Seqioua's DRE's to invade Essex county

TO all DUers intereseted in the GRASP Voting Issues Project.

Recently it has come to our attention that the Essex County Supervisor of Elections has decided to purchase Touchscreen Voting machines (DRE's, Direct Recording Electronic) from Seqioua. These Voting Machines will be equipped with the paper receipt printer.

During this time of Federal, State, and County budget deficits, the need for fiscal constraint is clear. The County Supervisor of Elections has chosen the most expensive Voting system currently available. This is unacceptable.

Of the voting systems that qualify for funds under the Help America Vote Act of 2002, a touchsreen voting system is three times as expensive as the next cheapest system, optical scanners. One optical scanner can process 100 or more paper ballots per hour. One DRE or touchscreen voting machine can process about 10 ballots per hour. One human being can count 20 paper ballots for president in one minute. When one factors in the cost of Warehousing and preparation of touchscreen voting machines, and remember you need 10 times the number of touchscreens compared to optical scanners, the choice is clear. The optical scanner is the fiscally responsible purchase. And if you consider that the optical scanner feeds ballot information into a computer--your vote still ends up in the computerized corporate ballot box. It becomes obvious that without the Federal funds from HAVA these computerized voting systems would not be very popular. And it should be clear to everyone that the most fiscally prudent voting system currently available is the paper ballot. Which is also the most reliable.

Our task is clear. Education and action. Educating the public as to the issues of cost and reliability of voting into a Black Box. Developing a mandate from this educational process, and using the mandate to take action that effects positive change.

I will be forming a team that will be tasked with mapping out a plan and implementing that plan. I have already sent out 2 requests for speakers who are conversant on the issue of Black Box Voting. All that remains is to pick a date and a site for the community forum. Volunteers will tasked with writing: press releases, letters to public officals, compiling addresses and emails of reporters. And dont forget: talking to your friends and nieghbors about our task and why it is so important. And maybe you can talk one of your friends into volunteering.



SO you want in on the action? Give me 3 hours a week for the next 3 to 4 weeks and I'll cut you in on a peice of the action. And you won't feel so helpless.

Roger Dana Fox
Chair, GRASP: Voting Issues Project
graspVIP@ yahoo.com