Humboldt County Supervisors Approve Diebold Touch Screen Machines

I feel rather disgusted at this moment. The Elections Department made a presentation today to the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors in which they asserted that no current system will fully satisfy or create conditions for full voter confidence. It was nice that they recognized this as a criteria, but acknowledging it can't be met made their request to purchase between 76 and 110 Diebold touch screen machines utterly asinine. For the Supes to go along with this proposal was even worse.

As I addressed the Supes, one of the new points I tried out today was an analogy between the voting machines and a hypothetical communications system for the police department. I pointed out that if messages sent by dispatch to patrol units were likely to be garbled by static, or sent to the wrong patrol unit, or be received with different content than was originally sent, then the County would surely not follow a law mandating that they imperil the safety of our community through use of such a system. We must likewise reject the requirements of HAVA (Help America Vote Act), or at the least join efforts to repeal or delay its implementation.

MORE: http://guvwurld.blogspot.com/2005/04/humboldt-county-supervisors-approve.html

while OP scan processes max 360 ballots per hour.

DRE's are 3 times as expensive as the next cheapest system abailble that quallifies for funds under HAVA.

"Myth Breakers: Facts about Electronic Elections" is a 70-page document, fully footnoted with the news articles and reports that were the sources of the information. Activists all over the country have been distributing it to their local election officials and law makers to inform them about many of the issues surrounding electronic voting. It is a good introduction to the issues for new activists and press as well. It is here:
http://www.votersunite.org/MB2.pdf

We also have a 14-page handout detailing some of the problems with touch screen machines. It is here:
http://www.votersunite.org/info/ElectronicVotingInBrief.pdf

And pdf files of problems with voting systems, sorted by vendor here: http://www.votersunite.org/info/messupsbyvendor.asp


In case you have not seen Rosemarie Myerson's cost comparison of operating DREs vs opscans, you should take a look at it, too. http://www.votersunite.org/info/costcomparison.asp


I'm in the same boat here in Essex COunty NJ, we are taking on the County SOE if need be he will feel the rath of the people--us.
Roger---
Grassroots Action Supporting Progress-GRASP
graspvip@yahoo.com

Are you ready to take your SOE on--? if you need some help--dont hesitate to email. I'm a Camp Wellstone grad and I'm sure I have something that will help-

Roj

Thanks for the helping hand. Could you please tell me what SOE stands for? Is that Secretary of Elections? I'm guessing you read the rest of my blog entry and you're talking about Lindsey McWilliams, our County Elections Manager. Whatever we want to call him...there doesn't seem to be an appetite even among my group, the Voter Confidence Committee, for taking him on. I'm not certain it would be the best strategy anyway. I don't know who considers this relevant but I'll just point out that the man is not elected.

What is more important to know about our area is that we actually seem to have all the money we'll need for whatever HAVA compliance steps we'll be taking. Our libraries are shutting down but we can invest in high-tech fraud-boxes. You may as well put your lovely assistant in there and pretend to saw her in half.

I don't know why this is really, but money is not a factor. The main thing the Elections Department (Lindsey and County Clerk Carolyn Crnich) seems focused on is minimal compliance. They acknowledge that even the system they propose to purchase is not yet certified but they expect it to become so during this month and they want to begin negotiating now. I don't really get the minimal part, though it feels like disingenuous appeasement, as if the discovery of a few cancer cells is OK because it's really not a lot.

I want to just scream WHATEVER!! The Elections Department talked out of both sides of its mouth and the Board of Supervisors was incurious and insufficiently suspicious despite the evidence presented (I brought them each a copy of Myth Breakers at their 3/15 meeting). The Supes didn't even respond to the notion that we have no business doing business with companies having such a track record.

Not sure what's next...

SOE_ Supervisor of ELections, might be SEc in your area---

Here is an outline for my master plan:
1)Issue Concept.
A)Essex County is about to buy the worst possible Voting System.
1) DRE's can't be trusted, they are known to not be reliable. In 2004 there were hundreds of thousands of irregularities in many as a dozen or more states.
a) Vote switching.
b) One Hundred thousand+ selected a full party slate that did not not register a vote for president.
c) Precinct results claiming more votes than registered voters.
d)DRE's and tabulators use propietary software that cannot be audited by Election Officials.
e)DRE's are 3 times as expensive as the next cheapest voting system.
B) Essex County needs to use paper ballots, counted by hand. Not by a corporate owned computer run by TOP SECRET software.
C)Who has a vested interest? Democrats, Republicans, Independants. Labor Unions, Religious organizations, civic groups. We have a lot of allies.
D) The key decisiom maker is the Essex County Supervisor of Elections Carmine
E) How does Carmine frame the issue? What is his story, and what is the alternative.
2)Our immediate goal is prevent the purchase of anymore DRE's for use in Essex County. Eventually we would like to see all of Essex County vote with paper ballots counted by hand.
A) We need to focus on the Essex County SOE and the Essex County Executive.
B) Nearly every voter can be considered our base constituency.
C) Who can put pressure on Carmine? He has chosen to spend money frivolously in time of Federal, State and County deficits.
D) Our key Messsage, Its the deficit stupid:
1) 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 300 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.

E) The Underlying Message: The corporate owned ballot box acnnot be trusted.
2) 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.
3)Tactics &Activities.
A) Earned Media, that's media coverage we dont pay for, we earn it.
B) Organize Events with the aim of educating the public.
1) Invite Public Officials with name recognition to events, in an effort to garner Media attention.
2) Invite experts to speak.
C) Organize Election reform Rally.
4)Organizational structure.
A) Chairman: Roger Fox.
5) The Master plan to rid Essex County of DRE's:
A)Create Info packs: explaining why the purchase of Touchscreen voting equipment is wrong.
Incuding cost per unit: a-Touchscreen, b-optical scanner
B)PR for Radio, print and broadcast TV.
1)Data mining of broadcast TV web sites for
a)Emails for:
1)On Air Political reporters
2)News Directors
b)snail mail for News room/News Directors
C)Notice for Public Ofiicials.
1)Gov
2)Corzine & Lautenberg-senators
3)SOS/NJ
4)County Exec.
5)County Super/Elections
6)Congressional Rep
7)State Legislators
8)Every Mayor in Essex County
D) Notice for our sister Activist groups, DFA essex, Blue wave NJ, Union county blue, SHU/NJIT
E) Event: Educational Forum
1) Site-Baird Center? SOMA Library's?
2)Date
3)Speakers
4) Create PR for Event,
1)Radio, Print and broadcast TV
2)Our sister activist groups
F)Election reform Rally.
1)May 1st, 2005
2)site
3)Speakers

Item #5A: The 1st wave should go out no later than April 10th. The 2nd wave by April 14th.
Item #5B: Arrangments must be made as soon as possible for the use of a room (for example, at the Maplewood Library. They require 2 weeks lead time).
Item #5F: Rally is being organized by 51 capitalmarch.com, and may include V.O.T.E., Essex County Democrats, and other NJ based activists groups, such as GRASP, Blue Wave, DFA, CFPJ, Union County Blue.
All those who wish to help will be welcomed. Contact roger@51capitalmarch.com

----------------------------------------------------------------

Take my outline and make it yours-make it specific to your county. this will be your MASTER PLAN.

These contracts can be broken--these machines can be kept out of your county. Educational public forums are great--most public libraries have a meeting room you can sign up for. there is your venue.

Keeping your group energized can be a problem--the solution is to have immediate goals that can be accomplished--like a little protest.
ten people with poster board and a large marker to make signs is all you need. then congratulate those folks on a good event. Most will be eager to do it again.

Write press releases for TV- news papers etc. Dont be shy, just do it.
Write all the dem public officals in your county, surrounding towns and thru the state.

You can set the example in your state. Let the rest of the county's know there are folks putting up a fight to stop this crap.
Once you win --the reat of the SOE's will be paying attention to you.

In Essex County NJ we will win. Will set the standard for the rest of the county's in the state.

So dont be afraid to figuritivly "Kick the door down and ruff these folks up until they say uncle".

thats when you & I will celebrate together.

I have collected actual Diebold DRE data that shows the machines do not 'accurately' tally the votes...

in this emergency case, I'd like to email you some of the findings of my Election Fraud Audit in Georgia (as well as a police report of Stolen Diebold equipment) without serial numbers that this single document should invalidate any interest in buying Diebold anywhere..

you also have to attack the #'s and cost , so here goes..

Single Day cost of Diebold Employee
$1500 / day with 3 day minimum

$93 / Machine cost of maintenance, will hit them in year 2 of the contract and this will not be funded by HAVA or the state.. will hit the Superintendent of the county's bottom line....

NO ABILITY to have an inexpensive / certified printer Diebold once your vendor can charge anything for the printers and for MD this price came to $73M just for the printers...

BOttom line, I can give you lots and lots of actual data to prove the Diebold does not accurately tally your votes...

I will PM you my email....

Conny McCormak is not only the LA County Clerk, she's also the head of an association of CA State county election officials.

She hates Shelley, and advocates for DRE's.

Here, in this recently published story, she complains,

"Voting must compy with the act by next year. "That's how much time we have left and yet there is no certified equipment," McCormack said."

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050319/NEWS01/503190368/1056/news01


Hmmm. That's curious given this story from two months earlier.

SECRETARY OF STATE KEVIN SHELLEY CERTIFIES VOTING SYSTEM WITH PAPER AUDIT TRAIL
First AVVPAT System Certified for Statewide Use in California

http://www.ss.ca.gov/executive/press_releases/2005/05_003.pdf


Am I missing something? Or perhaps we should call her Condi McCormak.


For your files:
http://www.ss.ca.gov/elections/voting_systems/certified_vs.pdf