The Voting News Daily: Pima CO fights ballot audit, 9,000 Absentee ballots returned-to-sender, Sequoia laid bare

Is a Fair Election in Afghanistan Possible?…Tuscon wants hand count audit, Pima County says NO…9000 absentee ballots undeliverable in El Paso County Colorado… Indiana Secy of State gives up on criminalizing use of election data…Nevada is prosecuting ACORN itself, not just individuals…Employee for Ohio pro casino group indicted on 5 counts voter registration fraud -Casino group not blamed… Group complains about WVA’s electronic voting machines… National Academy of Sciences reviews voter registration databases… McCain, Feingold Speak on Senate Floor About Citizens United…Sequoia Voting System database laid bare…

All of that and more in today’s Voting News below.

AZ: City, Pima at odds over vote hand-count
Dispute over audit of ballots could affect Nov. 3 tallies
Tucson, Arizona 10.21.2009. A dispute between Tucson and Pima County could lead to no hand-count of November’s election results — a practice that could help uncover voting machine malfunctions and fraud.
…
The heads of the Pima County Republican and Democratic parties asked the council to take the hard line to force a hand count, given the county’s history with the 2006 Regional Transportation Authority election, where some observers alleged votes were flipped to change the outcome of the election, and the county was forced to pay $230,000 in attorney’s fees for losing a public records suit.
http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/314130

CO: No ballot? No problem, contact county clerk *
October 20, 2009 If you’re a registered voter but didn’t get a ballot in the mail last week, it’s probably because you moved but didn’t update your address with the county clerk’s office.

The office of the El Paso County Clerk and Recorder, Bob Balink, said Tuesday that out of 278,000 ballots mailed last week for the Nov. 3 election, about 9,000 ballots had been returned as undeliverable. To cut down on voting fraud, the Postal Service is forbidden by law to forward ballots
http://www.gazette.com/articles/ballot-64099-clerk-contact.html

CT: Al Lenge Named Director of State Elections Enforcement Commission
October 21, 2009
http://www.ctvoterscount.org/?p=2474

IN: Funding for new voting machines approved
21, 2009 The Harrison County Council Tuesday, Oct. 13, unanimously approved new voting equipment for the county.
The machines, produced by Hart Intercivic based in Lexington, Ky., and Harp Interprises, were purchased for a reduced price of $227,250 because they were used for one election cycle in Hawaii.
…
New voting machines became an issue after Election Systems & Software, the company which provided upkeep for the county’s 40 Optech Eagle machines, said technical support no longer will be available for the machines.
http://www.corydondemocrat.com/Articles-i-2009-10-20-212291.114125_Funding_for_new_voting_machines_approved.html#

IN: Rokita rolls out redistricting proposal
Secretary of State Todd Rokita today urged lawmakers to change how Indiana draws legislative and congressional districts.

But he backed off an earlier recommendation that they make it a felony to consider political data, including the addresses of incumbents and the voting history of constituents
http://www.indystar.com/article/20091020/NEWS05/910200367/
Rokita+rolls+out+redistricting+proposal
or use this tiny url http://tinyurl.com/yjqx9gh

IN: Ind. Decisions – Petitions to transfer filed in the Indiana voter ID case
Briefs have now been filed re the Court of Appeals decision in League of Women Voters v.