Fight BBV in Wisconsin

[Bushfire]

Sure Wisconsin state statutes require a paper ballot, but did you know the pitfall of Optical Scan machines?

3:31 p.m., five hours before poll closing: Diebold (optical scan) voting machines “CALLED HOME” - Thursday, 4 September 2003, 5:45 pm

http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0309/S00042.htm

The Diebold San Luis Obispo File Mystery Deepens
Monday, 8 September 2003, 12:48 pm

http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0309/S00067.htm

New voting equipment didn't pass state muster
Marion County clerk says Omaha company (also used in Wisconsin) tried to cover up error by reinstalling old software.

By John Fritze
[e-mail]
April 21, 2004


Marion County's optical-scan voting system was not ready for its debut last fall because it used unapproved software the manufacturer later tried to replace in a cover-up, Marion County Clerk Doris Anne Sadler said Tuesday.

The revelation, which came two weeks before the May 4 primaries, raised questions about the Omaha-based company, Election Systems & Software, that provides voting equipment to 41 counties and more than half of Indiana's registered voters.

"It's a trust issue on something that's very important to the public," said Sadler, a Republican, who was not clerk when the machines were purchased. "We're not buying tomato sauce here. We're conducting an election."

Sadler called for an emergency meeting of the Marion County Election Board on Thursday to decide whether the officials should take some action against the company. She said the primary and general elections would proceed as planned with the correct equipment.

more...

http://www.indystar.com/articles/2/139985-5092-009.html

Fight back at your library...

http://milwaukee.indymedia.org/en/2004/04/200893.shtml

[Seldona]

1. Awesome.

This is truly a bipartisan issue.

Good to see people sitting up and paying attention.

I hope they decertify the Diebold machines.

The machines certainly deserve it.

Thanks for the links by the way.

Will get these out to as many as possible.

[Bushfire]

2. It truly is a bi-partisan issue, and suggests

Taxation without Representation. That was what this country was built upon. I don't know how our elected leaders can turn a blind eye to what is happening in Georgia, Maryland, Florida, California, Washington, Indiana, Colorado, Minnesota, etc. I am calling out Kleczka, Feingold, Kohl for all sitting on the wrong side of this issue. They have ignored the facts.

Please help me get Feingold & Kohl to see the light to support S1980.

Fax article to: Sara Price [phone] Feingolds' office

Fax article to: Naomi Baum [phone] Kohls' office

These are the aides for them who work on election issues.

You can always call the Congressional switchboard toll free at (800)-839-5276

Kleczka has nothing to lose by changing his mind on this issue, and supporting HR 2319. He refuses to prove to me his thought process in not co-sponsoring Rush Holt's bill. He is retiring from public service, and would only help his old party which helped elect a son of a wealthy funeral home owner.

[sybylla]

4. My Rep. Kind signed on as a co-sponsor in Feb.

I may get a chance to talk to Dave Obey this weekend at the 7th CD Convention. I'll try to bring it up.

[Seldona]

5. Done and done.

Got those faxes out right away.

Will make the phone call this afternoon.

[sybylla]

3. My county is all ES&S optical scan but the good news is that it is offline

All the ballots are taken to the county courthouse and counted on a reader there. No network. No phone lines.

The bad news is that the counting is conducted by the County Clerk behind closed doors - and she is Republican. Not to imply that she has a hand in any shenanigans going on. Just mentioned it because our county tips 60/40 puke so there is no incentive on her part to fix the system. There are good Dems working in the office though, and I know they are paying attention to the BBV issue as well as what is taking place the weeks and days before the count.

[Bushfire]

6. My precint scan machines are offline too, but

the precint captains do not print copies of the results to leave at the polling place, and does not allow citizens/media to view the card readers. The central computer at the courthouse is where the tampering can take place to match what each precint said was the result, or connect with the manufacturer's HDQR as what happened to San Luis Opisbo. Do you know what software version your county uses, and have you checked to see if has been certified by the state? ES&S down in Marion County Indiana ran illegal software during their last election. Did the state certify the software, or did an "independant testing authority"? Are there random audits of precints regardless if the losing candidate asks for a recall?

[sybylla]

7. I don't know anything about certification in this state

I only recently found out that I know someone in the county clerk's office but we haven't had time to talk more than just briefly about BBV and certification. I thought the San LO machines were Diebold. Most of the evidence I have had regarding optical scan machines has been Diebold's so I haven't had the specific evidence against ES&S to start scaring the pants off of her yet. I'd really appreciate any help in hanging ES&S in my county.

As for actually scanning ballots, all ballots cast are counted only at the courthouse. They are dropped into locked ballot boxes at the local voting locations and sent there at the close of the polls - thus no local tabulations to compare to. That's the scary shit as far as I'm concerned. The only counting that takes place occurs by one or two people with a ballot reader behind closed doors at my county courthouse.

I think it's odd that Dem candidates for federal seats (Feingold, Kohl, Obey and Kind) almost always win in my county but local and state partisan races almost always fall along 60/40 lines with pukes winning - whether our candidates actively pursue the seat or are just a name on the ballot.

[Bushfire]

8. Marion County Indiana uses ES&S Optical Scan

and was busted running illegal software per the article in my original post. Thus why it is so important to educate our election officials in Wisconsin, and ask tough questions.

Thanks for your interest, and I'd love to hear updates from anyone willing to get involved.