BBV: No Secret Vote In Georgia??

[JohnGideon]

Is this article correct? Can it be true that our vote, when given on a DRE, is not a secret vote? How can this be?

Well, it's true according to this article in the Atlanta Journal Constitution. http://www.ajc.com/news/content/news/election/1004georgia/25votetwice.html

<<snip>>
"Craig Kidd cast a ballot ahead of the July 20 Republican primary during the five-day period for advance voting. A designated Republican poll watcher and campaign worker for a GOP state Senate candidate, Kidd showed up at his Buckhead polling place on Election Day to make sure his advance vote had been recorded. Kidd claims a poll worker told him there was no record of his vote and advised him to vote again to be sure his vote would be tallied.

Later in the day, Kidd contacted The Atlanta Journal-Constitution to tell a reporter he was alarmed that he was allowed to cast two ballots. Kidd said he was concerned that the ballots of some early voters would not be counted or that some people could vote twice.

... Fulton election officials have acknowledged that a breakdown in procedures allowed Kidd to vote twice. When a voter casts an early ballot, a notation of that vote should be made on a master voter registration list that is later sent to precincts prior to Election Day. Poll workers then will cross the advance voters off the list of people eligible to vote at their polling place.

... Fulton officials later disqualified Kidd's early vote, which has a unique identifying number allowing election officials to know who cast it."
<<snip>>

Note the last sentence. There is not supposed to be any way for a vote to be tracked to it's voter. It's not supposed to happen.

[Eric J in MN]

1. The reasons to oppose electronic voting just keep increasing (nt)

nt

[napi21]

2. I'm not positive of this, but I think the voter is identified, but not how

he voted. I know the Registrar's office keeps the records of what party you are registered in, because the Dem Party here in No. Ga. bought the list of all registered Dems so we would have an idea who to contact for GOTV. That list also shows how often each voter voted and in which elections.

I think that's what you are talking about in this post. They do, and should know wether or not a voter voted, but nothing that I've seen can identify WHO the voter voted for.

[JohnGideon]

3. I agree that they know whether you voted or not..

that information is taken from the poll book. The fact is that, according to this article, the e-vote had a number and they were able to trace that vote, by use of that number, to the voter. All of these machines also have an ability to print copies of the ballots at the end of the day. That's one of their advantages according to the vendors and their apologists. If they can track a ballot, via a number, they can look at that ballot. That is taking away the voters right to a secret ballot.

By the way, this was also done on ES&S iVotronics in Wake Co., NC when they traced 245 voters to let them know that their ballots were not counted. They matched ballot numbers to voters names.

[napi21]

4. I don't know is that's correct or not. If so, I'm surprised that no one

has been screaming about that anywhere!

I understand that all votes are supposed to be secret, and they should be. If this is true, we need to scream it from all the roof tops!

I personally don't give a shit if anyone knows who I voted for! I openly tell everyone who will listen who I'm voting for, and if they don't like it, TS!

[WhereIsMyFreedom]

5. If they can cancel his vote

Then they can look at it to see how he voted. That most definitely is a problem.

[JohnGideon]

6. kick n/t

[MGKrebs]

7. I think there must be a mistake in the story.

Just think of the process. There is just no mechanism for the machine to know who cast what vote.

Or perhaps the county is trying to cover their ass but making a non-sensical statement in doing so.

[Boredtodeath]

11. EARLY voting can, indeed, be tracked

The application form for an advanced ballot has a tracking number assigned to it for that specific reason.

[JohnGideon]

16. There is more than just the "Ballot Number"

We have a copy of the form the voter has to fill-out prior to early voting. The "official use only" box has space for the ballot number and the time that the voter votes. There is no doubt from the form and the information in the paper that the constitutional rights of the voters in Georgia has been subverted.

[Boredtodeath]

17. Will an attorney step up to the plate?

To deal with this?

How do we move this forward? It cannot stand!

[MGKrebs]

20. I'll be voting tomorrow, so I'll find out!

A "ballot number" is different from being able to connect a specific person's NAME with a specific ballot.

I suppose it is possible, technically, to connect a voter with a ballot by using the time voted IF it is a small precinct without much traffic, and comparing the "official use only" box (IF it has actually been filled out) with a printout from a DRE, but you'd have to print out ALL DRE's in that precinct, and hope there was only one voter at that time.

I think they didn't cancel any vote. They fouled up, hopefully they have found a way to fix it.

Damn these machine!

spedited for eeling.

[MGKrebs]

18. That is for "absentee ballot" not 'early voting".

Absentee is paper, "Early" is on DRE.

I am no fan of DRE, but... they hand you a plastic card and you put it into the machine and cast your votes, and then turn the card in. Unless they are harvesting individual data from every single voter with those little card re-programmers, there is no way to capture the data. I think the county is just talking out of their ass to try to save face. Stupid.

There are so many ways to rig an election with DRE's, but i don't think this is one of them.

[JohnGideon]

22. It Gets Worse....

the ballot number is a number that is taken from the poll book. A husband and wife voted and it was clearly pointed out by poll workers chatting to each other that their ballot numbers were one number from each other.

The same written form is used when requesting a paper absentee ballot to be mailed in or what they call an absentee ballot when the voter participates in early voting.

[w4rma]

19. It's just a database of votes. If printed out it would look like an Excel

spreadsheet with voter names down one column and X marks in the columns next to them under who they voted for.

[MGKrebs]

21. Well I need someone to tell me how

they connect a paper form with a plastic card. Do they program some number into the card? What number? When?

[RedEagle]

8. Votes are assigned a number

But it's supposed to be random and such that it can't be traced. That's if you talk to a reputable company.

However, if that isn't what is really going on, then yes, votes could be traced.

[vetwife]

9. I know in 2002 they asked me (the poll workers) if I was voting

dem or republican? Fact ! Before they handed me the card to slide into the Diebold machine. I will not answer this time. I was so stupid as to think that they had different cards for each party. Seems they may have considering the whole state including the fact that we have a Republican governor for the first time since reconstruction. Maybe the Dem cards were placeboes.

[ParanoidPat]

10. vetwife, they do indeed give you a party specific ballot card.......

.......if it's a primary election. :)

Are you sure it wasn't the primary election?

[vetwife]

12. Yep I am sure It was 2002. The year we voted for Cleland and gov.

[ParanoidPat]

13. Well there's only one other reason I can think of for asking your party...

......could it be ELECTION FRAUD? :shrug:

Just askin' :evilfrown:

[vetwife]

14. ABSOLUTELY ! I said that in 2002

[Boredtodeath]

15. Important info kick n/t

.

[Eloriel]

23. Definitely needs

a :kick:

As a Georgian, why am I not surprised. Thank you, Cathy Cox, and may you rot in hell -- but only AFTER you wear prison stripes or that nice flashy prison orange for a few dozen years.

[JohnGideon]

24. kick n/t