Why can't we have an election system where...

[Tony_FLADEM]

the ballots that people vote with are standard 8 1/2 x 11. These ballots would contain a special seal to prevent fraud, and a control number to keep track of the ballots. i.e precinct 356 ballot #7 would contain 356-7 on the upper right hand corner

That ballot would look like this

-------------------------------------------------

President of the United States

John Kerry/John Edwards < >
George Bush/Dick Cheney < >

you simply would put a check on the candidate of your choice. For security reasons, the precinct worker would provide the pen.

If there are more ballot questions, you would attach another page to the ballot.


Am I being nieve? Why does the country spend millions on voting equipment, when it could be so simple.

In addition, you would not have long lines, because 10 - 20 people at one time (sitting at a table) could vote?

Why is it so complicated with optical scaners, and computerized voting machines?


It might take longer to find out who won. I say who cares about that.

[Philostopher]

1. Dunno, man.

Sounds good to me. I understand that's the way they do it in Germany -- and all they'd have to do is impregnate the official paper with something, or run a metallic strip across it (like they do legal tender, these days) or put an ID chip in each sheet. The technology is there to do this perfectly securely.

They could even mail the ballots from the precincts to each registered voter ahead of time. Do it before the registration deadline, maybe about six weeks before the actual election, so people who didn't receive a ballot had time to get their registrations straightened out.

They could even give people the option to mail them back or deliver them on Election Day, depending on their preferences.

The system we have is stupid, nonstandard and too easy to cheat. The reason they're using all this 'technology' is, of course ... that it's nonstandard and too easy to cheat.

But you probably knew that.

[drunkdriver-in-chief]

2. I've been told much of Yurp is like that

And it does take a long time to count the ballots but so what? They have exit polls which tell who won the following day except in extremely close races.

[Winamericaback]

3. Time

Not only is that very time consuming it isn't practical. It leaves way too much to human error. The point of using machines was that they would be almost infallible and they would also help speed the process up. Unfortunetly it hasn't worked.

I am ALL for hand voting and a human count presided over by an equal number of Dems and Republicans becuse nobody that serves in any kind of public office no matter how small can call themselves bipartisan.

I think everybody in every state should vote the exact same way with identical ballots, but that takes some "states rights" away. That also takes away all the new funding they are getting to institue electronic voting. Of which only portions of the money are actually going to that.

Also you need to have polling booths because the voting process is and should be a private thing. I'm not against polling places providing tables, I voted this year at a table with people sitting next to me but then again I had Kerry buttons and a Kerry shirt so my voting vhoice was obvious :) Alot of people do want their vote kept private.