What Does It Take to get a Federal Election System?

[Dem Agog]

I was thinking as I took my shower (where I do all my best thinking) that the problem is that Diebold stole this election. My husband who is in the financial industry is amazed Diebold didn't set up a system that prints receipts. "Diebold makes most of the ATM machines - they KNOW about receipts!"

So how hard is this election process:

1. Go to your machine, vote electronically.
2. Machine spits out a card similar in style to the punchcards of old, but with your voting choices listed in each race.
3. Voter verifies it is their choices, verifies their name not on the ballot.
4. Voter places paper ballot in box on their way out the door.

That way we get paper receipts to verify what the black box said AND we get to leave the ballot there on paper so when the machines crap out the votes can still be counted.

Now, obviously l'il ol' me isn't going to have much say so in our country, but what action is required to get a "Federal Election System" in place, one that is standardized in EVERY SINGLE STATE? You wouldn't have it all at once of course, but maybe on a five year plan.

For instance the machines that do what I wrote above could be implemented first in the two contentious states: Ohio and Florida. Throughout ALL of the state.

Then they go from heaviest electoral vote weight on down, California, Texas, New York get them. And then down from there.

And there could be a ceiling. I.e. if your state has under 5 electoral votes you are not required to implement this system. Under 10 electoral votes and it must be implemented in 3 years, under 15, in 2 years, etc.

I presume this would have to be initiated through congress. Is Bev Harris and her BBV group working on this sort of system and implementation?

[Dem Agog]

1. So is the idea just too crazy to comment on?

This election was flat out stolen. I'm trying to figure out where we start at fixing that.

Is this just too much of a fantasy? Am I just too deluded to think that we will ever again hold real elections with real, verifiable ballots?

[athena]

2. No it's not.

I also started a similar thread, but the threads are moving REALLY fast today.

Here is my thread:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=2592149&mesg_id=2592149