Washblog

Thanks for posting this. I've forwarded it to interested persons.

by Karen Backman on Mon May 14, 2007 at 06:40:06 AM PST

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I'm going to try to go to this tonight.  

Each of these decisions -- particularly in major counties -- can make a difference for 08.

We need to turn around the bureaucratic mindset on this -- make the issues crystal clear: private voting, public counting -- transparent operations.  Elections belong to the people -- not to corporations or administrators.  

by noemie maxwell on Mon May 14, 2007 at 09:02:47 AM PST

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I've posted our talking points to the WCFE Yahoo Group. (Sorry, you have to be a member for access. I couldn't figure out how to upload the file to WashBlog. Ugh.)

Reckless Plan (v2).pdf

Here's a poorly formatted cut & paste:

Washington Citizens for Fair Elections

We Oppose King County's Reckless Plan to Buy Diebold's New Ballot Counter

May 14, 2007

We oppose King County's reckless plan to buy Diebold's new ballot counters.

New ballot counters (tabulators) will not yield faster election results. Because you cannot count ballots you have not yet received.

Multiple changes to our elections over a short time period, just before a Presidential election, stresses the system and is too risky.

Changing too much too fast is a recipe for failure. King County Elections is already adopting vote by mail, moving central count to a new location, has a new Director of REALS, introducing Regional Voting Centers, etc. This amount of change would be like getting married, moving to a new state, taking a new job, and having a child - all in one year.

King County Elections must restore our confidence, not undermine it.

Restoring confidence in our elections is the charter of the Citizens Election Oversight Committee. Buying these unnecessary Diebold tabulators at this time will weaken our confidence. Therefore, the CEOC has no choice but to advise the King County Council to not buy Diebold's new ballot counters.

Contact Info:

Jason Osgood
206-784-9416
zappini@gmail.com

Washington Citizens for Fair Elections is a non-partisan group.

(Last updated May 15th, 2007)

Response to the Business Plan

King County Elections has published a Vote By Mail Transition Plan and a Highspeed Tabulator Business Case. The following is a summary of concerns for election integrity activists.

Fallacy of Early Election Results

The primary justification for buying Diebold's new tabulator is the need for early election results on election day. You cannot count ballots you have not received. Most ballots are received on or near election day. (See graphs, attached.)

Further, during crunch time, processing ballots typically takes 3 days. That includes pickup, sorting into batches, signature verification, reconciliation, opening, squishing, and tabulation. So ballots received on election day won't be counted until 3 days later.

Troubling Ballot Image Scanners

Diebold new ballot counters (tabulators) takes a digital picture of the ballot and stores it. The software recognizes the voting marks and creates a database record of the votes found.

Counting Ballots Before Election Day

Our state's Attorney General was asked for an opinion on "pre-processing" ballots before election day. The answer is if ballots are simply scanned, no problem. But actually counting the votes is not legal. KCE intends to "adjudicate" ballots before election, which first requires a ballot's votes to be counted. Therefore, how KCE intends to use the new system would be illegal.

"Cheat Peeks"

Pima County Arizona also uses a ballot image scanner system. Pima County "pre-processes" their ballots before election day, as King County intends to do. The temptation to "cheat peek" at their early returns proved too great for the elections officials in Pima County to resist.

No Manual Recounts

Under current laws and procedures, ballots are manually duplicated as needed to honor the voter's intent. Diebold's new system will be used to modify the database record for the ballot, not that ballot image itself, a process called "adjudication." In the event of a recount, KCE proposes printing modified ballots from the database. There will not be a control number to link the modified ballot to the original paper ballot, as required by law.

Manual recounts happen nearly every general election.

Computerized Voting Machines

Regional Voting Centers will not have paper ballots, only computerized voting machines. Diebold AccuVote TSx touchscreens have been proven insecure and unreliable. There is a nationwide movement away from computerized voting machines, Recently, both Florida Governor Crist (R) and New Mexico Governor Richardson (D) have banned the use of these machines.

Provisional Voting on Touchscreens

Provisional voting on computerized voting machines sacrifices voter privacy. If it was private, there would be no way to accurately remove a challenged provisional ballot from the election.

All electronic with no contingency plan

There will be no paper-based system at the Regional Voting Centers. That includes poll ballots, poll books, inspector's lists, etc. What happens in the event of an emergency? There is no contingency plan.

Using Uncertified Software and Hardware

Voting and counting systems are certified for use as a whole system, not in parts. Under the current rules, the new system, including Diebold's new tabulator and upgraded touchscreens, cannot be tested and certified in time for the April 2008 election. To do so, the Secretary of State would have change the rules, ignore the rules, or both.

Diebold Security Myth

All independent security reviews of all the voting and counting systems have found fatal and irredeemable security flaws. This includes all of Diebold's products. Diebold's new tabulating system hasn't even been certified, let alone independently inspected. Therefore, no one can claim it is secure.

Guinea Pig

King County would be one of the first customers of Diebold's new highspeed tabulator. Previously, our state's rules required our voting and counting systems to be used by two other states before our state would certify a system. That's still a good idea.

Inappropriate Use of HAVA Grant Money

Help America Vote Act was authorized by the US Congress to enable disabled voters to vote in private. Appropriate expenditures are ensuring wheel chair accessibility, assistive voting technologies, and voter education. Spending HAVA Grant money on unrelated items is grossly inappropriate.

GEMS Database Limitation

KCE claims that we need a completely new system because our current Diebold GEMS database can't handle our elections. In other words, we need to spend roughly $5,000,000 to workaround a flaw in a $200 database.

However, the new system would also use GEMS. LA County, which is fives times larger that King County, uses GEMS. Easy workarounds exist, such as splitting the election into "north" and "south" King Counties or increasing the size of the batches (making larger, fewer batches).

Old Equipment Needs Replacing

KCE claims that our existing optical scanners are old, failing, and must be replaced. Five units apparently had to be replaced during the March special election. Fortunately, under KCE's current plans, we'll have a stock of ~600 replacement units once the poll sites are closed. Assuming 5 fail per election, we own a 20 year supply.

Resources

Ballot Rate of Return by Mail 2006
http://www.secstate.wa.gov/elections/pdf/Ballot_Rate_of_Return_by_Mail_2006.pdf

Pre-Election Vote Total Access in Pima County AZ
http://www.bbvforums.org/forums/messages/1954/46569.html

Vote By Mail Transition Plan
www.metrokc.gov/elections/votebymail/

Highspeed Tabulator Business Case
http://www.metrokc.gov/elections/votebymail/Project_Business_VBM_TabulationFINAL_2_.pdf

Florida Moves to Paper Ballots! (May 3, 2007)
http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2429&Itemid=113

by zappini on Tue May 15, 2007 at 11:47:17 AM PST

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Zappini requested that I post this.  This is my testimony from yesterday's CEOC hearing.

I am a Democratic Party PCO and a poll worker.

I am sure that I can speak for everyone in this room when I say that the 2008 presidential election is one the most critical elections in our recent history.  For this reason I find any significant changes in how we conduct elections, to be too risky in this critical election year.

If KCE follows through on the plan to move to an all vote by mail election just in time for the 2008 election, this change alone, added to a move to a new facility, and a new elections director, is risky enough.  Now KCE wants to add more risk to the mix, by purchasing brand new technology. In fact, it appears that KCE finds it appropriate to make our County's 2008 presidential election, the testing ground for this yet uncertified, untested, brand new, Diebold technology.

Now when I say brand new---I mean brand new.  These ballot tabulators and software have never been used by anyone -- in any election.  This equipment has not even gone through the federal certification process. By both federal and state law, federal certification is mandatory.  Yet-- KCE somehow feels confident that this yet uncertified, untested, brand new Diebold technology, is the best option in our first major all vote by mail election, during one of the most significant presidential elections in recent history.  

Well I say this, - this plan is JUST TOO RISKY!

Frankly, given the importance of the 2008 election, and the changes already taking place during this short election cycle,  a significant purchase of ANY new technology, whether it be Diebold or HartInterCivic, --- IS JUST TOO RISKY!

by raincity calling on Tue May 15, 2007 at 07:51:10 PM PST

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