Major Problems At Polls Feared

washingtonpost.com ^ | sept., 17 2006 | Dan Balz and Zachary A. Goldfarb

[blogblogginaway]

Some Officials Say Voting Law Changes And New Technology Will Cause Trouble

An overhaul in how states and localities record votes and administer elections since the Florida recount battle six years ago has created conditions that could trigger a repeat -- this time on a national scale -- of last week's Election Day debacle in the Maryland suburbs, election experts said.

In the Nov. 7 election, more than 80 percent of voters will use electronic voting machines, and a third of all precincts this year are using the technology for the first time. The changes are part of a national wave, prompted by the federal Help America Vote Act of 2002 and numerous revisions of state laws, that led to the replacement of outdated voting machines with computer-based electronic machines, along with centralized databases of registered voters and other steps to refine the administration of elections.

But in Maryland last Tuesday, a combination of human blunders and technological glitches caused long lines and delays in vote-counting. The problems, which followed ones earlier this year in Ohio, Illinois and several other states, have contributed to doubts among some experts about whether the new systems are reliable and whether election officials are adequately prepared to use them.

In a polarized political climate, in which elections are routinely marked by litigation and allegations of incompetent administration or outright tampering, some worry that voting problems could cast a Florida-style shadow over this fall's midterm elections.

"We could see that control of Congress is going to be decided by races in recount situations that might not be determined for several weeks," said Paul S. DeGregorio, chairman of the federal Election Assistance Commission, although he added that he does not expect problems of this magnitude.

[blogblogginaway]

Nothing like setting the stage. Thanks to Al Gore I expect we'll see this every election from now on.

[IncPen]

It's the Bush/Diebold conspiracy.

Yawn.

[EQAndyBuzz]

This will of course only happen in Minority neighborhoods in Blue States where Democrats control the balloting and they oppose showing ID to vote.

[Kewlhand`tek]

OMG! TECHNOLOGY, I NOT COMPUTER SMART, MY BRAIN JUST DUMPED!!!!!!!

[FlingWingFlyer]

There is only ONE solution to this problem. Lock up ALL "lawyers" six months prior to our elections and do not release them until six months after the ballots have been counted. Works for me.

[God luvs America]

seriously...I breifly saw this on the front page of USA Today on Thursday, a few days after they were reporting surging JA numbers for the President as well as a narrowing of the gap for November's races...the excuses are beginning...

[NurdlyPeon]

Nothing like setting the stage. Thanks to Al Gore I expect we'll see this every election from now on.

Needed to be repeated, because it sums it all up.

[blogblogginaway]

I have a feeling the dems internal polls have taken a drastic downturn recently. We just witnessed ABC's GMA fabricate 'republican' women turned democrat(http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1702375/posts) I eagerly await in the weeks leading up to election day the next 'scandal' ala Plamegate or something similar.

[CaptainK]

It means the GOP is looking good.

[Wristpin]

We need to go back to the days when wheelbarrels full of paper votes could be mysteriously found for weeks after the election.

[ladyinred]

An overhaul in how states and localities record votes and administer elections since the Florida recount battle six years ago has created conditions that could trigger a repeat -- this time on a national scale -- of last week's Election Day debacle in the Maryland suburbs, election experts said.

And all of this because of a hoax Al Gore played on the nation in 2000. We can indeed expect this in every election, especially if RATS lose. I expect all will be well if they win.

[cpdiii]

I have always had a problem with electronic voting and paper ballot voting. Each is no better than the security that "guarantees" it as being valid. I would like a combination of both. Use electronics to cast your vote and a paper ballot that goes into a sealed box under the custody of the law and both parties. It should take three people to open them. I would like the paper ballot to be a print out of what the voter just voted for and the voter will then exam the paper print out and sign it and put it in the ballot box. If there is any question about the validity of the electronic vote the ballot boxes will then be opened and counted.

The real crime in the Florida Elections was when Gore gained several thousand votes on the second electronic count. If you know anything about statistics you know this was quite impossible. When dealing with votes by the millions the votes a candidate picks up and loses on the second counting of the ballot cards (actually computer punch cards) will cancel each other out. That second count should have resulted in each candidate actually losing a few votes as each run of the cards will damage a few. They should lose in equal percentages. There was a massive attempt to stuff the ballots in Florida and Gore almost got away with it.

[jerry639]

caused long lines and delays in vote-counting.

I admit to taking the above out of context.

What I would like to know is why some of the same people will wait in line for 30 minutes or longer at a WalMart sale and then scream about the long lines at the polls if they have to wait any time at all to vote?

What do voters want? A drive thru lane equipped with a machine that reads their thoughts and records their vote?

Anyone who is too lazy to go to the polls and vote, even if there is a delay, should just keep quiet.

[msnimje]

HMMM, polls show momentum swinging in the Republican's direction and a flood of preemptive stories about faulty voting machines hits the MSM?

[Let's Roll]

Of course, now that opinion polls are beginning to show that the American people still don't want to trust the lives of their children and grandchildren to dims, dims are trotting out Plan B.

[NurdlyPeon]

We need to go back to the days when wheelbarrows full of paper votes could be mysteriously found for weeks after the election.

What do you mean "back to the days"? You mean like two years ago in the Washington state gubernatorial election? They found "missing" ballots, then, when they weren't quite enough to put the RAT in the governors office, they found more. Almost enough, but not quite, so they found more. It went to court. The election was officially and legally found to be tainted, but because the judge imposed an impossibly high standard of proof, the election could not be overturned. This was not an "accusation" of fraud (like Florida and Ohio), this was a went-through-the-courts legal fact! And it wasn't "back to the days", it was two years ago. God I hate RATS!!!

[Phibes]

Yea, here we go again.

[ChildOfThe60s]

Thanks to Al Gore I expect we'll see this every election from now on.

Only close ones that the DIMs lose.

[Revel]

These new voting machines have the potential to make our vote null and voild. The potential for abuse is massive. And there is no paper trail to fall back on.