Monthly Archives: February 2010

The Voting News Daily: NYT: The Voters Will Pay. IA Senate blocks election audits. Alberta may test internet voting

The New York Times has an oped on how ES&S’s near total domination of the voting systems market in the US will impact voters and taxpayers…The Iowa Senate has halted an election audits bill, House File 682…

Some Canadian municipalities have already adopted internet voting. Now the province of Alberta is considering testing it. Brian Fjeldheim, Alberta’s Chief Electoral Officer says: “Once it has been proven to be effective, that the votes can be certified, all that security stuff can be looked after, I certainly see that as something that’s coming…” But the integrity of an internet election cannot be proven say experts. Technologists warn that internet voting is not transparent and is inherently insecure…

All this and more in today’s voting news below…

IL: Update: Discovery recount finds no change (Diebold Accuvote-OS & TSX for accessible)
http://daily-journal.com/archives/dj/display.php?id=452715
Iroquois County…Discovery recounts allow checking of 25 percent of the precincts to determine if there is any rationale to seek a court-ordered full recount.
Both a machine recount and hand recount of the ballots produced no change…

IL: Bill to move primary advances
http://www.thetelegraph.com/news/state-36824-primary-illinois.html

IN: INDIANA COUNTY: Software would aid in election preparations
http://online.indianagazette.com/articles/2010/02/25/a_news/10036061.txt
Using $79,829 in state grant money, the county will purchase software from Election Systems & Software, of Omaha, Neb., that will allow technicians in the county’s data processing center to do the computer programming for the voting machines used in the local elections.

IA: Iowa Senate Lags; Legislation to Protect the 2010 Vote In Jeopardy
http://blog.verifiedvoting.org/2010/02/26/419
The Senate has halted action on House File 682, which requires a hand count of a random sample of ballots after each general election…

IA: Iowa Voters Action Alert: Help Safeguard the 2010 Elections In Iowa
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/199/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=28214

MN: Bill moving up primary passes House
http://www.winonadailynews.com/news/state-and-regional/mn/article_a5b56cd0-2246-11df-a2e4-001cc4c002e0.html

MS: Miss. felon voting ban upheld
http://www.sunherald.com/2010/02/25/1981944/miss-felon-voting-ban-upheld.html
A three judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans ruled Thursday the state of Mississippi can write restrictions on voting into its constitution, including to bar certain felons voting.

OH: Angry voters outraged by election changes
http://bit.ly/aALyNF COSHOCTON — Former County Commissioner Larry Stahl of Bakersville made an impassioned plea Thursday to the Coshocton County Board of Elections to find out if there is anything he could do to return polling locations and precincts in the county to where they were.

TN: Herron approves e-mail ballot for soldiers (unvoted ballot only)
http://www.nwtntoday.com/news.php?viewStory=37567
The bill (SB2681) allows Tennessean members of the armed forces to receive ballots via e-mail.
…
The soldiers votes would be cast with the same processes and security measures that currently apply.

VA: Va. House panel votes to make voter records private
http://bit.ly/cODCNl A House of Delegates subcommittee voted 5-1 to close off all access to voter history lists.
… the lists should either be made available to everyone or no one.

VA: Virginia Bill on Who can See List of who Voted Hits a Snag
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/02/26/virginia-bill-on-who-can-see-list-of-who-voted-hits-a-snag/

VT: Burlington IRV fundraising under attack
http://bit.ly/dmD2Bx …Repeal IRV also said the group supporting IRV, 50% Matters, while claiming to be a “grass-roots” organization, was instead “acting like a money pipeline for huge out of town contributions.”

The Voting News Daily: Iowa needs post-election audits. Internet voting spreads in Canada local elections, Closing in on the Google hackers

Maryland might not have enough money to conduct the November election?…..Upshur Co TX will pay $30K to Hart InterCivic program machines, print ballots and tally results for the March 2 primaries. The county clerk would have charged $2K…
Wisconsin U state senate rejects internet voting, cites i-vote fiasco in 2008…

Sean Flaherty asks fellow Iowans, and especially Polk County folks to help protect the 2010 elections by asking lawmakers to pass House Bill 682 to require post election audits…

All this and more in today’s voting news below….

CA: Editorial: Privately run election questionable
http://www.montereyherald.com/opinion/ci_14468312?nclick_check=1
… the idea of a private firm reporting to City Hall, and being assisted by City Hall, in conducting a city election sounds a bit cozy

CO: Plaintiff’s Surreply regarding Defendant’s Motion to protect TrueBallot from deposition – Marks v. Koch (Aspen Election Transparency Suit)
http://bit.ly/bUVbmm

CT: Republicans hire attorney to challenge Bysiewicz’s lawsuit
http://bit.ly/8XeML3

CT: Garcia: Small Fundraisers to Qualify For The Citizens Election Program
http://www.ctvoterscount.org/?p=2922

FL: Florida Voters, Submit Your Ballot Request NOW for the April 13, 2010 Special Election! http://www.fvap.gov/global/news/nr3-2010.html

IA: Iowa Needs a Post-Election Audit
http://blog.verifiedvoting.org/2010/02/25/410
Iowans, and especially Polk County folks, please take some time out of your busy day to protect the 2010 elections…

KY: Election official says she was told to steal votes
http://www.kentucky.com/2010/02/25/1155312/precinct-worker-clay-election.html

MD: State falls short on paying for fall election
http://www.marylandreporter.com/page5505129.aspx
The state probably doesn’t have enough money in its proposed budget to conduct November’s election…

MO: What’s in the Missouri campaign finance bill?
http://politicalactivitylaw.com/?p=8294
The bill would ban most committee-to-committee transfers of campaign donations, an attempt to reduce the “money laundering” that lawmakers have alleged goes on.

PA: Tell The Inquirer: Election Problems Go Deeper Than One Precinct
http://www.electionreformnetwork.us/node/226

PA: The Point: Indefensible
Chesco’s ’08 polling-place maneuver was a disgrace.
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/currents/20100221_The_Point__Indefensible.html
Some of the 1,440 who voted there that day waited for seven to eight hours in the rain, queuing up close enough to working railroad tracks to reach out and touch passing freight cars.

TX: Communication gaps blamed for Upshur ballot miscue
Contracting with Austin firm delays ballots
http://bit.ly/9rgBdl

TX: Upshur County gets ballots in under the wire
http://bit.ly/8Z4YTq

WA: Suspending initiatives? Controversial but common
http://bit.ly/94FUC3

WA: Initiatives and lawmakers, part deux
http://bit.ly/d54XYQ
For all the talk about big changes for Washington’s much-used, much-maligned initiative process, not a single initiative crackdown is passing this legislative session.

WI: Student Senate nixes online voting
http://bit.ly/c1HYHq
Student Senate voted down a resolution Monday attempting to conduct the 2010 Student Body Elections online instead of paper ballot form.

VA: UBE technical glitch extends voting time (online voting)
http://www.cavalierdaily.com/2010/02/23/ube-technical-glitch-extends-voting-time/
University of Virginia. The University Board of Elections experienced technical difficulties during the first hour of student-elections voting at 8 a.m. yesterday …certain offices were missing from the ballot. After first attempting to resolve the issue itself, the UBE consulted Information Technology & Communication, which identified the problem as a wide-spread glitch rather than an isolated incident.

VT: So troops’ votes count – by Deborah Markowitz is Vermont secretary of state and a Democratic candidate for governor http://bit.ly/ahpCEJ

The Voting News Daily: Aspen tries to stop deposition of TrueBallot, US DOJ showdown over GA voter verification, No ballot mulligans

No mulligan rule in elections – The wrong name will be on a ballot for a school board race in St Louis MO and can’t be corrected because the voting machines are already programmed and ballots printed..

…The Georgia bill to have troops vote over the internet has passed the house and heads to the senate next. Meanwhile the former Director of National Intelligence told a senate panel that “If the nation went to war today, in a cyber war, we would lose,”…

The Philippines ballot boxes have switched at the last minute -from translucent to opaque black design to protect ballot markings from sunlight. Additionally there will be no audit before poll winners are proclaimed…

Paying our respects: Condolences to Rick Hasen of ElectionLawBlog on the passing of his father.

All this and more in today’s voting news below…..

CA: “Initiative would put redistricting back into Legislature’s hands”
http://electionlawblog.org/archives/015340.html

CO: Reply in Support of Defendant’s Motion for a Protective Order- Marks v. Koch (Aspen Election Transparency Suit)
http://bit.ly/bMurHu On February 16, 2010 the Aspen City attorneys filed a memorandum in support of their motion for a protective order to prevent or limit Marilyn Marks from deposing TrueBallot Inc.

CO: August election will be mail-in in Eagle Countuy
http://bit.ly/9ioBw5

GA: The Showdown Over Preclearance of Georgia’s Voter Verification Program
http://electionlawblog.org/archives/015341.html
In recent years, the U.S. Department of Justice has rarely exercised its preclearance power under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act to stop election adminstration rules from taking effect. But in a letter issued Monday, DOJ declines to withdraw its objection to Georgia’s proposed program for verifying voters’ citizenship.

GA: Bills aid open records, overseas voting, education
http://bit.ly/cB3QVO
The House passed House Bill 655, which establishes a pilot program beginning with the 2012 general and primary elections, to allow the electronic transmission of absentee ballots by those in the military and for overseas residents.

HI: Hawaii Officials Plan For 5/22 Special House Election
http://hotlineoncall.nationaljournal.com/archives/2010/02/hawaii_official.php
The HI State Office of Elections has set 5/22 as the target date for the special election to replace Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-01),

MN: Interview with Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie
http://bit.ly/btnC87

MO: Clayton school district error leads to wrong name on ballot *
http://stlouis.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2010/02/22/daily29.html
St. Louis. Susan Buse is running for re-election to the Clayton school board but you won’t find her name on the April 6 ballot.

Instead, you’ll find her maiden name, Susan Bradley. A Clayton school district official miscopied Buse’s name when filling out paperwork to submit to the St. Louis County Board of Election Commissioners in January.

NE: Soldiers to receive voting confirmation
http://bit.ly/akA6AA

NC: Internet elections (LTE pushing internet voting)
http://www.newsobserver.com/2010/02/24/354595/internet-elections.html

TN: Tennessee Bills Would Remove Recount Authority in Primaries from Political Parties
http://bit.ly/bwKCZK
Bills are pending in both houses of the Tennessee legislature to provide that when a partisan primary election result is disputed, the dispute should be resolved by an administrative law judge, not by the political party’s own officials.

VT: Burlington IRV draws outside money
http://bit.ly/aRFDMc

The Voting News Daily: GA bill would end touch-screen voting, Dont violate integrity of military vote

Distrust of paperless voting is a bi-partisan issue in Georgia with Rep. Tim Bearden (R-Villa Rica) introducing HB 1215 to ban paperless voting and in favor of an optical scan system with ballots that can be recounted by hand in any dispute.Other signers of the bill include Karla Drenner (D-Atlanta); Bobby Franklin (R-Cobb County); and Barry Loudermilk (R-Cassville). Another signer was Austin Scott (R-Tifton), the Republican candidate for governor….

Meanwhile Virginia lawmakers still considering bill to allow purchase of some paperless machines… CO. election integrity expert Harvie Branscomb pleads the case to keep in-person voting in Eagle County Co…

All this and more in today’s voting news below….

CO: Court Requested to Permit Video Recording of Marks v. Koch (Aspen Election Transparency Suit)
http://aspenelectionreview.blogspot.com/2010/02/court-requested-to-permit-video.html

CO: A plea for in-person voting in Eagle County
http://www.aspendailynews.com/section/letter-editor/139384
Voters deserve to retain their choice of voting in person or by mail. Precinct polling places keep elections more secure, are likely to produce better accuracy, are less subject to mischief, and provide many natural opportunities for citizen oversight and correction of errors.

CT: Hearing On Public Financing – Ad Hoc Testimony On Voting Integrity Issue
http://www.ctvoterscount.org/?p=2907
Yesterday the Government Administration and Elections Committee held hearings on proposed fixes to the Citizens Election Program which has been ruled unconstitutional and is currently under appeal.

FL: Ensure uniform voting (opinion)
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2010/feb/22/na-ensure-uniform-voting/
But even with the importance of home rule, counties should not be allowed to create their own standards for recounts, audits and other procedures when it comes to statewide and national elections. One code must fit all.

GA: Bill would end touch-screen voting
http://bit.ly/ad8sWE

GA: A bill to ban paperless ballots dropped — Kemp opposes on economic grounds
http://bit.ly/cW14x3
Just before the Legislature went on a two-week, budget-driven hiatus, state Rep. Tim Bearden (R-Villa Rica) dropped HB 1215, would would mandate an end to the use of Georgia’s paperless voting tabulators, in favor of an optical scan system whose ballots could be recounted by hand in any dispute.

GA: Georgia may abandon electronic voting
http://jacksonville.com/news/georgia/2010-02-22/story/georgia_may_abandon_electronic_voting
House bill would return state to paper ballots
The bipartisan legislation, House Bill 1215 by Rep. Tim Bearden, R-Villa Rica, would require paper records and hand recounts in contested elections. The touch-screen machines in use across the state now only record votes electronically.

GA: Will This Be the Case That Gets a Supreme Court Majority to Overturn Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act?
http://electionlawblog.org/archives/015334.html

MI: Whiteford seeks township hall
http://www.monroenews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100221/NEWS01/702219971
OTTAWA LAKE…one of the voting machines that township residents will be using in the election is stored in the supervisor’s bedroom.
…
If voters okay a five-year, 1-mill levy Tuesday, storing election machines and boxes of township records and holding office hours will get a little easier in Whiteford Township.

MO: Police investigating theft at Board of Elections office in St. Louis
http://www.fox2now.com/news/sns-ap-mo–electionsboard-theft,0,4584342.story
Items taken include a laptop, a satellite radio deck, a radio, a TV converter box and a small amount of cash. There was no sign of forced entry.

The Voting News Daily: WA military email voting clears house, Cyber War Wake Up Call, More trustworthy voting systems

Election Equipment Certification Delivers Poor Results says the Champaign County Clerk, Mark Sheldon. Sheldon says: “If we want a system that earns the trust of every voter we need to institute post election audits, more extensive testing, and a certification process that is more open and flexible.”

In Washington State, two bills of note: a bill to allow military to vote by fax or email has cleared the house, and a bill to force Pierce Co Washington voters to vote by mail….As officials consider putting our military’s votes and associated data online, please read “Cyber War Wake Up Call” over at DefenseTech.org…

All this and more in today’s voting news below….

AK: State settles lawsuit, agrees to offer voter aid in Yup’ik
http://www.adn.com/2010/02/19/1148117/yupik-elders-win-right-to-elections.html
The state has settled a lawsuit brought by Yup’ik-speaking elders and tribal councils demanding that the Division of Elections provide ballots and voter assistance in Yup’ik.

AZ: Election officials use GPS devices to track equipment
http://bit.ly/930O9h
Program aims to lift voter confidence
Maricopa County elections officials are starting a new program that will track all 17,000 pieces of voting equipment through GPS technology.

CA: Federal Court in San Diego Issues Clarification: Independent Expenditure Committees May Accept Unlimited Sums from Corporations, Labor Unions, and Others
http://electionlawblog.org/archives/015328.html
Disclosure: I am co-counsel for the City of San Diego in this matter.(Rick Hasen)

CA: Two Legal ‘Situations’
http://democracycounts.blogspot.com/2010/02/two-legal-situations.html
Humboldt County Election Transparency Project

CA: DA investigates allegations of voter fraud in Montebello
http://www.whittierdailynews.com/news/ci_14438007#ixzz0gJIxeN7n
“I actually went to someone’s door regarding an absentee voter and I learned the person hadn’t lived there for two years,” Veneziano said. “It seems like there is a lot of voter fraud concerning absentee ballots.”

CA: State Chief Justice Calls For Reform Of Initiative Process
http://www.ktvu.com/news/22618847/detail.html
STANFORD, Calif. — California Chief Justice Ronald George told a Stanford University symposium Friday that the state’s voter initiative process has helped to make the state government dysfunctional and “is sorely in need of reform.”

CO: Editorial – Voting changes make sense (Editorial in favor of 100% vote by mail)
http://www.fortmorgantimes.com/fort-morgan-opinion/ci_14410371

FL: Court: Petition Signatures Cannot Be Revoked
http://bit.ly/bW2CAo
The Florida Supreme Court said Thursday that a petition-signature revocation law, passed in 2007, substantially burdened the rights of citizen-led efforts to change the Constitution

IL: Election Equipment Certification Delivers Poor Results
http://blog.champaigncountyclerk.com/2010/02/22/election-equipment-certification-delivers-poor-results/
Champaign County Clerk…Election equipment manufacturers and election officials are prevented from implementing even common sense changes to the software and hardware running elections because of the costly and lengthy certification process.

KY: Insider Fraud In Kentucky
http://www.ctvoterscount.org/?p=2904
We have blogged in the past about the fuzzy line between retail and wholesale vote fraud…

ME: Residents invited to discuss proposed city voting changes ; A special meeting on Tuesday in Portland seeks feedback on changes in government.
http://www.istockanalyst.com/article/viewiStockNews/articleid/3885912
Should Portland voters elect a mayor? Should the city allow non- citizens to vote? Should voters rank candidates in order of choice rather than pick just one?

OH: Voter fraud case dismissed
http://www.toledofreepress.com/2010/02/22/voter-fraud-case-dismissed/
The board found that Lisa Cherry, as a student who has “every intention of returning home,” has the right to be registered in Lucas County and denied the challenge against her voter registration.

The Voting News Daily: GA lawmaker wants paper ballots, Internet voting-Solution or snake oil?

GA state Rep. Tim Bearden has introduced paper ballot law HB 1215… Clay Co KY poll worker says it was easy to steal more than 100 votes in one election…See the court docs for Dominion’s suit to stop NY City purchase of ES&S voting machines over at Bo Lipari’s blog…Over 75,000 systems compromised in cyberattack……”Internet voting, solution of snake oil?”. Ben Rothke elaborates in “Dont Stop The Handcount – A Few Problems With Internet Voting”…Less than 10% of Ontario municipalities utilize phone or Internet voting…

All this and more in today’s voting news below….

AZ: Arizona Bill Moves Ahead, Would Simplify Presidential Candidate Listing on November Ballot
http://bit.ly/bsKdMf
Only six states still print the candidates for presidential elector on November ballots. The most populous of these six states is Arizona, which has ten electoral votes.

CT: Connecticut Secretary of State Sues Herself to Obtain Decision that She is Eligible to Run for Attorney General
http://bit.ly/cnfWlF
Connecticut Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz says she will file a lawsuit in state court, seeking a decision that she is eligible to run for Attorney General this year.

GA: Lawmaker Wants Paper Ballots
http://wsbradio.com/localnews/2010/02/lawmaker-wants-paper-ballots.html
…Rep. Tim Bearden (R-Villa Rica) has introduced HB 1215 that would do away with the current electronic voting machines in favor of some form of paper ballot.

“The integrity of voting is priority number one and you can ensure that by making sure there’s a paper trail,”

GA: County managers: budget plan will hurt election, library, tax offices
http://www.thecrier.net/articles/2010/02/16/front/budget.txt

IN: Ind. Senate Keeps Vote Center Legsilation Alive
http://bit.ly/9lmdqp

KY: Clay precinct worker testifies that officials taught her to steal votes *
http://www.kentucky.com/latest_news/story/1147902.html
…Wanda White testified that Clerk Freddy Thompson — the county’s chief election officer — helped show her how to manipulate voting machines along with Charles Wayne Jones, the Democratic election commissioner.

The scheme involved duping people to walk away from the voting computer before finishing their selections, then changing their choices, said White, the Democratic judge in a precinct in Manchester.

White said she stole more than 100 votes that election.

NV: Lawyer calls ACORN ‘hated, feared,’ seeks separate trials
Judge denies motion to separate case, saying trials would be identical
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/feb/17/acorn/

NY: Dominion Sues to Stop New York City Contract with ES&S (update, docs posted)
http://www.bolipari.com/boblog/2010/02/dominion-sues-to-stop-new-york-city-contract-with-ess/
Update I, 2/19/10 – Court documents posted, links here

NY: Questions Raised about NYC’s Voting Machine Selection Process
http://reformny.blogspot.com/2010/02/questions-raised-about-nycs-voting.html
In its memorandum of law, Dominion argues that the Board of Elections ignored procurement laws and procedures and established its own procurement process that did not make clear the criteria for selection. According to the memorandum, ES&S received extra points for optional features that cannot legally be used in New York.

SC: SC lawmakers put early voting under the microscope (Audio)
http://bit.ly/9K4sU2
…The State Senate is currently working on legislation that would combine early voting with the photo ID measure.

TN: Voter Registration Would Require Affirmation
Prospective Voters Would Have To Check Citizens Box
http://www.wsmv.com/politics/22582223/detail.html

TX: Voter registration tangled in Web
http://bit.ly/bFBms3

The Voting News Daily: Responsible tech use for Overseas Vote,VT rejects email voting, Dominion sues over NY ES&S contract

Just in from Verified Voting: “Responsible Use of Technology for Overseas Voting”. From the report- “The security challenges posed by the electronic transmission of voted ballots are too formidable to allow the use of such systems at present. Before experimenting with voted ballots transmitted through cyberspace, we must together create a transparent public process to consider how to set cyber-security criteria…”

Florida SOS Browning proposes delay in purchasing disabled accessible voting equipt….
….Brennan Center has update on “Concerns About New York’s Voting Machines”…Bo Lipari reports- “Dominion Sues to Stop New York City Contract with ES&S”…

All this and more in today’s voting news below….

CT: Registrar of Voters suit: Alleged to have fudged petitions for herself and relatives
http://www.ctvoterscount.org/?p=2896

FL: COUNTIES COULD PUNT BUYING VOTING EQUIPMENT FOR DISABLED
http://bit.ly/b7W09Q
Tallahassee — The Senate Ethics and Elections Committee unveiled a package Wednesday that would delay a requirement for county election supervisors to buy $45 million in optical-scan voting equipment for the disabled from 2012 to 2016.

[…The state still has $67 million in HAVA funds
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/electionreform/message/12625 ]

GA: Measure may ease voting from afar
http://www.forsythnews.com/news/article/4500/
In House Bill 665, the District 23 state representative from Cumming offers an alternative to the current ballot mailing system, one that could quicken the process by allowing them to vote electronically.

HI: New chief elections officer selected for Hawaii; no special election date set yet
http://bit.ly/aad4Mo

IL: Kane County votes all counted, but fighting might not be over
http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=360024

OH: Old voting machines must go (ES&S iVotronic)
http://putnamsentinel.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=6713

MA: Online elections bill passes SGA Senate (University of Mass.)
http://dailycollegian.com/2010/02/18/online-elections-bill-passes-sga-senate/
More details on the concerns of the Senators will be provided in two videos and in an expanded version of this article to be released on Friday.

NY: Dominion Sues to Stop New York City Contract with ES&S
http://www.bolipari.com/boblog/2010/02/dominion-sues-to-stop-new-york-city-contract-with-ess/
Posted by: bolipari. In a surprise move, Dominion Voting Systems has filed an Article 78 lawsuit in New York State Supreme Court in Albany to stop the New York City Board of Elections from awarding a $70 million dollar contract for new voting machines to ES&S.

NY: Concerns About New York’s Voting Machines: An Update
http://bit.ly/d1BFg8
…The Board of Elections spoke with our coalition last Thursday, and agreed to take the following steps

SD: ACLU seeks to expand voting lawsuit
http://bit.ly/9M6yyh
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) – The American Civil Liberties Union wants to expand a voting rights lawsuit against state officials into a class-action lawsuit on behalf of American Indians in South Dakota.

TN: Ketron bill to ease military voting advances
http://bit.ly/b7w5IU
…The bill…authorizes a county Election Commission to e-mail a ballot to each member of the armed forces.
…
The legislation helps the state comply with the federal Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act, which took effect in October. That law requires the Department of the Army and Postal Service to expedite the return of ballots by using express mail, since they cannot be returned electronically due to election security concerns.

VA: Suit filed over rejected NSU voter applications
http://bit.ly/9FjTKA

The Voting News Daily: Groups warn ES&S merger is security threat, Future of CA Voting comments posted, VA officials sued over voter files

The news is fairly light today so be sure to read the public comments on the Future of Voting in California now posted at the CA SOS website. The comments come from experts, advocates, interested citizens and also voting vendors including internet voting vendors…
ES&S Diebold Purchase: Groups Endorse Remedies for Unlawful Concentration of Market Power… In NM, the house has voted to contributions from lobbyist, the bill now heads to the senate…. Voting to become easier for Alabama service members….

All this and more in today’s news below….

AL: New bill would expand absentee voting options (next to state senate)
http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/article/20100217/NEWS02/2170352/1009
The bill would allow service members to file requests for ab­sentee ballots by e-mail or fax. Currently, the requests must be made by U.S. Postal Service. It also would allow for the ballots to be sent to the service mem­bers by e-mail or fax, as well as U.S. Postal Service.

CA: ACLU of Northern California Opposes “Top-Two Open Primary”
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/02/17/aclu-of-northern-california-opposes-top-two-open-primary/
CA: Breaking News: Federal District Court Issues Important Split Decision in San Diego Campaign Finance Case
http://electionlawblog.org/archives/015297.html

CA: Battle lines form over electronic signatures to qualify ballot initiatives
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_14415504?nclick_check=1
…But hours after Chief Elections Officer Warren Slocum announced Tuesday that he would reject any electronic signature scribbled on an iPhone’s touch screen, the founders of a Silicon Valley start-up company said they would file a lawsuit this week challenging the rejection.
…
“I think that until it’s clear that this kind of technology can’t be tampered with, hard copy signatures should be the way to go,” Smith added. “I don’t think we’re clear on that point.” (Pam Smith, President of Verified Voting)

CT: ES&S Diebold Purchase: Groups Endorse Remedies for Unlawful Concentration of Market Power
http://www.ctvoterscount.org/?p=2888

NC: City feeling pressure to change its election system
http://bit.ly/a0pNeA
Settlemyer and City Manager Sally Sandy drove home the point when they said Morganton’s alone-in-the-state status running its own municipal election could cost $25,000 to $30,000 or more for new hardware
…
Today, no N.C. city has its own board of elections — except Morganton. An increasing number of people are asking why.

NM: House votes to ban contributions from lobbyists, contractors
Bill bans contributions to candidates and political parties
http://newmexicoindependent.com/47804/house-votes-to-ban-contributions-from-lobbyists-contractors

VA: Virginia Election Officials Sued for Unlawfully Denying Access to Voter Files
http://bit.ly/9Md1Pb

VA: Election Law Society Symposium! March 18, 2010
http://electls.blogs.wm.edu/2010/02/17/election-law-society-symposium/
(William & Mary) The Election Law Society is proud to announce its fourth annual Election Law Symposium, “Back to the Drawing Board: The 2010 Census and the Politics of Redistricting.”

National

Groups and Election Officials Warn Department of Justice that Voting Machine Vendor Merger will Inflate Costs to Taxpayers, Threaten Election Accuracy and National Security
http://blog.verifiedvoting.org/2010/02/17/401
The letter strongly warns of profound risks to national security when one vendor controls the programming and maintenance of the election equipment in a 70% majority of election jurisdictions or entire states. Centralization of voting system programming and maintenance increases the possibility of widespread election failure, the experts warn, which could have the potential to de-stabilize the Nation and could present a threat to U.S.

The Voting News Daily: TX court: only disabled to e-vote in Webb Co., IL undervote law shames some voters

A Reminder: You Don’t Want Voting Controlled By One Company…Kansas SOS Issues New Instructions About Interestate Database Matching…The 49th District Court in Texas ruled that only disabled voters will use the touchscreen voting machines….
Election integrity expert Dr. Charles E. Corry hopes to administer elections and is running for El Paso County Clerk and Recorder. Corry has the online book “Vote Fraud and Election Issues” and served on the (IEEE) voting equipment standards committee from 2001-2009…See Tom Barrow video account of his candidacy in the 2009 Detroit Mayoral election, recount process and discussion on history of vote rigging…

All this and more in today’s voting news below…..

CA: Rethinking elections
Amid budget shortfalls, can we afford all these special elections?
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-logan16-2010feb16,0,7617068.story?track=rss

CO: Voting transparency expert Dr. Chuck Corry is running for El Paso County Clerk and Recorder
http://corryforclerk.com
Corry’s online book about Vote Fraud and Election Issues
http://www.ejfi.org/Voting/Voting.htm

CT: Denise Merrill formally enters SOTS race
By Luther Weeks on February 15, 2010
http://www.ctvoterscount.org/?p=2875

IL: Legislators offer ideas to improve election process
http://bit.ly/b5bmWg
The ideas range from making it easier for young people to vote to improved methods for election officials to keep dead voters off the registration rolls.

IL: Under-vote law limits right to secret ballot
http://www.pantagraph.com/news/opinion/mailbag/article_07ba6d18-1900-11df-af83-001cc4c002e0.html
This new law should be abolished. It serves no practical purpose except to shame some voters and erode our right to be entirely left alone in the voting booth.

IN: 2 plans to ease voting stumble
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20100216/NEWS07/302169990
INDIANAPOLIS – Two major election proposals – no-fault absentee voting by mail and allowing counties to use vote centers – have hit roadblocks
…
Battles thinks the legislature should learn from the pilot counties and set minimum standards for the model, including the size and speed of computer servers and technology for an electronic poll book, before opening it up statewide.

KS: Kansas Secretary of State Issues New Instructions About Interestate Database Matching
http://bit.ly/csizE3
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to concerns expressed by national voting rights groups Project Vote and the Fair Elections Legal Network (FELN), the Kansas Secretary of State has issued new instructions to county election officials to ensure that eligible voters are not wrongfully removed from the rolls under an ongoing program to update voter registration databases based on interstate matching.

MI: Tom Barrow’s engrossing account of his candidacy in the nonpartisan 2009 Detroit Mayoral election and recount process
http://blip.tv/search?q=tom+barrow (video)
The speech video is in 3 parts. You will learn about the long history of insider election rigging in Detroit, and how the same methods are now used around the state

MT: Montana Secretary of State Linda McCulloch Discusses Records Management, E-Voting
http://www.govtech.com/gt/articles/745690
We’re very excited about online voter registration. One barrier, more than anything, is it costs money to implement this system

NH: New Hampshire Ballot Access Bill Passes Committee
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/02/16/new-hampshire-ballot-access-bill-passes-committee/

NY: New election system takes shape in Port Chester
http://www.lohud.com/article/20100215/NEWS02/2150333/-1/newsfront/New-election-system-takes-shape-in-Port-Chester
PORT CHESTER — Attorneys are working out details of a new kind of ballot to be used in the June 15 village election, which will fill all six trustee seats under a court-ordered cumulative voting system.

The Voting News Daily: Aspen ballot image court date set, Goldman Sachs fishy internet vote

The cost of transparency: The lawsuit to force release of ballot images from Aspen Colorado’s May 2009 election is set for March 22-23. By that time, the plaintiff’s legal fees are expected to total $75,000. The city of Aspen has moved for a protective order to disallow testimony from voting vendor True Ballot’s staff… Witness says KY lawmaker gave $40,000 to vote-buying group…

The ACLU Challenges Illegal Disfranchisement of American Indian Voters in South Dakota…
Was there cheating in Goldman Sachs internet vote? 5,000 votes against the “Robin Hood” tax came from 2 servers at Goldman Sachs…Worries grow about America’s cyber security……In Anambra State, Nigeria, only 350 out of 1.8 million registered voters were able to cast a vote in the governorship election because “their names were not in the revised voters registers.”

CA: Voting rights suit settled with Riverside County
http://bit.ly/c21cjF
The U.S. Justice Department has settled a lawsuit with Riverside County that claimed the county didn’t provide help for Spanish-speaking voters.

CA: OSDV Testifies (sort of) at CA Voting Systems Hearing
http://www.trustthevote.org/osdv-testifies-sort-of-at-ca-voting-systems-hearing
First, my take is the CA Secretary of State needs to conduct another Hearing that is strictly focused on the challenges and opportunities of open source technology in elections systems

CO: Trial set in suit over Aspen’s May election results
http://bit.ly/bj5TBq
Aspen resident Marilyn Marks’ lawsuit over the city’s Instant Runoff Voting has been scheduled for trial in March. Marks is seeking release of photographic images of the ballots from last May’s election.

FL: Despite deal with justice department, no blacks run for office in Lake Park
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/despite-deal-with-justice-department-no-blacks-run-224223.html
After spending nearly $80,000 on attorneys to defend itself against the lawsuit, the commission in October agreed to abandon the at-large system and switch to one that has been used successfully throughout the South to assure blacks are elected to public office.

GA: GOP: Voter ID issue headed to ballot
http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/article/20100211/NEWS01/2110340/1002

KY: ELECTION FINANCES: Jefferson County Kings are not the only elected folks facing financial scrutiny in the commonwealth over their campaign spending and fundraising
http://bit.ly/9runRf

KY: Witness: State lawmaker gave $40,000 to vote-buying group *
http://bluegrasspolitics.bloginky.com/2010/02/05/witness-state-lawmaker-gave-40000-to-vote-buying-group/

MD: Maryland should ban contested judicial elections
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/09/AR2010020903524.html
For judges, drumming up campaign money — often from lawyers who appear before them — and marketing themselves undermines the perception of impartiality and can in practice lead to its corrosion.

NM: Time To Give Challengers A Fair, Equal Opportunity
http://www.stpns.net/view_article.html?articleId=106532676010210813710
SOCORRO, New Mexico (STPNS) — Which knuckleheads in Santa Fe came up with idea that city clerks across New Mexico could have the early voting machines in their office at election time every two years – even though their bosses (incumbent mayors and councilors) may be running for re-election?

NY: “Auditing” Regs Confirm Op-Scan Vulnerabilities
http://re-mediaetc.blogspot.com/2010/02/auditing-regs-confirm-op-scan.html
… and if we make enough exceptions to cover discrepancies between hand and machine counts, then almost any machine, even rigged ones, will pass “audit.”

NY: Local assemblymen vote down absentee ballot changes
http://bit.ly/clV0Iq

OH: Money saved or wasted? Cuyahoga County pays for unused voting machines
http://www.wkyc.com/news/politics_govt/politics_article.aspx?storyid=130630&catid=130

The Voting News Daily: Suit against Webb CO TX voting machines, Obama push for voting rights, Chinas hackers

A candidate for Webb County, TX Judge has filed a lawsuit to stop the use of voting machines except for disabled voters…. The Champaign County IL Clerk shares results of post election audits…

…When you read articles promoting internet, email or fax voting, be sure to keep in mind the risks inherent to the internet. See today’s article “Cyberwar: How China’s Hackers Threaten the U.S. Armed Forces” . Daniel Darling, Defense Industry Reporter writes “the beauty of cyberwarfare is not just the favorable cost-versus-benefits ration, but the inability of the victim to provide solid proof of their involvement.”…

All this and more in today’s voting news below….

AZ: Judges and Politics Don’t Mix
http://www.brennancenter.org/blog/archives/judges_and_politics_dont_mix/
Last year, the Institute for Legal Reform of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce — a group that’s not exactly known for radical, left-wing politics — endorsed Arizona’s system of selecting judges, saying that “Arizona leads the nation with the procedures it has put in place to fulfill the promise of true nonpartisan ‘merit’ selection” of judges

AZ: Arizona voters living abroad given options
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/2010/02/12/20100212politics-overseas0212.html
Arizona voters serving in the military or living overseas will soon have some new ways to assure their ballot has been counted
…
Arizona already allows overseas and military voters to vote via e-mailand already had been close to meeting the 45-day requirement.

CA: California Top-Two Open Primary Would Increase Election Administration Costs, According to County Elections Officials
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/02/11/california-top-two-open-primary-would-increase-election-administration-costs-according-to-county-elections-officials/

CA: More California Dysfunction: Not Clear If Assembly Rejected Candidate for Lt. Gov.
http://electionlawblog.org/archives/015270.html

CO: Sec. of state explores mail-in ballots
http://www.fortmorgantimes.com/ci_14387846

DE: Delaware Elections Officials Ask for Legal Advice on Whether to Disqualify Certain Minor Parties Immediately
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/02/12/delaware-elections-officials-ask-for-legal-advice-on-whether-to-disqualify-certain-minor-parties-immediately/

GA: Staton, Kemp back online voter registration
http://www.macon.com/741/story/1019584.html

IL: Good Gets Better (post election audit results)
http://blog.champaigncountyclerk.com/2010/02/12/good-gets-better/
Champaign County Clerk. After each election, we conduct a retabulation of 5% of our precincts pursuant to state law. As post election audits go, it’s not much. We’ve beefed ours up a bit by adding a redundant hand count of a race in each of the 6 precincts retabulated in Champaign County.

IL: State Board Memo On Undervotes
http://blog.champaigncountyclerk.com/2010/02/12/state-board-memo-on-undervotes/
Champaign County Clerk. Mark Mossman from the State Board of Elections has a memo regarding the Primary Election in the packet of information for next week’s SBE meeting in Chicago. It points out a number of problems with the undervote law that I and other Clerks had predicted.

MA: PRE-OWNED, PRE-VOTED BALLOTS
http://www.handcountedpaperballots.org/documents/blog.php?entry_id=1265948229&title=pre-owned%2C-pre-voted-ballots
February 11, 2010 On January 19, 2010, the MA Senate special election, there were some pre-owned, pre-voted ballots
…How many other pre-owned, pre-voted ballots were there that we did not see, because they were put in the “right” box – away from public view and there only for the counting?

PA: Ballots opened early in Robinson, elections judge says
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10042/1034961-57.stm
County official to discuss with solicitor what action, if any, to take over absentee ballot violation in Robinson

TX: Lawsuit Against Webb County’s Elections Department
http://www.laredosun.us/notas.asp?id=3902
LAREDO, Tx.- Louis Bruni, who is running for Webb County judge, filed a formal lawsuit against the Department of Elections and the Democratic Party so that only disabled people can use the electronic machines in the primary elections.

The Voting News Daily: Fla. justices uphold Sarasota election law, More internet voting in Canada

Congratulations to the Sarasota Alliance for Fair Elections – the Florida Supreme Court upheld two amendments to Sarasota’s county charter, one requiring voting systems to have a voter verified paper ballot and the other requiring a manual audit….In New York – “Federal prosecutors have opened an investigation into how the city’s Board of Elections awarded a $50 million contract for electronic voting machines” following the indictment of a lobbyist for ES&S on another matter… internet voting continues to spread in municipal elections in Canada in spite of statements by computer technologists that it cannot be made secure at this time…..

All this and more in today’s voting news below…..

AZ: Accusations of ballot tampering, voter fraud *
http://www.wmicentral.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=20408072&BRD=2264&PAG=461&dept_id=505965&rfi=6
A crowd of about 150 Whiteriver Apache Tribe members confronted Tribal council members Tuesday after 54 absentee ballots were reportedly found in the possession of a single individual at the Whiteriver Commercial Center parking lot the day before.

CA: Testimony from SoS hearing on the Future of Voting in California
Kim Alexander of CalVoter
http://bit.ly/8YCrJO

CA: PPIC study of open primaries in California
http://electionupdates.caltech.edu/?p=3109

CO: Colorado interrogatories to State Supreme Court on Citizens United
http://politicalactivitylaw.com/?p=7981
February 11, 2010 I’ve previously noted that Colorado is taking steps to address the impact of Citizens United on the state constitution.

Fla. justices uphold local election law
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/florida/AP/story/1475004.html

FL: Supreme Court issues ruling in elections case
http://bit.ly/b09EOq
February 11, 2010 Local governments have a right to make some of their own laws when it comes to conducting elections, the Florida Supreme Court ruled Wednesday in connection with a Sarasota County case.
…
the court found that some of the provisions of the 2006 change to Sarasota County’s Charter directly conflicted with state law. In particular, the court found that the ballot question’s process for certifying elections was in conflict with state law and unconstitutional.

KS: Allegations against Kansas Secretary of State candidate, Kris Kobach
http://bit.ly/cSjg4y
A group out of Arizona claims Kansas Secretary of State candidate, Kris Kobach, has ties to anti-immigration and hate groups.

MT: Secretary of State cuts spending by 18 percent in a year
http://bit.ly/aXhMpa
Montana has received $17 million in HAVA funding, but has only $3 million in these funds remaining. That money is expected to be exhausted by 2012 unless Congress appropriates more money.

NY: Feds Suspect City May Have Been Bribed on Voting Machine Vote
http://gothamist.com/2010/02/11/city_bribed_on_voting_machine_vote.php
…The suspicion comes after the indictment of Anthony Mangone, a lawyer who allegedly bribed Sandy Annabl, a member of Yonkers city council, to change her vote on development projects. Mangone was hired as a lobbyist for ES&S, and was arrested on January 6th, the day after the BOE voted 6-1 on ES&S.

NY: Bronx GOP Chair, Elections Commissioners Subpoenaed »
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypolitics/2010/02/bronx-gop-chair-elections-comm.html
Two Republican elections commissioners confirmed receiving subpoenas seeking information about the Jan. 5 vote that gave Election Systems and Software of Omaha a more than $50 million contract to replace the city’s lever voting machines with new, electronic models in time for the September primaries.

The Voting News Daily: Virginia touchscreen voting tug of war, an Indiana County limits ties to voting vendor

Some Virginia Registrars are pushing state lawmakers to let them keep buying touchscreen voting machines. This goes against the 2007 law meant to phase out touchscreen voting machines and replace them with paper ballot systems…

Hawaii considers law to keep voting vendors lawsuits from delaying next voting machine purchases…How will Citizens United affect your state’s elections and laws? William and Mary Election Law Society is keeping track….

Is Internet voting a good idea? Consider this: “The threat of cyber warfare is on a par with that of nuclear warfare in the 1950s, according to a study published by the International Institute for Strategic Studies in Britain on Feb.”

All this and more in today’s voting news below…..

AL: Thousands of Madison County voters could find themselves voting at new location
http://blog.al.com/breaking/2010/02/thousands_of_madison_county_vo.html

CA: Officials to weigh voting options
Hearing focuses on the changing election process, technology
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100209/A_NEWS/2090315/-1/a_news06
On Monday, state and local election officials met with experts and industry representatives at a hearing in Sacramento to look at how the mechanism of voting has changed in the past 10 years as counties complied with new election laws and what should happen next to ensure accurate and secure elections.

HI: Lawmakers kill bills to overhaul Hawaii’s election system
http://www.starbulletin.com/news/breaking/84036192.html

HI: Still No Selection Of Voting Machines
http://www.khon2.com/news/local/story/Still-No-Selection-Of-Voting-Machines/6jIr7F2zmkmeVutJnimf9Q.cspx
Causing further concern is the possibility that another challenge by a voting machine vendor could further delay the process. To prevent that from happening lawmakers hope to waive the normal procurement process through emergency legislation – House Bill 1901.

IN: County limiting ties to election services company
http://www.courierpress.com/news/2010/feb/09/county-limiting-ties-to-election-services/
…
But County Clerk Susan Kirk has been negotiating to disengage the county as much as possible from Election Systems & Software

MA: Votes Monday are for mayoral process, not for mayor
http://www.cambridgeday.com/2010/02/08/votes-monday-are-for-mayoral-process-not-for-mayor/

MT: County merges city polling places to just 4
Polling places are only used for federal elections
http://bit.ly/bQ46ej
Billings…Consolidating the 37 polling places allows for less confusion, more control and less need for help, since the county is finding it harder to recruit election judges…

NE: Nebraska Bill to Allow Electronic Signatures on Initiative & Referendum Petitions
http://bit.ly/b9m2iY
February 10th, 2010 Nebraska Senator Bill Avery has intoduced LB 1059, to allow initiative and referendum petitions to be signed electronically

NJ: Provisional ballot challenges suggest racial discrimination
http://njtoday.net/2010/02/09/provisional-ballot-challenges-suggest-racial-discrimination/
LINDEN—A review of voting statistics from the February 2008 presidential primary election reveals what appears to be a pattern of racial discrimination.

NY: All Things Considered: Electronic Voting Costs Dollars and Democracy
http://re-mediaetc.blogspot.com/2010/02/all-things-considered-electronic-voting.html
…BMDs are separate from the Optical Scan Voting Machines and the ballots created can be counted by hand. The issues should not be confused as they often are…

OH: Muscogee elections board to hold Feb. 25 public meeting on consolidating voting precincts
http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/news/breaking_news/story/1007477.html
School district requested polls be removed from some schools
Political activists protesting Columbus’ plans to consolidate some voting precincts will get another chance to complain 5:30-7 p.m. Feb. 25

VA: Bills would preserve touch-screen voting machines
http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/state_regional/govtpolitics/article/bills_would_preserve_touch-screen_voting_machines/80223/
Susan Greenhalgh, a spokeswoman for Virginia Verified Voting, a coalition that successfully pushed for the ban in 2007, said the computerized systems are more expensive and harder to use.

The Voting News Daily: NJ Star Ledger:Verify our votes and stop delay, NM not enough funds to conduct 2010 elections, CA group: ditch e-voting

At today’s public hearing about the future of voting in California, when the issue of new voting machines was brought up, some citizens urged the officials to get rid of electronic voting, period. Tom Courbat with the Sacremento group “Save Our Vote” said: “We’re not convinced there is enough security in these voting systems to justify continuing to purchase them. We have seen demonstrations over and over again of machines being hacked…”

UKRAINE orange revolution reversed? RUSSIA Tymoshenko accuses winner Yanukovich of election fraud…

All this and more in today’s voting news below….

CA: California’s Electronic Voting Booths Need An Upgrade But It Won’t Be Cheap
http://www.capradio.org/articles/articledetail.aspx?articleid=7779
…At a public hearing on the issue in Sacramento, some citizens urged the officials to get rid of electronic voting, period.

CA: Monday update: Morales indicted for voter fraud
http://www.sthelenastar.com/articles/2010/02/08/news/local/doc4b7093681d58b608400389.txt
February 08, 2010 …The Napa County district attorney’s office alleges that Morales voted twice in the Nov. 3 mail-in election

CO: Questions Mailed to Aspen Special Counsel Jim True
http://aspenelectionreview.blogspot.com/2010/02/questions-mailed-to-aspen-special.html

CT: Democracy Too Costly for Seymour?
http://www.ctvoterscount.org/?p=2869
February 9, 2010 …With both Gov. M. Jodi Rell and Sen. Christopher Dodd stepping down, voting registrars in town expect to hold primaries for both major political parties this year.

That means more money in the budget that hasn’t much to begin with

ID: Bill Would Require Idaho Voter ID
http://www.spokesman.com/blogs/hbo/2010/feb/09/bill-would-require-idaho-voter-id/

IN: Review of Vote Centers Study by the Bowen Center for Public Affairs
http://www.in.gov/sos/elections/files/BowenCenterVoteCenterSummary_for_SOS.pdf

IL: Election Code Growing
http://blog.champaigncountyclerk.com/2010/02/09/election-code-growing/
Champaign County Clerk Just received my new annotated election code from Westlaw. It’s now grown to three volumes from two.

IL: Lawmakers head back to Springfield with a list of problems
http://www.pjstar.com/news/x1522834498/Lawmakers-head-back-to-Springfield-with-a-list-of-problems
…Rep. Jim Watson, R-Jacksonville, is the chief sponsor of House Bill 4687, which would undo a state law that requires voters to be alerted if they cast an undervote.

KS:Kansas secretary of state resigns
http://www.kansascity.com/news/politics/story/1735838.html

MO: Annual Missouri Voter ID back as constitutional amendment
http://bit.ly/98IlsR

NH: New Hampshire Hearing Seems Favorable to Ballot Access Reform Bill
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/02/09/new-hampshire-hearing-seems-favorable-to-ballot-access-reform-bill/
February 9th, 2010 On February 9, the New Hampshire House Election Law Committee held another hearing on HB 1264

NJ: N.J. voting machines: Verify our votes and stop delaying paper backup
By Star-Ledger Editorial Board
http://blog.nj.com/njv_editorial_page/2010/02/nj_voting_machines_verify_our.html
February 08, 2010…”New Jersey had the gold standard of statutes” when it passed the 2005 law, says Rutgers-Newark Law School professor Penny Venetis, “but at this point, the vast majority of people in the country vote on machines that produce paper and New Jersey is lagging.”

NM: Sec of State: Not enough money for 2010 elections
http://newmexicoindependent.com/46641/sec-of-state-not-enough-money-for-2010-elections

NM: New Mexico Secretary of State Tells Legislature She Has Insufficient Funds to Hold 2010 Elections
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/02/09/new-mexico-secretary-of-state-tells-legislature-she-has-insufficient-funds-to-hold-2010-elections/
February 9th, 2010 The New Mexico Independent newspaper of February 9 has this story, which says that New Mexico’s Secretary of State Mary Herrera has told the legislature that her budget is over $1,000,000 short of having enough money to pay for the 2010 primary and general elections

NY: New York: Four Legislative Specials
http://ballotbox.governing.com/2010/02/new-york-four-legislative-specials.html
Today, we have four special elections for the New York Assembly.

The Voting News Daily: NY new voting machines overvote concerns, Judges initials may impact IL GOP governor election

New York’s new optical scan machines, the ES&S DS200 and Dominion ImageCast will treat overvotes in a way that threatens the voting rights of millions of New Yorkers. The machines do not automatically return overvoted or otherwise erroneous ballots to the voter for correction. A recent Florida study showed that “the ES&S DS200 (the only system in Florida which did not automatically return overvoted ballots to voters) had an overvote rate on Election Day 2008 that was eighteen times higher than that of the systems used in other Florida counties”.

Paying our respects: Congressman Jack Murtha, supporter of verified voting efforts, died today, may he rest in peace….Civil rights and labor leader Beth Shulman died on Friday, February 5, she will be missed….

All this and more in today’s voting news below…

AL: Birmingham News Editorial in Favor of Ballot Access Reform
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/02/08/birmingham-news-editorial-in-favor-of-ballot-access-reform/
February 8th, 2010 The Birmingham News of February 8 has this editorial, urging the Alabama legislature to pass Rep. Cam Ward’s ballot access bill.

CA: Secretary of State hearing Monday – Future of Voting in California
http://calvoter.org/news/blog/2010_02_01_blogarchive.html#6542077865288826299

CA: Press release – Secretary of State Debra Bowen Reports One in Five
Voters Now Registered Decline-to-State; More Total Voters
Since Last Statewide Primary in a Gubernatorial Election Year
http://www.sos.ca.gov/admin/press-releases/2010/db10-024.pdf

CA: San Francisco’s new election process challenged
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/02/05/state/n103103S81.DTL&type=politics
Feb 5, 2010…Six people, including unsuccessful Board of Supervisors candidate Ron Dudum, allege in a federal lawsuit filed Thursday that voters are disenfranchised because they are limited to only three choices.

FL: Appeals court to hear Palm Beach election challenge
http://bit.ly/bBpAur
February 07, 2010. The Fourth District Court of Appeal will hear attorneys’ arguments Tuesday in Gerry Goldsmith’s appeal of a judge’s decision upholding the result of the town’s February 2009 mayoral election and recount

IL: Judges’ Initials in the OpScan Age
http://blog.champaigncountyclerk.com/2010/02/08/judges-initials-in-the-opscan-age/
Champaign County Clerk. With a razor thin margin in the Republican Governor’s race I’m already looking at a potential election contest in light of our new election equipment and new election law.
…
if you cast a vote on paper in the state of Illinois, your ballot being counted is based in large part on whether the judge remembers to initial the ballot.

IL: Dillard wants all ballots counted
http://www.dailyillini.com/news/2010/02/05/dillard-wants-all-ballots-counted
February 5th, 2010. Kirk Dillard, Republican candidate for Illinois Governor, said the ballot counting process in the GOP Primary must continue until all ballots have been verified.
…
Some election officials have said they will wait until February 15 or 16 to count their absentee and provisional ballots…

IL: John F. DiLeo Extensive Commentary on Illinois Democratic Fiasco for Lieutenant Governorship Nomination http://bit.ly/dhAYGF

MN: Cost becomes focus of ranked-choice decision
http://www.republican-eagle.com/event/article/id/64501/
Red Wing Charter Commission. The cost of ranked-choice voting might may be the biggest factor in whether Red Wing city officials embrace it.
…But commissioners say they want to know exactly how much converting to ranked-choice voting would cost before proposing Red Wing adopt the system.

NM: Controversal voter registration bill moves on
http://newmexicoindependent.com/46479/controversal-voter-registration-bill-moves-on
A bill that would allow voters to register and vote on the same day barely cleared the House Consumer and Public Affairs Committee on Thursday

NJ: The Bizarre History of Election Law: The Camden Election Riots of 1870
http://electls.blogs.wm.edu/2010/02/08/the-bizarre-history-of-election-law-the-camden-election-riots-of-1870/

The Voting News Daily: Understanding Citizens United, Murphy’s Law on Voter Interface, Automatic Voter Registration

The S.D. Legislature eyes pilot of ‘precinct-less’ voting for school board elections…
A Technologist in Philippines considers the impact of Murphy’s Law on the Voter Interface of the Automated Election System and how to avoid problems…The Champagn County Clerk in Illinois writes about automatic voter registration and what goes on behind the scenes… “Understanding Citizens United: An Interview with Richard L. Hasen” …

All this and more in today’s voting news below…

CA: Application deadline for Citizens Redistricting Commission is Feb. 12
http://calvoter.org/news/blog/2010_02_01_blogarchive.html#3828639681469088340

CA: County Registrar cautions St. Helena voters about ballot
http://www.napavalleyregister.com/news/local/article_1535785a-1079-11df-b0ca-001cc4c03286.html

CA: Suit challenges San Francisco election practice
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/02/04/BAE61BSTH8.DTL#ixzz0eg9uwjWe

CA: Group sues to stop instant runoff elections in SF
http://www.sfexaminer.com/local/Group-sues-to-stop-instant-runoff-elections-in-SF-83607307.html#ixzz0edR8t4WT
The lawsuit claims that the way the city implements the system is unconstitutional because some voters are denied the ability to have their vote counted in later rounds of balloting.

CO: News: Hearing date set for Aspen’s ’09 election (podcast)
http://www.kdnk.org/article.cfm?mode=detail&id=1264781474327
The City of Aspen’s May 2009 election has spiraled into a lawsuit that looks like it could finally make its way to court.

CT: First Steps Taken to Place Connecticut Tea Party on the Ballot
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/02/05/first-steps-taken-to-place-connecticut-tea-party-on-the-ballot/

GA: Secretary of State Kemp Announces Support of Legislation to Increase Ballot Access for Military and Overseas Voters
http://www.theweekly.com/news/2010/February/04/Overseas_Voters.html
…allowing military and overseas voters to receive a blank absentee ballot electronically

HI: Hawaii House Panel Passes Bill To Move Up Election
http://bit.ly/9pFLi1

IL: Automated is not Automatic
http://blog.champaigncountyclerk.com/2010/02/05/automated-is-not-automatic/
Champaign County Clerk. With the Illinois primary election now over (more or less) I will have a little more time to catch up with the various attempts out there to radically change our voter registration system. A recent one is from Demos

IL: Election summary: Undervoting law underloved
http://www.pekintimes.com/news/x1878079590/Election-summary-Undervoting-law-underloved

IL: ‘Ghost’ voting alleged in Sammons Points *
http://www.daily-journal.com/archives/dj/display.php?id=451417
“There are four names on the voter list that don’t live where they say they do,” said Sammons Point resident Joe Culkin. “Nobody has seen them. We don’t know them, all four voted absentee from a little house about the size of a two-car garage.”

LA: New Orleans loses 76 voting precincts in post-Katrina tally
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2010/02/new_orleans_voters.html
February 04, 2010. Voters with questions about where they should cast their ballots Saturday can go to the secretary of state’s Web site, www.sos.louisiana.gov, and click on GeauxVote

NC: Ruling may help politics as usual
http://bit.ly/cRKNfE
The ruling overturns North Carolina’s law banning direct contributions.
This means that in the fall elections, a corporation that wants to influence an election can write a check for $1 million, rather than having to raise it in small increments from its executives.

SD: S.D. Legislature eyes ‘precinct-less’ voting
http://www.mitchellrepublic.com/event/article/id/40593/group/News/
PIERRE…The plan would let voters cast ballots at any of the school district’s polling places that they find convenient on election day.

Citizens United

FEC Statement on the Supreme Court’s Decision in Citizens United v. FEC
http://www.fec.gov/press/press2010/20100205CitizensUnited.shtml
Washington – The Federal Election Commission today announced that, due to the Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United v. FEC, it will no longer enforce statutory and regulatory provisions prohibiting corporations and labor unions from making either independent expenditures or electioneering communications.

The Voting News Daily: Hawaii has 3 election bills, Coalition urges WA lawmakers to reject online voting, IL law violating voter secrecy condemned

In Washburn’s World, Election Records Would Be Public…In Palm Beach FL, cartridges for some machines used in Fl District 19 GOP primary special election could not be read and the paper ballots were later counted at a tabulating center….In an Illinois Primary Race, Victory Is Self-Declared…

Hawaii to consider 3 election bills – vote by mail as the only election system, voting systems integrity and security, and election audits….Voting rights groups urge Washington State lawmakers to reject online voting bills HB 1624 and SB 5522.

All this and more in today’s voting news below….

AR: Which type voting machine do you prefer and feel secure casting your vote on?
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/TM5SJJQ (poll)

FL: Last Case on Timing of Florida Presidential Primary Dismissed for Mootness
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/02/04/last-case-on-timing-of-florida-presidential-primary-dismissed-for-mootness/

FL: Morning of rechecking ballot-count proves Lynch the GOP winner in District 19 *
(correction after some ballots double counted)
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/state/morning-of-rechecking-ballot-count-proves-lynch-the-211948.html
WEST PALM BEACH — After a counting glitch led to a long night and morning of shifting results, Ed Lynch emerged Wednesday as the winner of Tuesday’s special congressional District 19 GOP primary by 0.56 percent — just enough to avoid a recount against runner-up Joe Budd.
…
Palm Beach County Elections Supervisor Susan Bucher said nine votes for Budd and four votes for Price were properly counted on the electronic cartridges that are retrieved from ballot scanning machines at each precinct. But other cartridges in other scanners at those precincts could not be read, Bucher said. In response, elections staffers took all the ballots from those precincts — including the few ballots that had already been properly counted — and scanned them at the elections tabulating center in Riviera Beach.

After posting the incorrect totals on the elections Web site late Tuesday, Bucher said elections officials realized the mistake when they compared vote totals to the number of “ballot accounting forms” filled out at each precinct to keep track of how many ballots are voted and how many are left over.

HI: Three election-related bills for your review
http://disappearednews.com/2010/02/three-election-related-bills-for-your.html

IL: Daily Herald Condemns Illinois Law That Compromises Secret Ballot
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/02/04/daily-herald-condemns-illinois-law-that-compromises-secret-ballot/

IL: Local legislators hope to repeal undervote law
http://www3.whig.com/whig/blogs/citybeat/?p=290

IL: Grace: A few notes on election night *
http://www.kcchronicle.com/blogs/entries/2010/02/03/42268637/index.xml
The main issue was the Aurora Election Commission, which was showing different results throughout the night on its Web site and the Kane County Web site’s link to its results.

IL: Few voters, few problems * (attempts to mark ballots, also electioneering)
http://www.southtownstar.com/news/election/2026423,020310elexvoterfeat.article
Election judge in Oak Lawn booted for causing disruption
…In Oak Lawn, Cook County sheriff’s police booted Michael W. Tortorello, 51, from his election judge role mid-afternoon Tuesday after Tortorello shouted racial slurs against President Barack Obama, railed against “Crook County” government and attempted to mark up several ballots.

IL: In an Illinois Primary Race, Victory Is Self-Declared
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/04/us/04governor.html

IL: Recounts not automatic, must wait a month
http://www.herald-review.com/news/local/article_a03af164-67ed-56f4-a869-e94dbcdde15f.html
Feb 4. DECATUR – With the results of both primary elections for governor still in question, county political leaders spoke about the possible impacts in the near term.

The Voting News Daily: WA email fax voting bill opposition, Ill election probs, NJ voting machine ruling half right

Opposition to emailing and faxing ballots builds – See Jason Osgood’s letter to Washington state representatives in opposition to email and fax voting that would be made legal by the Overseas and Service Voters bill (HB 2483 / SB 6238)…

Lots of news about the Illinois primary, with some reports of machine malfunction and some voter registration issues and voters confused by the undervote warning on voting machines. Too much caffeine? A coffee break kills voting machine….

All this and more in today’s voting news below…

AZ: 9th Circuit Keeps Arizona Public Funding Alive At Least Through April 2010
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/02/03/9th-circuit-keeps-arizona-public-funding-alive-at-least-through-april-2010/

CA: The Future of Voting in California: The People, the Equipment, the Costs
(watch the proceedings live)
http://www.sos.ca.gov/voting-systems/hearings/
Secretary of State’s Office, First Floor Auditorium, February 8, 2010, 10:00 a.m

CO: Marks v. Koch – Ballot Image Transparency Litigation – Aspen CO- 2nd conference
http://aspenelectionreview.blogspot.com/2010/02/marks-v-koch-ballot-imagetransparency.html
…During that conference the Judge did not decide on the motion to dismiss. He ruled to allow a deposition of True Ballot Inc. The City of Aspen advised that it would file a motion for a protective order preventing the deposition.

GA: Unscheduled elections cost thousands in taxpayer dollars
http://www.nbcaugusta.com/news/local/83362027.html

IL: Primary election: A few polling problems reported * (video available)
http://bit.ly/c1cjjg
…In Bloomington, a machine was replaced at Precinct 11, Fairway-Knolls Church of the Nazarene. Ballots were put into an auxiliary slot to be read and tabulated after the polls close, said Paul Shannon, executive director of the Bloomington Election Commission.

The procedure is the same for precincts covered by the McLean County clerk’s office. In Precinct 3 in Normal, for instance, early voters manually inserted their ballots into a machine whose automated function was on the fritz.

IL: County clerk to look into voter registration problems *
http://www.sj-r.com/breaking/x562895298/County-clerk-to-look-into-voter-registration-problems
Posted Feb 02, 2010 Sangamon County Clerk Joe Aiello said his office will look into why some voters showed up to the polls Tuesday, but their registrations weren’t reflected in the usual paperwork.
…
Earlier Tuesday, Aiello said tabulating machines at five polling places in the county had to be replaced by backups. One of the machines had printing that wasn’t dark enough on a test tape that printed Tuesday morning, Aiello said. Others had problems with the electronic display part of the machine.

IL: Voters Confused By Software*
http://visitpontiac.com/components/news/community/article.php?a=3cef3e8f52fd537e050fde5578979cfb
Feb 03, 2010 A minor software issue with electronic voting machines caused some voter confusion during Tuesday’s primary.

When a voter used the electronic voting machine, the computer would display a summary of the voter’s selections. However, there was a red box in the summary, which indicated the voter did not vote for one of the questions.

IL: Campus voting slowed by issues of residency, identification *
http://www.dailyillini.com/news/campus/2010/02/03/campus-voting-slowed-by-issues-of-residency-identification

IL: Oops! Coffee spill breaks $5000 voting machine *
http://www.bnd.com/breaking_news/story/1114862.html

IL: Some counties don’t use mandated computer chips in voting machines
http://www.tribstar.com/local/local_story_033235746.html

IL: Snow hits primary: How bad weather changes elections
http://bit.ly/d8SefU

IL: Voters have mixed reactions to law alerting them to undervotes *
http://bit.ly/be3fWv

IL: Absentee Return Possibility
http://blog.champaigncountyclerk.com/2010/02/03/absentee-return-possibility/

The Voting News Daily: IL undervote fix creates new bug, Judge orders new review of NJ voting machines, Internet transmission of ballots insecure

McHenry Co. IL. Clerk Kathy Schultz discovered that a state mandated software “undervote warning fix” can sometimes cause the county’s voting machines to forget all the preceding votes they’d recorded…

New Jersey judge orders re-evaluation of voting machines by experts, says disconnect machines and tabulators from internet as well, but stops short of decommissioning them….Pam Smith, President of Verified Voting has an overview of this ruling and says that NJ’s voting systems “cannot be audited, there’s no way to check for accuracy.”…

Safe or not, e-mail voting headed to Washington State Senate. About Washington State’s House Bill 2483 and Senate Bill 6238, Holly Jacobson of Voter Action says: “Washington state should not implement a system that the Pentagon rejected as fundamentally insecure”. Voter Action is monitoring Ivoting legislation in the US…

All this and much more in today’s voting news below….

CA: Los Angeles Times Editorializes Against Petition Privacy
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/02/01/los-angeles-times-editorializes-against-petition-privacy/

CT: Connecticut Citizen Election Audit Coalition – Nov 09 Election Observation Report – Improvement, Yet Still Unsatisfactory
Coalition Finds Unsatisfactory Improvement In Election Audits Across The State
http://www.ctvoterscount.org/?p=2855
Citizen observation and analysis show the need for more attention to detail by officials, improvement in counting methods, and ballot chain-of-custody

IL: County Clerk To Defy Election Board * (software “fix” creates problems)
http://www.firstelectricnewspaper.com/2010/01/county-clerk-defies-election-board.html#links
McHenry Co…The law Schultz is going to break is one that says she has to rejigger the County’s voting machines to warn people they’ve failed to vote for someone, that is anyone at all, in a race, a common voter practice. Schultz is afraid if she “fixes” the machines, under certain circumstances they could forget all the preceding votes they’d recorded. She said Thursday she’s already made them do it in tests.

IL: Grass-roots reporting of election problems in Illinois
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Grass-roots-reporting-of-e-by-Roy-Lipscomb-100201-985.html

IL: New ballot rules tested in Tuesday’s primary election (Cook County)
http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/clout_st/2010/02/new-ballot-rules-tested-in-tuesdays-primary-election.html

IL: Election fraud teams to be out in force
http://www.herald-review.com/news/local/0e44ea15-5ff1-548b-b8b8-200a3a6ddee3.html

IL: Some Illinois voters could get a surprise in Tuesday’s primary: a rejected ballot.
www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/wire/chi-ap-il-ballotalerts,0,5085784.story

IL: Homer Township election judge maced, arrested, fired
http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2010/02/homer-township-election-judge-sprayed-with-mace-fired.html

MD: Strong Brief Filed in 4th Circuit in Case Over Invalidation of Signatures due to Omission of Middle Initials, Etc.
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/02/01/strong-brief-filed-in-4th-circuit-in-case-over-invalidation-of-signatures-due-to-omission-of-middle-initials-etc/

NJ: Ruling Issued in Rutgers–Newark Law School’s Constitutional Litigation Clinic Challenge to NJ’s Electronic Voting Machines
Judge Orders Re-evaluation of 11,000 Machines by Panel of Computer Experts Within 120Days
http://www.verifiedvotingfoundation.org/article.php?id=6747
Unlike the panel that currently evaluates voting machines, the new panel must have requisite knowledge of computers and computer security.

Judge Feinberg also ordered that all voting machines and vote tally transmitting systems be disconnected from the Internet immediately.

NJ: Judge Orders Expert Review of Voting Machines in New Jersey
http://blog.verifiedvoting.org/2010/02/02/396
February 2, 2010 By Pamela Smith, Verified Voting
“…until New Jersey deploys voter-verified paper ballots systems statewide, and initiates the routine conduct of robust post-election manual audits, its election officials cannot prove that the votes are being counted properly.”

NJ: Congressman Rush Holt’s statement about the ruling:
http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/nj12_holt/febvoting.html

NJ: Judge’s ruling could cause New Jersey to scrap 11,000 voting machines
http://www.newjerseynewsroom.com/state/judges-ruling-could-cause-new-jersey-to-scrap-11000-voting-machines

The Voting News Daily: Corporation announces run for Congress, Online voting push at LA Co., Cyber threats escalate, Undervote law confusion

Editors Note: Today’s voting news is dedicated to my mother who passed away on January 21, 2010. She is sorely missed but is at peace now. A big thanks goes out to Sean Flaherty of Verified Voting who has been publishing the Voting News in my absence, from January 18- 28. Without Sean, the voting news would not have gone out. ~ Joyce McCloy, editor.

Now the voting news highlights: Internet voting – Neighborhood Councils Urge (Los Angeles) City Hall To Allow Online Voting…Washington State SOS sponsors bill for military to vote by email or fax. Strangley, Thurston Co. WA Auditor Kim Wyman says: “This is not voting via the Internet.”

Aspen Colorado ballot image suit may go to court in March…The value of audits demonstrated: $4,000 of Indian River County funds ended up in personal bank acct of Election Supervisor…Colbert Bait -Even with the new SCOTUS ruling, Doritos can’t sponsor his 2012 run…Murray Hill Inc. announced it was filing to run for U.S. Congress…Tests expose weaknesses of Philippines new voting machines…EU calls on Sri Lanka to probe reports of election irregularities…

All this and more in today’s voting news below….

CA: Neighborhood Councils Urge City Hall To Allow Online Voting
http://blogs.laweekly.com/ladaily/city-news/online-voting-neighborhood-cou/
Jan. 29 2010 …Still, time is running short for this year’s elections, and the clerk’s office has indicated it would rather not deal with the issue until 2012. Last week, Councilman Paul Koretz authored a motion encouraging the clerk’s office to implement pilot voting programs this year. But without firm directive, the clerk’s office seems likely to swat the idea aside.

Read blog articles about internet voting risks at Verified Voting blog here:
http://blog.verifiedvoting.org/category/issues/internet-voting

CA: Election Day registration worries county clerk
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/story/1009583.html
…Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie called same-day registration a “no brainer” and said it was more secure because “you have the person right in front of you — not a postcard in the mail,” Yee wrote

CA: California “Top-Two Open Primary” to be on Ballot as Proposition 14
http://www.ballot-access.org/2010/01/31/california-top-two-open-primary-to-be-on-ballot-as-proposition-14/

CO: Marks v. Koch- Ballot ImageTransparency Litigation – Aspen Colorado
http://aspenelectionreview.blogspot.com/2010/01/marks-v-koch-ballot-imagetransparency.html
Marilyn Marks filed suit against the City of Aspen Municipal Clerk to gain recourse for the City’s refusal to provide access to a CD containing recorded images of the ballots which were cast in Aspen Colorado’s May 5 municipal election.
…
A further trial management conference was set for Feb. 18 and a tentative trial date was set for March 22 and 23.

CO: Editorial: A vote for voters
http://bit.ly/9VqrUY January 29, 2010 No need to even ask. Arapahoe County Clerk and Recorder is dutifully researching and asking voters whether they want a mail-ballot-only election for the state primary races in August, or whether they want the county to set up voting machines in precincts or voting centers.

CO: Scott Doyle announces re-election bid
http://bit.ly/cva6pv
Doyle is credited with pioneering the Vote Center concept in Colorado that eliminated neighborhood precinct polling places in favor of large centers

FL: Solari: Annual audit to include $4,000 bank error in Indian River County Supervisor of Elections Office
http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2010/jan/29/solari-annual-audit-to-include-4000-bank-error/