Why there must be a hand recount in Wisconsin

[Ellipsis]

Bear with me those of you who understand this.

In the realm of election fraud scenarios we have yet to recount an entire race where we may suspect fraud and have hand marked ballots.

In Wisconsin hand marked ballots are a requirement with the exception where DRE's (Direct Recording Electronic systems, ie, touch screens) for handicapped voting is allowed. In that instance a thermal paper registers the vote. (Yes I know DRE's thermal tape vote registration can be manipulated.) Plus DRE's have all sorts of interesting vulnerabilites... as well as a vulnerable ballot definition file. If you you need to know more about this sort of thing Wilms or other DU'ers can explain this in a far superior manner then me. Regardless, the number of DRE's used in Wisconsin is relatively small.

The default for the state of Wisconsin on recounts is machine re-tabulation. Typically, op-scans do the physical recount, the numbers get reported upstream to central tabulator, just like a normal election.

For those of you not aware there is something called the "The Hursti Hack". It shows some methods to change votes on intelligent voting machines. (Op-scans are intelligent they use software/firmware)

You can read up on it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hursti_Hack

SO

Lets establish the points of vulnerability of the majority of Wisconsin's voting systems.


The ballot itself

If the ballot is not laid out correctly, if the ballot is printed to lightly, if there is a hand write in, if the ballot marking device is incorrect the vote may not be counted. Machines can not interpret intent.

The Op-scan

It's software can be manipulated. The scanning hardware itself may not be calibrated correctly.


The modem

The modem delivers the votes counted in the op-scan to the central tabulator. The modem could be compromised.

The central tabulator

While not connected to the network, the central tabulator is connected to a modem. I have said before not connecting the tabulator to the main network is a good thing. However having it connected to modem ...well there you go it's vulnerable.


The person running the central tabulator.

That person can be blind, bribed or blackmailed, you pick.


Since so much attention has been called to Waukesha we'll use this as an example.

Now put on your nefarious thinking caps... for some of you, including myself, this is a relatively easy transition, and think like a pirate... or better yet, think like a criminal... or even better yet, think like Oliver North, loyal and willing to anything for the cause.

Now I'm not saying Nickolaus is guilty of anything but I do think she has the loyalty and I do think she could be manipulated. AND... to top it off before she left the Republican Caucus back in the day, her role was in the realm of forecasting the republican vote. She also developed a software program to aid in fund-raising which focused on political demographics. I am indeed curious what happened to that software... but I digress.

Okay, if you were going to perform election fraud how would you do it?

Me, I'd look at past percentages of the voting population and program the op-scan to adjust the total count by the percentages I desire. When it reports the vote to the tape it does so in a formulaic manner and uploads it to the modem to the central tabulator.

Oh, I forgot to mention the poll books are vulnerable. Which they are, given there are no signatures. That would require all lot more people involved in our conspiracy theory. Much tougher to pull off then say one person... the person who maintains and loads the software on the op-scans and most likely maintains the central tabulator as well.

So, for my scenario, the total votes casts is the control. It is the constant in my manipulation and everybody is happy, provided, the votes are not hand counted.

Now maybe the person who controls the central tabulator is in on the deal. Maybe the access database was manipulated in Waukesha county, the ward numbers there are not reported in elections... strange that. Well that doesn't matter. I have shown one plausible way for vote theft to occur and it has been shown by others to be a fact that manipulation can occur.

I don't have to prove election fraud. I just have to show potential cause for a hand recount, not just a hand recount of Waukesha county, a hand recount of the entire state.

A 10% randomly chosen audit will provide a 90% reliability factor whether there has been an election fraud. I would cherry pick well thought voting districts and do a random 10% recount to see if any anomalies occur before I'd recount the entire state.


It's obvious that Prosser has taken the position of expense being a major factor in a recount. This is just the beginning. Actual articles with expense being a factor, for her conceding, started last week after certification, I want to say from King Walker himself was the first to mention it.

If there was a full hand recount what an expense it would be to the state... I wonder if it would amount to as much as the 5 million paid in overtime to police officers Walker brought in because of the collective bargaining issue. The issue he now says will not save the state ANY money.


Cuz you know "we're broke!"


However this WILL play with the people all ready polarized against Kloppenburg and the recall elections. Frankly we can't afford to further divide this state. So let me follow up with a couple final thoughts.

First there is no concern of disenfranchisement here. Prosser's term does not end until August. Nor would (playing the favorite) Kloppenburg's term start until August. This gives plenty of time for a hand count to take place.

It simply boils down to a cost factor.

While I am certain there would be plenty of volunteers on both side to hand count the votes, it still will be costly, and here's the point.

If Kloppenburg says she wants a recount, and she'll pay for an entire hand recount right away rather then going through a machine, it's a win win situation for Kloppenburg and the the dems. It squashes any concern about cost.

Prosser stays on the bench because his term is not up. But from a political stand point, it kinda makes it difficult for him to sit on a case about collective bargaining, if it ever gets that far.

We NEED to to do this. and I'd throw in to pay for it.

[eowyn_of_rohan]

1. wow... Good job and very interesting

"we have yet to recount an entire race where we may suspect fraud and have hand marked ballots"

This is an opportunity that we've not had before (since we started e-voting), and we may not get again (esp if the pace and degree to which the thugs are destroying our state is not stopped).

It is the perfect storm in a sense, for us to go ahead with a statewide hand recount.

Given the .0488% difference it is certainly NOT frivolous, as Prosser's lawyer said today. In fact, it is so extremely close that the state pays for it - they wouldn't do that if it were frivolous. On top of the narrow margin, we have possible malfeasance in Waukesha County. Something also seems off in Milwaukee county, but I haven't done much digging on that.

RE tha ballot - there will surely be some movement in the totals there for the reasons you mention

RE the Op-scans, modem and tabulator - this is the time to find out just how clean our system really is. A candidate shouldn't have to get a court order to have ballots recounted but there is a good reason why the Op-scans require a court order.

As Peace PAtriot recently wrote, "The private corporations that have invaded our vote counting systems ALSO WRITE THE AUDIT AND RECOUNT LAWS. This was part of a wave of corruption from the $3.9 billion e-voting boondoggle passed by the Anthrax Congress (in the same month as the Iraq War Resolution, Oct '02!). This bill included no oversight, and no required audit/recount controls at all, and induced filthy lobbying, lobbying junkets, our election officials enticed by money and power, and the e-voting corporate lawyers writing the laws. It strikes me as outrageous that a candidate has to go to court to get a real hand-count. This is a corporate lawyer written law! And it is an example of the extreme danger of the corporate invasion of our vote counting system.

Your ideas about how a hack may be performed so that they get away with it are excellent. You've convinced me. I wonder if Klop's camp has thought of it all in this way. Certainly Nickolaus is expert in this department, as her role under Prosser, I believe, was to develop software to track rethug performance in each precinct in every district in the state...imagine what else could be done with that data. Yeah, where IS that software?

I am impressed.

[Ellipsis]

6. boot.

[diddlysquat]

14. kick!

[elocs]

2. We must remember that Uncle Joe Stalin had no trouble manipulating the vote with paper ballots.

There's always a way.

[Ellipsis]

3. Whats your point?

[elocs]

8. That's it. Even with simple, recountable paper ballots elections may always be stolen. n/t

[eowyn_of_rohan]

9. Theft by computer with hidden software codes = far more theft and lack of paper trail

The Integrity of our Computer Election System needs testing: FULL STATEWIDE HAND RECOUNT

adding - while original ballots do provide a paper trail for most of our computer voting machines now (most are Op-scan), candidate must obtain a COURT ORDER to hand count these actual ballots. They must make a case as to WHY they need to hand count them. Remember how uncooperative Florida judges were during the 2000 Florida recount. Look at the obstructionism from the Prosser camp ALREADY. His attorney said yesterday, "We will take every and any step to prevent this frivolous matter going forward".

[Ellipsis]

4. kick

[buddysmellgood]

5. Cost isn't an issue. This is an election. It's important. We spend what we need to spend

to do it right. Anything less is unAmerican.

[upi402]

7. +1,000 We have $$$ for GE war machinery

and don't need to ask them to chip into the treasury. We have $$$ to bail out bankster crooks. We have the $$ to extend the Bush tax cuts... to take 'medicare for all' off the table...

ad infinitum

[eowyn_of_rohan]

10. Email Kloppenburg & Tell Her We Need a STATEWIDE HAND RECOUNT - Address:

[e-mail]

This is our opportunity to test the integrity of the election system. With the way things are going in this country, will we get another?

[marions ghost]

11. yep

good explanation

[eowyn_of_rohan]

12. Kick for Democracy!

a Statewide Hand Recount, and a great OP

[Ellipsis]

13. kick