Oregon: Oregon looks to iPads to help disabled people vote | Yahoo! News

Oregon was first in the nation to have all residents vote by mail. Now it's pioneering another idea: vote by iPad. Voters in five counties are filling out and returning their mail-in ballots for a Tuesday special primary election to replace former U.S. Rep. David Wu, who resigned following a sex scandal. A handful will mark their ballots not with a pen but with the tip of their finger.
It's the latest attempt at using new technology to help voters with disabilities cast ballots privately.

Armed with iPads and portable printers, county election workers are going to parks, nursing homes, community centers and anywhere else they might find groups of voters who have trouble filling out traditional paper ballots. Using the iPad, disabled voters can call up the right ballot and tap the screen to pick a candidate, with or without the help of election workers. The voters then print the completed ballot and stuff it in an envelope to sign, take with them and drop in the mail or an official ballot box.

Oregon: How Wu vacancy would get filled | kgw.com

Under Oregon law, Gov. John Kitzhaber calls for a special election to replace a member of Congress. His spokeswoman Christine Miles said he was still reviewing the procedures Tuesday and would outline the election parameters when a review was completed.

Complicating that review is the fact that U.S. Rep David Wu, while announcing his intent to resign, has not officially done so. Nor has he specified a date, other than sometime after the debt ceiling vote in Congress has taken place.

Oregon: Senate OK’s Legislation To Improve Oregon Voter Registration | myCentralOregon.com

The Oregon Senate approved legislation Thursday that supporters said will help the state improve voter registration. House Bill 2880 will require state agencies to evaluate their compliance with the National Voter Registration Act and make plans for improving their compliance.

"The right to vote is fundamental to our democracy and Oregonians are proud of our high rate of registration and turnout in elections," said Senate Majority Leader Diane Rosenbaum, who carried the bill on the floor.

Oregon: Why Return of Voted Ballots Should Not be Permitted via Email | Voting Matters Blog

Email voting?  Why not, one might ask?!  A lot of folks use the false analogy of  online banking to argue that email voting should be allowed for the convenience and accessibility of voters.  Not a moment of thought is given to the security risks involved.  So I’ve done a brief Fact Sheet summarizing the major arguments against returning voted ballots via email.  I’m OK with distribution of blank ballots via email but not the return of voted ballots by the same method.

Oregon, like many other states, considering authorizing email return of ballots — the bill is HB 3074 and this post is directed toward that proposed law, but could effectively be applied to a host of other states which are considering similar legislation (or perhaps need to review already adopted laws in light of these arguments).