An idea for automated vote counting using optical scan. [View All]

(Don't split hairs with me here, this is still a concept.)
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Part 1, ballot counting:
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Build a machine, and all it can do is count the voter marks by rows A, B, C, D, ... That is literally all it does. (and it does that by a looking at a physical x-y location on the card, sort of like a punch card setup but optically performed.) You *can not* change the program in this machine.

Before the election, candidates are randomly assigned to row A,B or C (and grouped together by race). Ballots are printed according to the outcome of the random assignment.
(Random assignment is actually the weak link here, but assume it's possible).

It seems impossible to me, that you could rig the vote counting at the machine, because the machine has no knowledge of which candidate is in which row.

Only the human beings know that column "A" is the dem candidate, column "B" is the rep, and column "C" is not used, or other. So the election officials perform the logical mapping of which candidate got how many votes. It is simple.

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Part 2, final tabulation
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This is done with human beings, phones, and many pairs of eyeballs.

You then would need to phone in the results to the next "level up".
This is done, as well as the results are posted outside the polling location.

At the next "level up", the subtotals are totaled, and all of their individual results are posted, and phoned in. It would be the responsibility of all the "lower levels" to insure that their individual results as posted by the next level up was correct.

You now have a system where "many pairs of eyes" can check and cross-check at every level in the system.