Lawsuit leveled at electronic voting in Pennsylvania

[Thom Little]

State Sen. Jim Ferlo has joined a group of voting rights activists in a lawsuit aimed at forcing Westmoreland County to seek more public input before it purchases a new generation of touch-screen voting machines for the upcoming May primary election.

The lawsuit, filed yesterday, could have statewide implications. It argues that, under the Pennsylvania Constitution, all 67 counties must let voters pick their preferred model of electronic machines through ballot questions.

"This goes to the issue of having fair and accurate elections," said Mr. Ferlo, D-Highland Park, whose district covers a portion of Westmoreland County. "I really think there are serious concerns about this technology."

But Mark Gesalman, county solicitor, said a four-year-old federal law takes precedence over the state Constitution.



http://www.postgazette.com/pg/06007/634104.stm

[texpatriot2004]

1. It's the GOP trend, screw the Constitution, the new laws they make

themselves are what they follow.

[Born Free]

20. actually republicans in Pennsylvania have sponsored SB 977

requiring a voter-verified permanent paper record

[Greeby]

2. You can bet that Murtha is on their hitlist

Hence the need for the voting machines :eyes:

[Earth_First]

3. Sock it to them, Pennsylvaniva!

I just demonstrated hands-on the 7 types of DRE/OpScan systems that they are attempting to replace the lever type machines here in New York, and EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM smelled like corruption.

So what if we as a majority of New York voters decide to keep the current system in place?

Who decides to override our stance?

[eppur_se_muova]

4. Get thee to the Greatest page! Way to go, Sen. Ferlo!

Pennsylvania, home of happy Quakers, sensible people, and, for all I know, the Unitarian Jihad.

[nicknameless]

5. Q: What machine will they be voting on when choosing machines to use???

Haven't many of PA's Counties already switched to the election-fraud devices?
Will they be asked to cast their votes on those same f'ing machines?

It looks like Westmoreland County still uses levers, but what about the other 66 Counties?

[appleannie1]

16. I live in PA

and our county still uses paper. A lot of PA is rural, no machines. Westmoreland County is next to Allegheny County, close to Pittsburgh.

[nicknameless]

17. Your vote may very well be counted. However...

Of course, the larger populations (more votes) are in the cities and that's where problems are most likely to occur.

Some examples in PA 2004 & 2005:
http://www.votersunite.org/electionproblems.asp?sort=date&selectstate=PA&selectproblemtype=ALL


Welcome to DU :hi:

[Wilms]

6. .

[northerdar]

7. What is wrong with a pencil and paper

In Canada we vote in all elections by marking a box on the paper ballot with an x next to the party we are voting...or as I did two days ago on a early ballot, write in the candidates name from a list given. A pencil is used, given to the voter. I did this at the elections office as I had just moved to the district I am living in. I could had had the registration mailed and I send back and then they mail the ballot for me to fill in and mail back or got to a polling station that is open a designated earlier time than the actual voting day. I registered and voted in one shot in person.

I was an party observer in the last election...A long time ago I was a election official who checked the voter list and gave out the ballot. The voters then go go to a desk with a cardboard screen on it for privacy to mark their ballot. When the voter is done marking his ballot deposits the ballot in the cardboard box on the election official's desk. At the end of the night the election official counts the ballots in front of the observers of all parties running in the election. Everyone sees the ballots and watches the count. This count is taken to the central station for that town/city/district.

It's not as instantaneous as a machine but heck it is right out there honest.

[nicknameless]

8. That's what MANY of us want.

The pics in the OP at the link below were wonderful to see.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=203&topic_id=406688&mesg_id=406688

The only thing "wrong" with paper ballots and hand counting is that:

It can't guarantee corrupt republican winners.
It can't begin with negative numbers for the Democratic candidates.
It can't flip hundreds of thousands of votes with a few key strokes.
It doesn't enable counting to go backwards in solidly-Dem precincts.
It can't result in zero votes at polling places that serve hundreds or thousands of Dem. voters.
It can't log thousands more rethug votes than registered voters.

... Those are at least some of the reasons that the reich-wingers in power oppose it vehemently.

[northerdar]

9. Why can't paper ballots be used?

Anyone know why?

[nicknameless]

10. ???????

I just listed a number of reasons that the "powers that be" don't want a voting system like the one Canada uses.

We may get paper ballots, such as opti-scan, but they're counted by machines which can defraud the voters, as demonstrated in Leon County, FL.

[pushycat]

11. Republicans can't win with paper ballots - that's why. eom

[Toots]

12. But according to Bush* vs Gore all counties must be the same

Sounds like the Pennsylvania Constitution is in violation of the Extreme Court's take on equal rights.....That is how Bush* got selected you know. Some of Florida's counties used different means of casting ballots. The Extreme Court ruled that was unconstitutional although they allowed the original returns to ride but no recounts......It seems to me if the votes had been unconstitutional they would have had to have a new election with all precincts using the exact same equipment. They did not do that so were in defiance of their own ruling.....

[Wilms]

13. .

[happyslug]

14. Pa Constitution and Federal Law:

Pennsylvania's Constitution has the Following Provision (Article VII, Section 6):
Election and Registration Laws
Section 6.
All laws regulating the holding of elections by the citizens, or for the registration of electors, shall be uniform throughout the State... except further, that the General Assembly shall by general law, permit the use of voting machines, or other mechanical devices for registering or recording and computing the vote, at all elections or primaries, in any county, city, borough, incorporated town or township of the Commonwealth, at the option of the electors of such county, city, borough, incorporated town or township, without being obliged to require the use of such voting machines or mechanical devices in any other county, city, borough, incorporated town or township, under such regulations with reference thereto as the General Assembly may from time to time prescribe. The General Assembly may, from time to time, prescribe the number and duties of election officers in any political subdivision of the Commonwealth in which voting machines or other mechanical devices authorized by this section may be used.

http://sites.state.pa.us/PA_Constitution.html

Here is the Help America Vote Act:
http://www.fec.gov/hava/law_ext.txt

Pennsylvania Department of State On the Help America Vote Act:
http://www.hava.state.pa.us/hava/site/

[Wilms]

15. Wonderful post. n/t

[nicknameless]

18. SCOTUS ruling was 2000. The most recent date at your excerpt was 1978.

Fed laws trump State laws, so in theory, Toots (reply #12) is correct -- EXCEPT that the Bush v Gore ruling was pure bull.

The "Extremes" were completely disingenuous about their concern over consistency of voting methods.
... Although that was allegedly their reason for hearing the case. HAVA doesn't provide for consistency either.

[Born Free]

19. Pennsylvania: "SB 977 verrification of voting"

http://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/BI/BT/2005/0/SB0977P1310.HTM

SB 977 By Senators CONTI, ERICKSON, WENGER, WONDERLING, PIPPY, BROWNE,
FONTANA, COSTA, REGOLA, BOSCOLA, STOUT, C. WILLIAMS, STACK, FERLO,
LAVALLE, D. WHITE and WASHINGTON.

Printer's No. 1310.

An Act amending the act of June 3, 1937 (P.L.1333, No.320), known as
the Pennsylvania Election Code, further providing for election day
procedures and the process of voting; and requiring a voter-verified
permanent paper record.

Referred to STATE GOVERNMENT, Nov. 1, 2005


*****

According to what I read, on Dec 23 2005 they decided to have public hearings some time in January of 2006, however, I have not heard anything about it other than that.

http://www.senatorconti.com/newsreleases

has the following:


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
12/23/2005

CONTACT:
Senate Republican Communications
Phone: [phone]

THIS WEEK'S PA SENATE REPUBLICAN PODCAST: SEN. JOE CONTI ON LEGISLATION TO ENSURE ACCURACY OF ELECTRONIC VOTING

HARRISBURG, PA -- This week on the PA Senate Republican Podcast: State Senator Joe Conti (R-10) talks about his legislation intended to ensure the accuracy of electronic voting in Pennsylvania.

Each week's podcast addresses legislation before the Senate and issues of importance to Pennsylvanians. It is available at www.pasenategop.com or through an RSS feed reader using http://www.pasenategop.com/podcast.xml. Additional audio and video clips are available using this feed: http://www.pasenategop.com/multimedia.xml. Both are available on iTunes.

News from the Pennsylvania Senate Republican Caucus is available via RSS feed as well. The URL for the feed is http://www.pasenategop.com/news.xml.


*********** Pa residents can help ********

I have contacted my representatives to support this bill, it looks good. Most, if not all of the writers are republican, I did not check into each one that supports this bill. My guess is some will complain it costs too much , and those individuals will be the same ones that support the 500 billion to help Iraqis vote.