Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News Sunday, April 16

McEwen helps foreign clients

BY MALIA RULON | ENQUIRER WASHINGTON BUREAU

Bob McEwen has remained active in national security issues since he lost re-election to Congress in 1992, but it has been as a lobbyist for foreign countries working to improve relations with the U.S. government.

Until recently, McEwen was a partner in the Washington lobbying firm Advantage Associates, which includes several other former members of Congress.

At the firm, McEwen worked for several domestic clients, such as AccuPoll, a Tustin, Calif.-based company that develops electronic voting machines and Globerx.com, a pharmaceutical company that needed help exporting drugs to countries outside the United States.


But McEwen, who served on the House Intelligence Committee while in Congress, said most of his lobbying has been for international clients, such as the Republic of Uzbekistan, which hired the firm in 2002 to help the country secure U.S. aid after it helped with the war on terror in Afghanistan.


More: http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060416/NEWS01/604160338/1056

Much Ado... Chicago City Council Hearing pursues "Venezuelan connection" ignores substantive issues

http://www.opednews.com

MUCH ADO . . .

Chicago City Council hearing pursues “Venezuelan Connection,” ignores substantive issues

By: Robert A. Wilson, chair, Suburban Cook County Chapter, Illinois Ballot-Integrity Project – www.ballot-integrity.org

Friday’s joint hearings conducted by the Chicago City Council’s Committees on Finance, Budget and Government Operations and Committee on Committees, Rules and Ethics failed to shed much light on the “events and problems that occurred during vote tabulation for the City of Chicago Primary Election held on March 21, 2006,” as stated in the meeting’s agenda.

Alderman Ed Burke (14th) led off the hearing with a statement expressing concerns and then proceeded with two hours of sharp questioning of Jack Blaine, president of Sequoia Voting Systems, Inc., the company that supplied the voting systems used in both the City of Chicago and suburban Cook County.
Occasionally joined by Alderman Richard Mell (33rd) and Alderman William Beavers (7th), Burke, chairman of the Council’s Finance Committee presented a timeline chart relating to the acquisition of Sequoia by Bocca Raton, Florida-based Smartmatic Corporation in March 2005. Throughout, Blaine professed to have little knowledge of Smartmatic’s Board of Directors or principal investors or stockholders, even though he serves as president of Smartmatic as well as Sequoia. Blaine even professed ignorance of the price Smartmatic paid to acquire an 85% interest in Sequoia from De La Rue Cash Systems 13 months ago, stating only that it “was less than $20 million.” Of course, it was widely reported in the financial press at the time that the purchase price was $17.6 million, but apparently Blaine doesn’t pay much attention to details like major acquisitions his company might have made.

More: http://www.opednews.com/articles/genera_robert_w_060416_much_ado____chicago_.htm

Rokita trains eye on voting-system vendors

INDIANAPOLIS – A week makes a world of difference in politics.

Indiana Secretary of State Todd Rokita issued a statement April 7 after mistakes came to light in Marion County and other central Indiana locations concerning absentee ballots provided by private contractors.

He pointed out that counties around the state overwhelmingly insisted several years ago that they negotiate their own terms with voting machine and software vendors.

But when problems occurred, they came running to the secretary of state for help.

“Although I am deeply concerned about this issue, it is the responsibility of the counties to resolve this with their vendor,” he said in the statement.

He further noted that he continues to push for the enactment of laws permitting the secretary of state to penalize vendors who, “recklessly fail to meet their duty to Indiana counties and Hoosier voters.”

Less than a week later – after even more problems cropped up – it appears Rokita realized he already had that power.

On April 13, he initiated an enforcement action against two voting-system companies, calling hearings for this week to determine whether election law violations have occurred and whether the companies should be fined.

The statement also noted a specific law giving Rokita the authority to act, saying “in cases where a voting system vendor’s performance issues go beyond poor county service and begin to affect the ability of counties to accurately count ballots, the office could issue civil penalties of up to $300,000 for each violation.”


More: http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/journalgazette/14355332.htm

What's wrong with the Holt Bill (HR 550)? Part 3

http://www.opednews.com

What's wrong with the Holt Bill? Part 3

by N. Tobi, April 2006

This week Holt Bill fervor hit the election reform movement in a big way. TrueMajority launched an email alert asking its members to support HR550 (aka the Holt Bill, aka the Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act) as written. VoteTrustUsa.org posted an article on their website urging the same.

But election activists are not united on this issue, and for good reason.

The Holt Bill is well intended, its origins are pure, but unfortunately, it is not just about paper ballots; it includes several dangerous provisions that are not at all good for our democracy.

The movement of informed grassroots activists against the Holt bill is growing each day. This bill, like the Help America Vote Act, was borne from the grassroots but now seems to have been hijacked by special interests. Since the 2000 election, grassroots activists have been struggling to bring about meaningful reforms to ensure the integrity of our elections. Passion at the grassroots level has been repeatedly distorted once it hits Congress. Witness the so-called "Help America Vote Act" (HAVA). Ostensibly passed at the behest of election reform activists, the Act is one of the more heinous examples of Capital Corruption and lobbyist influence in contemporary politics. Rather than helping America Vote, HAVA has brought unprecedented chaos into America's elections, at an obscene cost to the country in dollars and democracy.


More: http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_nancy_to_060416_what_s_wrong_with_th.htm

W.Va. Early Voting Starts Wednesday

By JOSELYN KING Political Writer

To vote on the Ivotronic manufactured by Election Systems and Software of Omaha, Neb., one need only touch the name of the candidate. When finished, touching the appropriate box casts the ballot.

It’s still not clear whether the first local ballots cast in the 2006 primary election will be paper or electronic ballots, but early voting in West Virginia still begins Wednesday, April 19.

A representative from Elections Systems and Software of Omaha, Neb., visited with officials in local counties on Friday, during which time he was expected to tell the officials how close ES&S was to completing their computer programming necessary for use of new touchscreen voting machines on Wednesday.

Most local counties are making preparations to use paper absentee ballots during the first days of early voting while they await their programming. Once the programming arrives and the proper testing of it has been completed, early voting will be conducted on the touchscreen devices.

County elections officials had been strongly encouraging voters to take advantage of early voting opportunities on the touchscreen devices as everyone — both voters and elections officials alike —use the new voting system for the first time.


More: http://www.news-register.net/news/articles.asp?articleID=4904

‘Paper trail’ wanted for vote

Richard Oakley

THE government will face increased pressure to fit printers to its electronic voting machines when a commission set up to investigate the system publishes its findings.
The independent Commission on Electronic Voting (CEV) is expected to highlight the use of printers as a means of increasing public trust in electronic voting, when it reports in a few months. The €51m system is in storage pending the outcome of tests.

A number of American states considering buying the same system are demanding they be able to produce a record of votes. A verifiable paper trail is also considered best practice by the European commission.

Because the CEV was asked to report on the accuracy of the system in its current form, the issue of printers is technically outside its scope. However, it will be raised in its next report.

More: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2091-2137056,00.html

Elections rally planned at Capitol

INSIDE POLITICS Leon County Supervisor of Elections Ion Sancho and others will gather at noon Tuesday at the Capitol to press legislators to pass laws ensuring fair elections. The event, called "Don't Gamble with Our Vote," is sponsored by Sancho, People for the American Way and Moving United Students in Communities.


Link: http://www.tallahassee.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060416/NEWS01/604160342/1010/NEWS01

Politics, Post-Civil Rights

By David Gergen and Jeremy Licht

4/24/06

Earlier this month, nonprofit executive John Bryant addressed a convention of black public officials, telling them African-Americans had to become political free agents and make politicians work for their vote. Bryant, himself black, said that message 10 years ago would never fly. Today, he says, it gets roaring applause.

Ten years ago, the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies began noticing that young African-Americans were taking a different political path from parents who had come of age during the protests of the 1960s. Five years ago, the center reported that most older blacks still identified strongly with the Democratic Party but fully a third of younger black adults called themselves independents. Still, the face of black leadership was that of fiery liberal Democrats like Jesse Jackson and Carol Moseley Braun.

The baton, finally, is passing to a new generation. It may well be a new day--a time when emerging black leaders declare their intellectual independence. As much as they revere the civil rights activists of the past, these leaders believe that changing times demand different answers. Welcome to the politics of the post-civil rights era.

The most obvious signals are coming from the Republican side. In a year when one poll showed President Bush's approval rating among blacks at a microscopic 2 percent, one of the few bright spots is the effort of GOP Chairman Ken Mehlman to attract more blacks to the party. "Give us a chance," Mehlman argues, "we'll give you a choice."

Swing voters. Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell is the front-runner in the Republican gubernatorial primary there. In Maryland, Lt. Gov. Michael Steele is locked in a close race for the U.S. Senate. A recent Democratic National Committee poll said that a majority of blacks in Maryland were willing to consider Steele. In what the pollster called "the emerging black swing" vote, a plurality of those polled, 44 percent, were persuadable when given Steele's message.


More: http://www.usnews.com/usnews/opinion/articles/060424/24essay.htm

Ohio governor

Petro's steady hand and sober approach to government would be far preferable to Blackwell's bluster and gimmickry
Sunday, April 16, 2006
Rarely have this state's Re publican voters been con fronted with a more stark choice than the one they will make in the May 2 primary for governor.

Attorney General Jim Petro and Secretary of State Ken Blackwell are both popular officeholders well known to Ohio voters. But of the two, Petro has the superior body of public work. He would make the better governor.

If the goal of this race were to produce provocative ideas, creative rhetoric and celebrity endorsements, Blackwell, 58, would be invincible. He is the superior politician. He mines the veins of populism as adroitly as any Ohio politician in memory, while simultaneously collecting national GOP endorsements the way a toll collector gathers change.

But what Blackwell wants for Ohio would be disastrous for Ohio. His economic vision is premised on a flawed budgeting proposal that would damage the state and its thousands of political subdivisions. Blackwell's brand of leadership and past public positions strongly hint of sweeping degrees of intolerance and inflexibility.

...snip

When the records and platforms of Ken Blackwell and Jim Petro are closely examined, there isn't the slightest doubt about which of the two deserves the Republican nomination for governor.

Blackwell is the better politician. Petro would be the better governor.


More: http://www.cleveland.com/politics/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/opinion/1145090354129980.xml&coll=2

Ohio's Appalachia can make voices heard again

The 29 counties of Appalachian Ohio cover about one-third of that state's area and have about one-eighth of the state's total population.

Like the rest of Ohio, those 29 counties suffer from a lagging economy. While Ohio has pockets of prosperity, such as the Columbus metro area, much of the state continues to suffer from the decline in industrial employment and other maladies that have lingered for 20 years or more. Those problems are magnified in the hilly, largely rural 29 counties designated by the federal government as being part of Appalachia.

...snip

At one time, people from Appalachian Ohio held important offices in state government. James A. Rhodes, from the Jackson County town of Coalton, was governor for 16 of 20 years ending in early 1983. And for years, state Rep. Vern Riffe, D-New Boston, had great influence on how the state's tax money was spent. A good chunk of it was funneled to his home county.

But that was years ago. Both men left office and died. Ohio politics is dominated by people from Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Dayton, Toledo and other large cities. Look what it's gotten the state.

For the first time since Rhodes left office, Ohio could have an Appalachian in the governor's mansion next year. U.S. Rep. Ted Strickland, D-Ohio and a Scioto County native, is the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination in next month's Democratic primary. He knows firsthand the problems facing the region.

In the 2004 presidential election, Appalachian Ohio voted Republican. This year, with Strickland in the race, the political climate could change. Assuming Strickland wins the Democratic primary and Ken Blackwell wins the Republican primary, Appalachia could be in play politically. Both candidates would have to court voters in the hill counties.

More: http://www.herald-dispatch.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060416/OPINION/604160326/1034

Future governor faces grim statistics

By HEATHER RUTZ
419-993-2094
04/16/2006
hrutz@limanews.com

Ohio ranks 50th in the nation in small business ownership rates.
Ohio ranked 47th in job creation in 2005, and it is in its 120th month below the national average in job growth.
Ohio ranks third in the nation in local and state tax burden.
Ohio ranks 50th out of the states and Washington in attracting and retaining people ages 19 to 24.
Every day, 45 more people leave Ohio than move to it.

...snip


“But Democrats can’t simply rest on the scandals and hope that the public is so angry that they’ll turn out Republicans and turn in whomever is available,” Green said. “They need an affirmative agenda.”
Democrats are excited about their chances.
“Republican leadership has failed Ohio,” Strickland said. “We are taking a message focused on job creation, improving our educational system and providing an administration that will serve honestly and with a Peace Corps spirit to Ohio voters.”
Republicans, facing a contested primary, are also communicating change to voters.
“Republicans are reminding voters they have better ideas and better candidates,” said Mark Weaver, a Republican strategist and adviser to many Ohio candidates. “Voters are smart enough to know that Bob Taft is not the whole party. Each Republican candidate will be judged on his or her own merit.”
While Blackwell has positioned himself as a Republican without ties to Taft and someone who will take the party back to principles of less government and taxes, Petro has stressed accomplishments made as auditor and attorney general.
“I’ve never been so excited about these changes I’ve been advocating for three years that I can accomplish,” Petro said. “I really think we can change the state.”
Democrats and Republicans also have national stakes in the governor’s race.
Ohio has often been a bellwether for the country; political observers will be watching to see which way the winds may be blowing in the 2008 presidential contest. Ohio’s next governor will also be instrumental in helping influence that presidential race; Strickland in the governor’s office could mean just enough to make Ohio a blue state and put a Democrat in the White House.
“A lot of people know Ohio is ground zero in politics,” Weaver said.
Some political advisers have already mentioned Blackwell, if he wins in November, as a vice presidential possibility for Sen. John McCain’s presumed presidential candidacy.
Before that happens, Blackwell has two more elections to win.


More: http://www.limaohio.com/story.php?IDnum=24734


:shrug:

CLEVELAND -- How can northeast Ohio get in front of the battle for technology jobs?

We'll show you one company that could help lead the way and talk with Dorothy Baunach from Nortech, a group that tries to bring entrepreneurs, businessmen, investors, politicians and other key players together to make it happen.

We'll show you how to get a report that suggests northeast Ohio could be technological leader by 2020.

And we'll look at why Dennis Kucinich is not debating his opponent and how John McCain is helping Ken Blackwell.

The segment airs Sunday, 4/16 shortly after 10 a.m.


Link: http://www.wkyc.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=50851

Jeb Bush Jumps on Blackwell's Bandwagon

By: Robert B. Bluey
Posted 04/11/06
03:11 PM

Congratulations to Ohio gubernatorial candidate Ken Blackwell, who picked up the endorsement of Florida Gov. Jeb Bush yesterday. Momentum in Ohio is clearly in Blackwell’s favor as the May 2 primary approaches.

Blackwell isn’t the candidate of the GOP establishment in Ohio, but he’s certainly a winner among an impressive list of supporters, which now includes (according to the AP): former U.S. Rep. Jack Kemp, Arizona Sen. JohnMcCain and two other Republican governors, Rick Perry of Texas and Mark Sanford of South Carolina.

Blackwell has long been a favorite of HUMAN EVENTS editors, and while we’ve made no official endorsement in the race, Blackwell, in my opinion, is the best candidate for the job. Having met him last year at an event in Washington, I must say he’s one of the most impressive public officials I’ve ever met.

Blackwell has a tough road ahead. He must first dispose of Atty. Gen. Jim Petro in the GOP primary. Then he’ll likely face Democratic Rep. Ted Strickland in the general election in November. A poll taken by Zogby in late March had Strickland up, 47%-41%, in a match-up with Blackwell, which is much better than Strickland’s 46%-31% lead over Petro.


Link: http://www.humaneventsonline.com/blog-detail.php?id=13965

Pair of pastors emerge in Ohio politics
Ministers are faces, voices of movement
With differing styles, evangelical Christian leaders can sway many in pews around state

Ohio Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell and
former U.S. Congressman Bob McEwen chat at lunch during
a meeting of the Patriot Pastors and the Ohio Restoration
Project, an evangelical political movement. The meeting
was held Friday, Jan. 13, 2006, in Hartville, Ohio.

COLUMBUS - On the Sunday before Ohio voters re-elected George W. Bush to a second term, the Rev. Russell Johnson took to his pulpit in Lancaster to make sure the faithful knew he was not neutral on the outcome of the votes they were about to cast.

Terrorists, he told them, ``don't need Tokyo Rose'' -- the radio personality who tried to demoralize American troops in World War II. ``The terrorists,'' he said, ``have Michael Moore.''

It was a reference to the producer of the Hollywood documentary that created a political firestorm that year by questioning Bush's invasion of Iraq.

Last fall, likewise, when the Rev. Rod Parsley unveiled his four-year plan to evangelize a million Ohioans and register at least 400,000 of them as voters, he didn't do it at his suburbanColumbus base in the new, state-of-the-art World Harvest Church.

He did it on the steps of the state Capitol.

To many Ohioans, Parsley and Johnson are just two more names leading two more movements on the political front. But they cannot be dismissed as mere preachers with lofty ambitions who momentarily have captured the media spotlight. For this year, they have emerged as the face and voice of a deep-rooted conservatism in Ohio that is fervent, politically active and spreading.

Parsley leads Reformation Ohio, and Johnson heads the Ohio Restoration Project -- both calling for Christian witness, service and political activism. Their real power, though, lies in their ability to influence thousands of Christians through member churches who care deeply enough to take their beliefs into the voting booth.


More: http://www.centredaily.com/mld/centredaily/news/nation/14349787.htm

THE INSIDE STORY
By his silence, Blackwell hurts himself, voters
Sunday, April 09, 2006
BENJAMIN J . MARRISON



It appears our reporters won’t be quoting J. Kenneth Blackwell any time soon. The guy who wants to be governor isn’t talking to Dispatch reporters anymore. Nor is his campaign staff.

The Blackwell campaign staff told us Thursday that our reporters are unfair, so we’ll get the silent treatment.

In their eyes, it was wrong of us to write a front-page story detailing that Blackwell owned stock in votingmachine manufacturer Diebold at the same time his elections office negotiated a deal that critics have called an attempt to steer business to the company.

And they said it was wrong of us to disclose that Blackwell has shares in the world’s leading manufacturer of gambling devices at a time when he will likely be asked to certify a ballot issue that could legalize casino gambling in Ohio.
<snip>
http://www.dispatch.com/news-story.php?story=dispatch/2006/04/09/20060409-B1-00.html

Posted on Sun, Apr. 16, 2006

Associated Press
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Republican Kenneth Blackwell has accepted more than $1 million in campaign contributions from employees of companies seeking business with the statewide offices he's held for the past 12 years, a newspaper reported.

The Ohio Republican Party also received $1.3 million from employees of financial institutions that supported Blackwell, and the party shipped at least $1.29 million to Blackwell's various campaigns, including one for state treasurer, The (Toledo) Blade reported Sunday.

Blackwell, Ohio's secretary of state and a candidate for governor, said there was nothing wrong with accepting money from contractors because he adhered to election laws.

He said the companies - primarily financial institutions and high-tech firms - received no favors in exchange for their contributions. Vendors working for the secretary of state's office win their contracts through competitive bids or requests for proposal, Blackwell said.

"Do I think that folks who violate campaign finance laws should be punished? Yes. Do I think people should play within the rules that are established? A big yes," Blackwell said.

Ohio Democratic Party Chairman Chris Redfern said he isn't surprised by the amount of money Blackwell's campaigns have received from firms vying for government work.

http://www.ohio.com/mld/beaconjournal/news/state/14357356.htm

http://www.eurekareporter.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?ArticleID=10190

Election training begins in Arcata
4/16/2006

Learn how to run a parallel election and help double-check the accuracy of the official vote count at a public training session at 6 p.m. on Monday at the Redwood Peace and Justice Center, 1040 H St., Arcata.

The Voter Confidence Committee is holding the information and training session to start planning for the June 6 primary election.

In parallel elections, volunteers invite voters to participate as they leave their polling place. A ballot identical to the official one is provided, and voters are asked to record, in secret, the same votes they just cast inside. Parallel ballots are hand-counted in public after the polls close, and the numbers from that count can then provide a comparison to the official reported results.

A parallel election was held in November 2005 outside Arcata City Hall.

Organizers hope to expand their parallel polling stations to more locations countywide this year.

For more information, e-mail info@voterconfidencecommittee.org.

http://www.times-standard.com/local/ci_3719363

Article Launched: 04/17/2006 04:15:46 AM PDT

Voting group holds training session
The Times-Standard

EUREKA -- A public meeting will be held on April 17 by the Voter Confidence Committee to begin planning for a parallel election to help verify the tally of official votes cast at the June 6 election.

The meeting will start at 6 p.m. at the Redwood Peace and Justice Center, 1040 H St., Arcata. It will also be a training session for volunteers in the parallel election, which involves asking voters to complete a parallel ballot and vote the same as they did inside the polling places.

It is hoped that a direct comparison can be made between the official results and the parallel results to determine if the official count -- produced by the machines -- is accurate.

For more information, e-mail info@voterconfidencecommittee.org.

Thanks to Wilms here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x423751

SUCKS

Which it doesnt. I know its Sunday and there is not a lot of election news floating around. And it is Easter. But I hate to see the same 12, 13 people recommending.

You all just insulted Melisas work. And I take issue with that........

15 recommends........ brother......

The Journal Gazette

Posted on Sun, Apr. 16, 2006

Photo ID required for first time in Indiana
By Niki Kelly
The Journal Gazette

NDIANAPOLIS – With about two weeks before the May 2 primary, election officials are gearing up for the state’s first photo identification law and a new statewide voter registration system – both of which could bring glitches for voters come election day.

Other issues also linger, including new voting machines and mistakes by vendors who supply the machines and balloting services, identified mostly in central Indiana.

“We have seen more change in our electoral process in the last several years – and particularly here in this election – than we will have seen since the Voting Rights Act of 1965,” said Indiana Secretary of State Todd Rokita, the state’s chief elections officer.

“Will it be a perfect election? No. We’ve never had one. In Indiana, there are 30,000 people that put on our elections in 5,500 precincts, and they’re all human.”

The brunt of the attention surrounds the state’s photo ID law, which for the first time will require Hoosier voters to show identification to cast their ballots.

It has been hailed by Republicans as necessary to protect the integrity of the system, while Democrats see it as a barrier to voting for homeless, elderly, low-income and minority people who all don’t have access to accepted identification or the documents needed to obtain it.

http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/journalgazette/14355362.htm

CHICAGO A group of Republicans and candidates who lost in the March election say the results are not accurate because of the Cook County's voting problems.

The group said yesterday during a press conference at Cook County Clerk David Orr's office that there should be an audit of ballots or even an entirely new election.
Cook County Republican Party chairman Gary Skoien says the March primary voting problems was a disaster created by election leaders.

http://www.wqad.com/Global/story.asp?S=4770054&nav=1sW7

The Eagle.com

Updated 6:51 AM on Sunday, April 16, 2006

By CRAIG KAPITAN
Eagle Staff Writer


For the handful of local Republicans who won't have Democratic or third-party opponents in November, victory is virtually assured now that the primary elections are over.

But being "virtually" untouchable on the ballot doesn't necessarily mean a defeat is impossible. Those who might be thinking about entering a race this late in the game have one other option: the write-in ballot.

The process, which at best would be called a long shot, has been mentioned lately by some who said they were turned off by the heated accusations during the recent race for the 85th District Court, County Clerk Karen McQueen said.

Judge J.D. Langley, who has presided over the court for the past 15 years, narrowly won the Republican primary runoff Tuesday against challenger David Barron. Neither the Democratic Party nor the Libertarians - the only other party to compete locally - has put candidates on the ballot for the race. It's now too late for them to do so.

"Every once in a while we get a write-in, but not very often," McQueen said Thursday, explaining that the deadline for that process isn't until late this summer. "Most of the time, the write-ins don't do very well."

The one exception, she said, was County Attorney Jim Kuboviak, who was forced to run as a write-in candidate in 1988 after being kicked off the Democratic ticket for voting in the Republican primary.

"It was horrible," Kuboviak said Thursday when asked about the race.

http://www.theeagle.com/stories/041606/politics_20060416005.php

Hindustan Times

Rakeeb Hossain

Purulia, April 17, 2006

The men-in-fatigues are at hand to fend off the Maoist threat, arrangements for food and lodging have been made. Poll officials are being armed with packets of ORS so that they don’t wilt in the heat. But what of the EVMs?

A big cause of worry for poll officials here is the rising mercury. With temperatures hovering around 47 degrees Celsius in Purulia, officials are worried that the electronic voting machines might develop snags.

The 40-page manual of the machine sounds a warning. Protect the sensitive machines against "extreme heat" or expect trouble.

Moreover, it also recommends that the machines must be kept far away from dust and water.

Easier said than done in Purulia, where the dust is just about everywhere.

"The booth officials are at their wits’ end on how to protect the EVM machines if the temperature rises further. The Election Commission has supplied packets of ORS to the polling officials, but what of the machines?” said a presiding officer at Kotshila in Jhalda.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1676646,0035.htm

The Herald

DOUGLAS FRASER April 17 2006

snip

New-look polls

The new voting system being introduced in May next year for local councils means wards get bigger, with three or four members each.

Voters will get a choice of a party's candidates, where a party opts to have more than one person standing. Ballots must be marked with numbers in order of candidate preference.


From the total votes cast, a "quota" is calculated. It is the minimum number of votes needed for a candidate to be elected. In a three-member ward, the quota to be reached is 25% of the vote. For four members, the quota is 20%.

If a candidate has more than the quota of votes, the surplus portion of the votes is transferred to the voters' next preferences.


If a candidate does not have sufficient votes to be elected, votes are transferred to the next preference until the quotas are reached.


The Scottish Executive has turned down official advice next year's council ballot should be postponed from May because of the complexity of running it at the same time as the different proportional system used for Holyrood.


The boundaries of the new wards are yet to be finalised.


Other decisions yet to be taken include the design of ballot papers, choosing between one long list or party blocks, and between candidates being alphabetical or parties' preferences. Ministers are also yet to take a decision on whether electronic counting systems will be used for the first time.

http://www.theherald.co.uk/politics/60214.html

Been sick with a cold. Not something I need now, either

back to bed

:(