Some Brockton residents are upset with council’s decision to go with electronic voting in the municipal election this fall. Council has approved a contract with Dominion Voting to provide telephone and Internet voting at a cost of $1.70 for each 7,600 potential voters. Pauline Gay and Barb Klages left last Monday’s council meeting critical of council’s decision. They want the municipality to stick with paper ballots. “I’m disappointed because they don’t seem to consider the security of my computer if I choose to vote with it . . . and there is no way to do a valid recount with an electronic vote,” said Klages. During the meeting council heard from former IBM employee and computer scientist Barbara Simons, who addressed council by teleconference from California. She cited cost, lack of security and the inability to have a recount in a close election as reasons to reject electronic voting. She also said Internet voting doesn’t increase voter participation.
Stephen Beamish, the regional sales manager for Dominion Voting, who was at the meeting told council Dominion Voting is the largest Internet voting provider in the world and has never had the security of its system questioned following an election.
He said he is confident the company’s technology can prevent security breaches. He said the cost for electronic voting – $1.70 per person on the voters list – is far less than $4 per person for paper balloting.
“I listened to what Dr. Simons had to say and I feel we’re being railroaded into a system which is not safe,” Gay aid. “The voting system can be hacked into so easily. Why would we go for a system that isn’t safe?”
Full Article: Switch to e-voting still an issue in Brockton | The Post.