually started crying while I was listening to it. I felt the same anxiety I felt in the fall of 2000!

The show will be archived soon at www.thisamericanlife.org. It's the 11/7 show.

[VeniceBeat]

8. Heard It! Great!

Just like this article--- drip, drip, drip....

[MostlyBlackCat2]

7. kicking

this needs to KEEP getting media attention. It amazed me that no one bothered to question how they could shut down blackboxvoting.com just a few weeks before the CA elections - how convenient.

[leftchick]

10. kick

:kick: