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I just received your reply to the letter I sent you concerning the problems of voter suppression and fraud in the election of 2004. Your response convinces me that either you, like many other congresspeople, are woefully ignorant of the issues here or you are being willfully obtuse.
Fair and equal access to the vote is the bedrock of a representative society; without it, there is no democracy. That is why it is so vital that you understand today what has happened in Ohio and elsewhere in the nation in this "election", and join your colleagues in insisting on a full, thorough and independent investigation in order to produce an outcome that the nation can recognize as legitimate.
If you have been paying attention to the problems cited in this year's contest, you would notice there are three main categories: Methodical suppression of Democratic blocs through subtle or even outright voter intimidation from misdirection to outright threats; registration "mistakes"; and inadequate or unreliable voting systems.
As you are also certainly aware, Congressman John Conyers of the House Judiciary Committee has called for a GAO investigation and has conducted two hearings on this election, in D.C. and in Ohio. As a result he requested the involvement of the FBI and at least one Ohio county prosecutor. If this doesn't indicate that something went seriously wrong with this election, I don't know what it will take to convince you and others in Congress to act.
In your letter, you tell me of your co-sponsorship of a bill, which among other reforms, requires that all voting systems produce a voter-verified paper record for use in manual audits. It also bans the use of undisclosed software and wireless communications devices. I regret to state that this bill will not "solve" the problems we have experienced with this and other elections since 2000.
Members of congress, and those in particular who are co-sponsors of such "Voter Confidence" bills, need to quickly and thoroughly become educated about the true problems with our "voting system". You must all understand that you cannot fix this by simply insisting upon a "voter verified paper trail", nor by "eliminating wireless communications and undisclosed software".
Even with the demands of such legislation met, there can and will still occur tampering with either or both the precinct and central tabulators. And that tampering is not discoverable until or unless there is a "close vote", prompting a full audit. Further, the mechanisms of discovery (contest and recounting procedures) vary from state to state and in some states from precinct to precinct, so these are purely at the "whim" of partisan secretaries of state.
I suggest you read the information widely available on the Internet and consult with the acknowledged experts in voting technology to fully understand the problems here. One site that explains them quite clearly is written by a Republican "hacker", whose website address is: www.chuckherrin.com. To a person, the experts conclude: ELECTRONIC VOTING SYSTEMS ARE NOT SAFE AND CANNOT BE MADE TO BE SAFE.
Neither must you ignore the outright voter suppression that occurred in this election. Get-out-the-vote grassroots groups mobilized for this election with unprecedented zeal. In anticipation of the heavy turnout, multiple tactics were employed to deliberately suppress the vote in heavily democratic precincts, including inadequate machinery, outright intimidation and registration errors or omissions.
Likewise, in anticipation of such tactics, this year also saw unprecedented participation by grassroots organizations to witness, prevent and document voter suppression and irregularities. Tens of thousands of such occurrences have been documented. This documentation makes a strong case that this election established a dangerous new level of attempts to disenfranchise Democratic voters across the country.
Many of these grassroots groups are organizing through local chapters of national groups. Many have also joined ranks with civil rights movements whose primary concern has traditionally been voter suppression. These coalitions need ongoing support and interaction with their state's representatives at both local and national levels.
These groups have launched numerous events and actions in order to encourage and support our representatives in challenging the "outcome" on January 6, 2004. Their shared conviction is that Congress must forestall certifying the electoral college votes until we can complete a full, thorough and independent investigation of this election or make a decision not to recognize the votes of any state whose results remain in question.
I have asked you before and I am asking again, if you truly care about protecting the right to vote, please join your colleagues in helping us to stop this process before it is too late, so that we may have a complete and thorough investigation before declaring any "winners" and that the people's will WILL be served.
May I remind you that the "irregularities" in these elections since 2000 have consistently favored Republicans. Recent polls have shown that the "red shift" is not an accident, nor is it an indication of the country moving in a conservative direction. Rather, it is a deliberate and systematic manipulation of the vote by the Republican party in order to methodically eliminate the Democratic party altogether. And, regrettably, it is working.
By getting involved NOW, the seat you save next time may, in fact, be your own.
Thank you.
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