I voted for Kucinich on a paper-ballot tonight.

[Eric J in MN]

They gave us blank-strips-of-paper to write our names on one-side and our Presidential choice on the other side. They collected the paper.

Then their resolutions people read (like fully-funding of Head Start) and people said "aye." They did other things.

Then they read out the names of the Democratic Presidential candidates, and everyone who voted for that person stood up to be counted.

It was more satisfying then voting with a black-box electronic machine.

I'd like to use that system for all major offices (President, US Senator, US Congress, Governor, Mayor).

Why not use plain pieces of paper for the major races, and have people stand up and be counted to double-check?

And optical scan ballots for other races and ballot measures.

[Melsky]

1. I voted on a brand new voting machine

:-(:-(:-(:-(:-(:-(:-(:-(:-(:-(

for Kucinich

[tedzbear]

2. I voted with the ink pen ballot...

Which is the same as the punch hole ballot but without the chads. If my precinct changes to electronic in November, I will vote absentee ballot.

There's absolutely NO paper trail in electronic voting. I do not trust the makers or the people running those machines.

:kick:

[Lizz612]

3. I'm not sure thats a good idea

What about those people who cannot write for some reason or another? Standing up to recount would take away the anonymity of voting that needs to be preserved so that voters can be protected from being pressured to vote one way.
Just my opinion.

[Eric J in MN]

4. If someone doesn't want to stand up to be counted, he doesn't have to.

If someone doesn't want to stand up to be counted, he doesn't have to.

But the fact that most people are there to express support for a candidate makes it a good check.

With regard to someon who can't write, anyone who needs assistance should get assistance, but a similar question could be asked about any system.

[Lizz612]

5. Oh, do you mean just for the primaries?

eom

[Eric J in MN]

6. No, I mean all elections should be done with paper for major races.

While it won't be this way in the general-election,

I wish we were using the same method in the general-election, writing Kerry on strips of paper and also people raising their hands or standing up as a check, afterwards, when the name "Kerry" is called out.

Then we could fill in optical-scan ballots for dozens of local races and ballot-measures.

[Lizz612]

7. I'm going to have to disagree on one point.

The identification of the voter in any way is, to me, a serious problem. The voter that goes against the popular position might be picked out. I know when I was in a small conservative setting I didn't want to express my opinions on several near and dear issues because I would have been shunned.
Black box voting is a bad thing no argument there, but a non-secret ballot scares me too.

[Eric J in MN]

8. What about this?

What if you could vote over the internet but your name and address would be posted on the internet next to your votes for anyone to view?

Would you be against that, too?

[Lizz612]

9. Yes.

I don't want my name attached to my vote in anyway. I certainly don't want my address attached to my vote. (It will give my position away to the Black Helicopters! ;))