BBV California Voter Foundation (Kim Alexander)

[Joanne98]

For Immediate Release
Friday, April 30, 2004

Contact: Kim Alexander
[phone]

California Voter Foundation applauds Secretary of State's
decertification of touchscreen voting machines

Decision will require e-voting counties to provide paper ballots as an option

Davis, CA --- Today California Secretary of State Kevin Shelley
banned Diebold's TSx touchscreen voting machine and decertified all
other touchscreen voting systems until additional security measures
are met. These measures include requiring counties that use
electronic voting machines to provide voters who prefer to vote on
paper the option to do so. He is also prohibiting the purchase of any
new electronic voting systems in California that do not include a
voter-verified paper audit trail that enables voters and election
officials to verify digital votes are counted as cast.

California Voter Foundation president Kim Alexander praised the
Secretary of State's actions. "California's Secretary of State took
an important, historic step today and turned our state away from
making further investments in risky e-voting equipment."

The California Voter Foundation, along with a number of groups and
concerned voters urged the Secretary of State to ban all electronic
voting systems and prohibit use of such systems until they include a
voter verified paper trail. "While I wish the Secretary of State had
gone further, I am confident that his actions today will dramatically
mitigate e-voting risks in California this November."

Secretary Shelley decertified all electronic voting systems in
California, but left the door open for ten counties using machines
other than the Diebold TSx machine to have their systems recertified
before November if they meet his additional security measures and
provide all voters with the option to cast ballots on paper at
polling places. Other requirements include a ban on electronic
provisional ballots; access by the Secretary of State's office to all
source code used in e-voting systems; a physical security plan from
each vendor and county; and posting of election results at polling
places at the end of the election for public inspection.

Diebold has supplied approximately 18,000 touch screen voting
machines to several California counties; approximately 14,000 of
these machines, or 78 percent of Diebold's California touchscreen
inventory, are TSx machines. "Secretary Shelley's decision today
reduces Diebold's touchscreen inventory in California by 78 percent,
and the overall state inventory of touchscreen machines is reduced by
one third. That's a significant reduction in the use of risky voting
equipment," Alexander said.

She also praised the Secretary of State's decision to require
counties that use paperless touchscreen voting machines to also
provide voters with the option to cast a paper ballot in polling
places. "Giving voters the 'paper or plastic?' choice ensures that
those voters who are concerned about the reliability of e-voting
equipment will exercise their right to vote on November 2."

Of the national implications of California's decision, Alexander said
she anticipates it will have a significant impact. "Election
officials and voters across the country are watching California
closely right now. We are hopeful that other states will continue to
follow Secretary Shelley's lead and enhance the security of voting
systems throughout the country."

The California Voter Foundation is a nonpartisan, nonprofit
organization advancing the responsible use of technology to improve
democracy. More information about the California Voter Foundation is
available at www.calvoter.org.

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