Alabama says NO to ballot preservation! Uh oh

[FM123]

[link:https://mobile.twitter.com/Greg_Palast/status/940606792287039488?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet|

BREAKING: Order granting #Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill's motion to stay, which essentially overrules TRO secured by #VotingRights activists that would have preserved digital copies of #AlabamaSenateRace paper ballots

[dhill926]

1. and here we go....

[madamesilverspurs]

2. In other words

the outcome is already arranged.


.

[hedda_foil]

3. It believe they use paper ballots in the first place.

That doesn't mean the race can't be thrown but paper ballots must be saved at least 18 months.

[FM123]

4. So if the fix is in already....

and since ballot preservation really matters if there's a recount, and recounts only happen if there's a close race, I guess that means that the election-riggers are going to have to make the "win" a big enough margin so there isn't a recount. Oh boy!

[Hoyt]

5. Not a big deal. Alabama keeps the paper ballots which is what one would use in a recount or

other investigation. The scanned ballots used for vote tallies are the issue. You wouldn't audit/recount from those anyway. You'd count the paper ballots, compare to the scanned total and scream if there was a significant difference. If you believe the voting officials (and I get that's difficult), the reason counties aren't being instructed to keep the scanned ballots is that it is too late to make the changes necessary in many counties.

It still boils down to the paper ballots are kept and available for audit. I get folks are antsy after the 2016 election, but Alabama -- believe it or not -- probably has a safer system with paper ballots than most states.

Finally, if you just don't believe it, next election volunteer at the polls. My late wife did it every election and loved it despite some 20 hour days. She even got paid a little bit.

[FakeNoose]

7. In PA we need to go back to paper ballots

... it's the safest way to run an election. We never should have allowed the electronic voting machines in, but the GOP insisted. I'm happy when I hear that other states - like Alabama - have been more sensible about it.

[FM123]

6. Daily Kos just commmented on the overruling

[link:https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2017/12/12/1723572/-Calling-it-Now-Moore-Wins|

"A judge at the last minute has overruled a lower court to strike down a requirement to preserve digital election records. Its not that the capability isnt there. It is. And if the capability is there, then there is no reason not to use it. Unless you want to minimize the number of records that can be reviewed and correlated. If you have the digital records those records can be reviewed and counted. That count could be compared against the scanned totals from the paper copies. If the numbers reconcile then all is good. But now there is only going to be a single scan with no way to independently verify the totals."