Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News Tuesday, Oct 10th

[Melissa G]

Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News Tuesday, Oct 10th



Today is a Voter Registration Deadline in many states!
Register to Vote and Get ALL your Friends to Register!
Make some new Friends and Register them, TOO!




All members welcome and encouraged to participate.





Please post Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News on this thread.

If you can:
1. Post stories and announcements you find on the web.


2. Post stories using the new Spring 2006 Edition of "Election Fraud and Reform News Directory" listed here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x407240

3. Re-post stories and announcements you find on DU, providing a link to the original thread with thanks to the Original Poster, too.


4. Start a discussion thread by re-posting a story you see on this thread.




Please "Recommend" for the Greatest Page (it's the link just below).

[Melissa G]

1. TX. Time is running out on voter registration for November’s elections

Time is running out on voter registration for November’s elections

Updated: Oct 9, 2006 7:25pm
Local elections offices are being flooded with last minute voter registrations.
Tuesday is the deadline to register to vote in next month's general elections.


Elections administrators for several Central Texas counties said Monday calls are coming fast and furious from people who aren't registered, but want to make sure they are.

snip

The first is the heated race for Governor, between incumbent Republican Rick Perry, Democrat Chris Bell and Independents Kinky Friedman and Carole Keeton Strayhorn.
The other; the District 17 Congressional race between incumbent Democrat Chet Edwards and Republican challenger Van Taylor.

snip
As long as it's postmarked by Tuesday, then you've made the deadline. You can also drop it off at the county elections office.

http://www.kcentv.com/news/c-article.php?cid=1&nid=10979

[Melissa G]

2. Voter registration deadline is Tuesday- Colorado

Voter registration deadline is Tuesday
Print By Rocky Mountain News
October 9, 2006
Voter registration forms for the Nov. 7 election must be received by 5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 11, at county clerk and recorder offices and Division of Motor Vehicle offices (drivers license bureaus).
"If you are not registered to vote or have recently moved, please be sure to turn in or update your registration materials before (the Tuesday) deadline," Secretary of State Gigi Dennis said.

Forms are available at county election offices or Division of Motor Vehicle offices.

Online forms are also available at www.GoVoteColorado.com. Eligible voters are instructed to complete the voter registration application and return it to their local county clerk and recorder.

For more information on voter registration, please contact the Secretary of State's office at [phone] or visit www.GoVoteColorado.com.

snip
• www.Adamscountyelections.org or 303-654-6030
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/elections/article/0,2808,DRMN_24736_5054343,00.html

[Melissa G]

3. Tuesday is Voter Registration Deadline- Indiana

Tuesday is Voter Registration Deadline

Oct 9, 2006 12:32 PM CDT

Voter Registration

If you want to vote in next month's general election, but aren't yet registered to vote, you have until Tuesday to do so. You can register at the county registration office in your county or at any BMV branch.

Because the state has been purging some voter registration records, you're advised to check to see if you are registered.

To find out if you are registered to vote, click here....

http://www.wishtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=5515013&nav=0Ra7

[Melissa G]

4. Ohio Voter Registration Deadline Is Tuesday

Ohio Voter Registration Deadline Is Tuesday

Reported by: AP
Web produced by: Candice Terrell
Photographed by: 9News
First posted: 10/9/2006 2:47:47 PM
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Ohio voters must register by tomorrow if they want to vote in the November Seventh election.

The state will choose its next governor in the election and make selections on several other statewide seats. Voters also will decide on several issues, including gambling, smoking bans and raising the minimum wage.

Voter registration forms are available at county boards of elections and treasurers offices as well as at public libraries, high schools, colleges and agencies that provide government assistance.

Forms can be submitted in person at election board offices or Bureau of Motor Vehicles sites. They also can be mailed as long as they are postmarked by tomorrow.
http://www.wcpo.com/news/2006/local/10/09/voters.html

[Melissa G]

5. Virginia- One Day Until Voter Registration Deadline Hits 10/10

Charlottesville WCAV CBS19

One Day Until Voter Registration Deadline Hits
Venton Blandin



October 9, 2006

The general election is now less than a month away, but the deadline to register to vote in it is 5:00p.m. Tuesday, October 10, 2006.

Charlottesville's Registrar Office is working hard to get all qualified adults on the books for November's election.

snip

So far, 288 absentee ballots have been cast. Staff say working on a federal holiday was a tough decision to make.

"We've had people come in, and they've absentee voted. We've had people call to check their registration application. On the day before a deadline for a significant election like this it was important for us to be open," said Charlottesville Registrar Sheri Iachetta.

Charlottesville's Registrar says she expects voter turnout be at least 50% with the current rate of absentee voters casting their ballot.
http://www.charlottesvillenewsplex.tv/news/headlines/4344856.html

[Melissa G]

6. Deadlines for Georgia... Oklahoma.. Florida... Utah....Penn.....

And Probably Your State.. I can keep posting these but it is a little redundant!!!

You get the idea! Check the Date in YOUR state and Register some People to VOTE!

Volunteer a Few Hours and Take Back your Country!

If We in bring in 5 more Voters with our vote what a difference we can make! Make a commitment and get it done!

In 2004, in Travis County, TX, with the help of our dedicated volunteers, we registered over 12,000 voters on the last day alone.
Volunteer and make a difference!:patriot:

[Melissa G]

7. The coming of the super precinct! (these scare me! )

Voter Registration Deadline Approaching



snip
In the meantime, Lubbock voters can look forward to more voting locations on election day. Lubbock County will participate in a pilot program called super precincts this election. On election day, instead of going to your precinct, there will be 35 voting locations to choose from, similar to early voting.

"Lubbock County is the only one in the state that's going to be doing that this year. We're hoping for it to be a huge success so we can move more towards that concept in all elections," explains Lubbock County Commissioner Patti Jones.

Voters will be receiving two letters in the mail explaining the details of the super precincts. And in the coming weeks, the office of elections will be launching an ad campaign about the changes. Early voting kicks off October 23 through November 3rd. Election day is November 7th.

editor's note..( I like my neighbor's who know me checking my vote..I like the people in my neighborhood verifying the count..super precincts make me nervous like those electronic black boxes for my votes...)

[Melissa G]

8. Mexico to Take Border Fence Battle to U.N.

Monday, Oct. 9, 2006 10:33 p.m. EDT
Mexico to Take Border Fence Battle to U.N.


Mexico's foreign secretary said Monday the country may take a dispute over U.S. plans to build a fence on the Mexican border to the United Nations.


Luis Ernesto Derbez told reporters in Paris, his first stop on a European tour, that a legal investigation was under way to determine whether Mexico has a case.



The Mexican government last week sent a diplomatic note to Washington criticizing the plan for 700 miles of new fencing along the border. President-elect Felipe Calderon also denounced the plan, but said it was a bilateral issue that should not be put before the international community.


Derbez said Monday after meeting with French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy that it was a "shame" U.S. immigration policy had been used for what he claimed was a short-term political gain in the lead-up to midterm elections in the U.S. in November.


http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2006/10/9/223505.shtml?s=ic

[Melissa G]

9. Poll: GOP in 'Foleygate' Meltdown

Poll: GOP in 'Foleygate' Meltdown
NewsMax.com Wires
Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2006


WASHINGTON -- Democratic candidates have a big edge on Republicans one month before elections to decide control of Congress, a flurry of new polls said Monday, with ratings for President Bush and Congress dropping after the Capitol Hill sex scandal.


A USA Today/Gallup poll gave Democrats a 23-point edge on Republicans in the battle for Congress, while a CNN poll gave Democrats a 21-point lead.


A ABC News/Washington Post poll found Democrats held a 54-41 percent lead in the congressional horse race among registered and likely voters, which ABC said was the biggest Democratic lead this close to election day in more than 20 years.


And a new CBS News/New York Times poll showed 79 percent of respondents thought Republican leaders were more concerned with politics than the well-being of the teenage congressional assistants who received lewd messages from former Republican Rep. Mark Foley of Florida.

http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2006/10/9/212345.shtml?s=tn

[Melissa G]

10. Suspicion Surrounds Retreat In Gas Prices, Poll Finds

Suspicion Surrounds Retreat In Gas Prices, Poll Finds

By Steven Mufson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, October 10, 2006; Page D03

snip
While motorists have welcomed the drop in gasoline prices, a Washington Post-ABC News poll released yesterday showed that many Americans remain suspicious about the reasons for the recent decline and skeptical about whether it will last.

Three out of 10 Americans think the recent fall in gasoline prices is a result of domestic political factors, including White House and Republican Party efforts to influence the November elections. That's nearly as many as the 35 percent who attribute the recent price decline to market forces or supply and demand, according to the poll of 1,204 adults conducted from Thursday to Sunday.

The survey also showed that suspicions about the steep drop in gasoline prices over the past two months aren't limited to the nation's liberal strongholds. Sixteen percent of people who identified themselves as conservative Republicans, 26 percent of white evangelical Protestants and 29 percent of Southern residents think the plunge in prices is linked to the coming election or other political reasons.

Those beliefs may be blunting the positive impact President Bush and the GOP hoped to get from falling fuel prices. "I think the president's party is lowering the gas prices until the people think the economy is settling down, and then they will raise the price again, blaming it on the Arabs for raising the price on barrels of oil," one respondent said.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/09/AR2006100901122.html

[Melissa G]

11. MEXICO: Repression of Opposition - Fuse For Oaxaca Conflict

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=35050

MEXICO:
Repression of Opposition - Fuse For Oaxaca Conflict
Diego Cevallos

OAXACA, Mexico, Oct 9 (IPS) - The social and political conflict that has the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca in check, with the local government accused of corruption and human rights violations, reached the streets of the country's capital city Monday.

Some 3,000 delegates of the Popular Assembly of the People of Oaxaca (APPO) walked for 21 days from Oaxaca to Mexico City, where they are adamant that they will remain until their demands are met.

Simultaneously, representatives of the government of President Vicente Fox (of the conservative National Action Party - PAN) met with an APPO delegation to seek a resolution to the conflict. APPO is asking for a complete purge of the Oaxaca police and the immediate resignation of the state governor, Ulises Ruiz.

snip
The protesters, who have taken over public offices and private radio stations and have been camping out in parks and streets in the city of Oaxaca since May, accuse the Ruiz administration of harsh treatment of opponents and of clamping down brutally on dissent.

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=35050

[Melissa G]

12. Will voting this year become a trick or a treat?

(ed note..No, I did not do this..there really were no paragraphs posted..)

by Ron Gifford

http://www.opednews.com



October 9, 2006
Publication: Indianapolis Business Journal (IN)
Section: ON THE BEAT
Page: 16

THERE OUGHT TO BE A LAW
Will voting this year become a trick or a treat?

Ron Gifford

I just can't wait for Halloween to get here, because I have found the scariest, most sinister costume I've ever worn. It will make grown men cry. I get creeped out just thinking about it. I'm going to be an electronic voting machine. And I don't plan to leave a paper trail. If you've read any of these actual headlines recently, you'll know the horrors I'm talking about: "Poll machine flaw hidden, state says." "Voting machines put U.S. democracy at risk." "Hotel minibar keys open Diebold voting machines." Apparently, someone just couldn't leave well enough alone. The world was a brighter place when you could walk into one of those bulky old voting machines, pull the curtain behind you and lose yourself in that magical electoral land of levers, knobs and buttons that thunked and dinged and usually recorded most of your votes on 100-year-old rotary counters. Oh, sure, they broke down a lot, and weren't terribly accessible for the disabled, and could probably be compromised with a screwdriver, but that's not the point. They were solid, permanent and rugged, like the very democracy our votes were protecting. And now what? At least in my precinct, we have to sit at a table behind a flimsy cardboard divider and fill in little circles next to the candidates' names on a paper that goes into an optical scanner. No curtains, no levers, no dinging bells. They've turned my voting booth into the ISTEP. What if I mark outside the lines-will my vote still count? What happens if the guy next to me tries to copy off my ballot? If I don't feel well, can I lie down in the nurse's office until the election is over? As usual, this is pretty much all Congress' fault. After the 2000 Florida election debacle, where angry mobs apparently went around the state hanging guys named Chad, Congress passed the Help America Vote Act, lovingly known as "HAVA"- as in, "HAVA lot of fun trying to figure out how to spend billions of dollars on voting machines that don't work and raise suspicions about stolen elections." HAVA required states to get rid of punch cards and lever-style voting machines that could be manipulated by political hacks. That's good. So those devices have been replaced by electronic voting machines that can be manipulated by computer hackers. Um, not so good. Studies conducted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories and Princeton University are best summed up by this statement from a recent report: "All three of the nation's most commonly purchased electronic voting systems are vulnerable to software attacks that could threaten the integrity of a state or national election." And we've got trouble-yes, trouble-right here in Circle City. Just last month, the Indiana Election Commission warned county election officials in 47 counties that the commission had discovered serious flaws in the software of the MicroVote Infinity 2005 electronic voting machine. Now can we stop right there: Is anyone else concerned that we're using voting machines that sound like a Buzz Lightyear action toy? Earlier this year, the state settled a complaint against a different company-Election Systems & Software, which provides voting equipment to 27 Indiana counties-for allegedly violating state election law. Although the company denied liability, it agreed to pay a six-figure fine and provide election officials with some training videos and informational posters. Yes, the state settled for posters. Frankly, if those posters didn't include that one of Farrah Fawcett that hung in my dorm room in the 1970s, we didn't get a very good deal. So what's going on here, folks? Did they turn the election over to the BMV and just not tell us? After all, we're talking about voting machines used in most of the state. And many of those machines don't generate a paper trail, so if the software is screwed up, there's really no way to prove whom you voted for-or if you voted at all. For the 32 percent of eligible voters who will actually turn out to vote in November-and I've heard there are at least a few close races-is it too much to ask for a little assurance that our votes will actually and accurately be counted? As you might imagine, the conspiracy theorists are out in full force on how elections are being stolen by corrupt campaigns with corrupted software. But even if you discount the notion that an early Diebold voting machine was found on the grassy knoll in Dallas in 1963, you have to be concerned about the legitimate issues being raised about the machines used here and throughout the country. Let's hope our election officials are able to ensure a fair and transparent election in the next few weeks. Because seriously, Election Day really shouldn't be scarier than Halloween.

Gifford is a partner at the law firm of Baker & Daniels in Indianapolis. His column appears monthly. This article is provided for general information purposes only and should not be regarded as legal advice for any particular situation. Gifford can be reached at 237-1409 or at [e-mail].

[Melissa G]

13. Verified Voting's Election Transparency Project

David Dill

10.09.2006
Verified Voting's Election Transparency Project

Do you wonder whether your vote counts? Are you losing faith in our electoral process? Do you think our elections are as accurate as they should be? Are you concerned that the results might be vulnerable to fraud or machine failure?

There is something you can do NOW, even before the election starts. Verified Voting's Election Transparency Project is enlisting members of the public (and especially organized groups) to help find out what really goes on in our elections. Our aim is to document everything we can, so that we actually know what happened after election day.
There are enough close races in this election that what we witness could affect the outcome of a race. The presence of observers will keep election officials on their toes, and there will be fewer problems as a result.

Most importantly, the findings from this project will keep election reform advocates busy for several years proposing improved election procedures and new legislation, so that future elections are much more accurate and transparent than current ones.

The project has six questionnaires to guide you through the observation process. You can choose one of them or all of them. You can even do them if you are involved in other election observation projects, such as the Election Protection Coalition or Pollworkers for Democracy (consult Google for more information on these projects).

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-dill/verified-votings-electio_b_31339.html

[Melissa G]

14. Alameda County elections chief promises 'secure' voting

Alameda County elections chief promises 'secure' voting
Lisa Vorderbrueggen
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
OAKLAND - Alameda County's election on Nov. 7 will be among the most secure in California, election chief Dave Macdonald said Monday during a display of procedures intended to safeguard the vote.

Steps include shrink-wrapping the county's new vote scanners before distribution to polling stations and securing the polling equipment with bar-coded security tape that poll workers must match to a separate list.

"We are not just doing the minimum," Macdonald said. "We are going above and beyond what's required."

The announcement comes a week after a handful of Alameda County voters filed a lawsuit to block the county's use of its new Sequoia voting system this November.

The nonprofit Voter Action organization said Alameda County has not performed independent, expert security vulnerability testing on the system's equipment.

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/breaking_news/15719187.htm

[Melissa G]

15. Questions About Voting Machines Arise

http://www.onnnews.com/


Questions About Voting Machines Arise
Oct 09 2006 4:36PM
Reported by Tom Walker

Are the nation's polling places being set up for failure in the upcoming election? That's the concern being voiced by some election officials, including in Ohio.

There were already plenty of questions about accidental snafus with new electronic voting machines, but some are now concerned about deliberate attempts to rig the returns.
"The question that needs to be answered is: can this election be hacked?" asked Rep Zoe Lofgren, (D) Calif.

A college professor of computer science recently showed lawmakers how he and his students were able to plant a virus in a machine, shifting votes from one candidate to another and easily getting inside it with a key widely used for other purposes.

snip
Keith Cunningham of the Lima, Ohio, elections board says, "I don't think that we're facing a meltdown. I'm afraid we might be facing conflicting records in the event of a recount that can't be reconciled under any circumstances."

http://www.onnnews.com/?sec=home&story=sites/10tv/content/pool/200610/2144722892.html

[Melissa G]

16. Protecting Your Vote and Representative Government in the Nov Election

by Kat L'Estrange

http://www.opednews.com



Protecting Your Vote and Representative Government in the November General Election

by Kat L'Estrange

October 9, 2006

This alert is being issued due to widespread changes in types of voting equipment used nationwide along with new management of voter registration databases in most states as a result of the Help America Vote Act that went into effect January 1, 2006. As well, voter suppression tactics continue as get-out-the-vote groups hired by the Republican National Committee are suspected of falsifying voter registration forms in Tennessee.

ALL POINTS BULLETIN

It's time for the citizenry to take responsibility for verifying their voting registration status prior to Election Day in November. Citizens can no longer take for granted that public elections officials are able to protect their voting rights as many states and local jurisdictions contract management of the process to private voting companies, including processing voter registration forms to providing precincts with the most current voter registration lists on Election Day, to providing the ballots and computerized voting machines on which votes are cast, in addition to programming the computers that tally the votes.

In order to vote, a citizen must be legally registered in accordance with state law and must re-register to vote when voter information changes or when changing residences. The majority of citizens in the United States understand this process and abide by the law. We must question whether private voting corporations take the process as seriously given past performance and their refusal to acknowledge abysmal failures that have led to changes in the outcomes of elections disregarding majority votes and ultimately the public's desire for confidence in the election process.

snip
You may be able to check your registration status by phone or online, but if you can make the trip down to the Board of Elections, please do so. While you are there, please ask them to confirm:

* the polling location where you are authorized to vote in your precinct.
* hours of operation at the polls.
* what type of identification is required and acceptable to allow you to vote.
* if computerized voting machines are being used what steps must be taken to document any difficulty using them during the voting process, and is it possible to cast your vote on a paper ballot instead (some states give voters this option).
* how you go about volunteering to work at the polls or request the opportunity to observe the process.


http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_kat_l_es_061009_protecting_your_vote.htm

[Melissa G]

17. Ken Blackwell Campaigns With White Supremacist?

Ken Blackwell Campaigns With White Supremacist?
Tuesday, 10 October 2006, 1:15 pm
Opinion: Harvey Wasserman

Why Is The Man Who Stole Ohio Campaigning With A White Supremacist?

by Bob Fitrakis and Harvey Wasserman
October 9, 2006
From: http://www.freepress.org/departments/display/19/2006/2171J. Kenneth Blackwell, the man who stole Ohio’s 2004 presidential election, was out campaigning October 4, 2006 with a man widely viewed as one of America’s leading white supremacists. Blackwell is an African-American.

He is also the Republican nominee for governor of Ohio. As Secretary of State, he was the GOP point man for stealing the 2004 presidential vote that gave George W. Bush a second term. As co-chair of the state’s Bush-Cheney re-election campaign, Blackwell engineered a complex strategy of confusion, disenfranchisement and theft that mirrored what was done by Katherine Harris in Florida 2000. Harris was rewarded with a safe Congressional seat, and is now the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate. Polls show Blackwell trailing between 12-20 points in his gubernatorial race, but few Ohio insiders doubt his ability to steal the necessary votes, if he can get away with it. Currently, Blackwell operatives are stressing that he’s “only 12 points down” and that they believe the race will tighten significantly by Election Day.

Blackwell toured the state with Larry Pratt, author of ARMED PEOPLE VICTORIOUS, which advocates the creation of militant right- wing militias. Pratt has spoke and shared platforms in the past with Ku Klux Klan and neo-Nazi Aryan Nation members. He was forced to take a leave of absence from Pat Buchanan’s 1996 presidential campaign over charges of white supremacist and anti- semitic views. Pratt’s 150,000-member Gun Owners of America is proudly to the right of the National Rifle Association.

According to the Columbus Dispatch, Pratt says he couldn’t be a racist because he is campaigning with Blackwell, an African- American. Blackwell is “our kind of guy,” says Pratt, in reference to Blackwell’s support of gun owners’ rights.

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0610/S00132.htm

[Melissa G]

18. Demand For Emergency Paper Ballots Grows

National Issues




Demand For Emergency Paper Ballots Grows
By Warren Stewart, VoteTrustUSA
October 09, 2006
There is a growing concern nationwide that voters will be turned away from polling places this November as the result of machine malfunctions. In primaries across the country this year, and most spectacularly in the recent Maryland primary, thousands of voters have been prevented from exercising their right to vote because electronic voting machines failed to operate properly.


Beyond the obvious need to provide emergency paper ballots at every polling place as a backup in the case of machine malfunction, there is a more fundamental question of the growing lack of voter confidence in direct recording electronic (DRE) voting machines. Many states where such machines are used provide all voters the option of voting on a paper ballot. Every state should.

Federal legislation was introduced in both the House and Senate last month that would have mandated that all voters be given a paper ballot upon request. It would also have required election officials to post information announcing and confirming that paper ballots were available on request, and established that all such paper ballots would be counted as regular, not provisional ballots. Unfortunately, this legislation was not addressed before Congress broke for their October recess.



A letter, signed by a range of concerned citizens and public interest organizations, is being sent to Governors and state election officials urging them to make contingency plans and procedures to provide emergency paper ballots at every polling place in the November general election, and that every election official, poll worker, and voter be informed of the procedures for utilizing those paper ballots.

http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1866&Itemid=26

[Melissa G]

19. Republican House Passes '21st Century Poll Tax'

Republican House Passes '21st Century Poll Tax'

NNPA, News Report, James Wright, Oct 09, 2006

WASHINGTON (NNPA) – To the chagrin of members of the Congressional Black Caucus, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that would require government-issued identification to vote. The requirement does not take affect until elections in 2010, but has already drawn condemnation from CBC members and the civil rights community.

snip
''It's a modern day poll tax. Any bill that would require all eligible citizen voters to engage in a bureaucratic process to obtain a citizen ID that includes swearing poverty in order to vote is corrosive and undemocratic,'' he said.

''The bill effectively transforms the vote from a right to a privilege by elevating the privileged over those citizens who will disproportionately become ensnared in this voting trap including African-Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, the elderly, disabled and the poor.''

Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) on Sept. 20, joined other CBC members and members of Congress of Asian and Latino caucuses in voicing concerns about the bill.
''I am beyond disgusted,'' he said of the bill's passage, ''I am shocked.''Noting that Georgia is wrestling with the issue of voter IDs, he said:


http://news.ncmonline.com/news/view_article.html?article_id=25cde68a2eba2d24ac13fd39c0df9474

[Melissa G]

20. A new menace to democracy

A new menace to democracy

Adam Yalowitz, Print Copy Editor
10/9/2006


Art by Nathan Yaffe
This September, many Blair seniors were eligible to vote for the first time, but some of them found casting a ballot harder than they had expected. When voters in Montgomery County went to the polls to vote in the primary elections on Sept. 12, many were turned away.

That morning, the Montgomery County Board of Elections had failed to deliver the plastic cards necessary to activate electronic voting machines at all 238 polling centers countywide. Polls scheduled to open at 7 a.m. opened as late as 11:30 a.m. As a result, election judges were instructed to allow voters to use provisional paper ballots. But many polling places quickly ran out.

Even after voter access cards were delivered, many polling places were still not operating because printers, used to give voters a ballot confirmation receipt, malfunctioned. The Board of Elections extended voting times one hour to allow those who could not vote in the morning a chance to do so, but the Board will never know how many voters went to the polls and were turned away.

After the failure of the electronic voting system in the primary elections, county and state officials are investigating how the Board of Elections failed to deliver the voter cards. This debacle is just one more reason why Maryland must return to paper ballots for the upcoming general elections.

http://silverchips.mbhs.edu/inside.php?sid=6736

[Melissa G]

21. New Robin Williams movie: pres candidate wins via e-voting "glitch"

Thanks to Amaryllis for the post and the DU dicussion here..

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x452315

New Robin Williams movie: pres candidate wins via e-voting "glitch"

National Issues

Man of the Year: Art Imitates Life
By Warren Stewart, VoteTrustUSA
October 09, 2006

"A perception of legitimacy is more important than legitimacy itself." from the movie "Man of the Year".

Unless you’ve spent the last week on a secluded desert island, you’ve probably caught some of the Hollywood pre-release hype about “Man of the Year”, which will hit theatres nationwide on October 13. The premise of the movie is that a comedian, Tom Dobbs (played by Robin Williams), who has made a career of skewering politicians, runs a Pat Paulsen-style campaign for president. Sure enough, he wins.

Or does he?

It turns out that his election was the result of a computer voting error. "Delacroy Voting Systems" has sold the nation on their new electronic voting system and one of their employees discovers that the system has a 'glitch' that gave the election to the clown. The company, who couldn't care less who wins the election and is only concerned about the effect the revelation might have on the company's stock, plots to destroy the employee's credibility.

It all sounds chillingly familiar, doesn't it?

The movie is fiction but the potential that election results could be manipulated by insiders with access to computerized voting or affected by software errors is reality. Ballot programming errors affected the results in nine races in a Republican primary election in Iowa last June. Primary elections have been questioned in Texas, Tennessee, Indiana, and numerous other states across the country based on machine malfunctions and irregularities in vote tabulation. In many of these cases, like the one in Iowa, it was possible to recover the will of the voters because there was an independent means of verifying the accuracy of the electronic tallies through paper ballots. In others, there was no such safety net.

No doubt, the voting industry's talking points will show up indirectly in the words of reviewers and talking heads, who will point out how such a scenario is pure fiction and could never happen. We will be assured that real life voting systems are rigorously tested to stringent standards, even though those standards have been written with the vendors interests in mind and what passes as "testing" is paid for by the vendors and hidden from any public oversight. And of course that testing has resulted in the certification and implementation of the very systems that have been demonstrated to have severe security vulnerabilities and proven to be unreliable and prone to malfunction in actual elections. As in the movie, the credibility of those who question the merit of casting and counting votes on electronic voting machines in the real world - a "scary minority" as described in a recent Congressional hearing - will continue to be challenged.

Hopefully, this blockbuster film will raise general awareness of the grave threat that trusting secret software to count votes is a fundamental threat to our democracy and that "scary majority" will demand the use of transparent, verifiable voting systems - before life imitates art.

http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1864&Itemid=26

[Melissa G]

22. $250,000 Reward Offered For Information About Vote Fraud!

Thanks to emlev for the post and the DU discussion here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x2353766


$250,000 Reward Offered For Information About Vote Fraud!
Breaking!

$250,000 Reward For Information About Vote Fraud In The November Election


VelvetRevolution and its co-founder Justice Through Music are offering a $250,000 reward for information about vote fraud and manipulation in the upcoming mid-term elections. That’s a quarter million dollars to the persons or persons who provide us with definitive and conclusive proof that a United States House or Senate election has been rigged by illegal means.

The information must result in an overturning of a congressional election and a conviction of the person or persons responsible for the fraud. We want whistelblowers to come forward and to provide us with evidence, documents, tape recordings, and admissions. Send to tips at velvetrevolution.us.

[Melissa G]

23. Electronic voting systems can be easily manipulated, say Dutch researchers

Electronic voting systems can be easily manipulated, say Dutch researchers
Posted on : Mon, 09 Oct 2006 18:02:01 GMT | Author : Paula Cussons
News Category : General


The electronic voting systems that are used in the Netherlands, Germany and France are flawed and can be easily manipulated, according to Dutch researchers. A paper released on Friday described the glitches in the Nedap / Groenendaal ES3B voting machines, which are used by almost 90 percent of the Dutch population.

Rop Gonggrijp and Willem-Jan Hengeveld led a team of e-voting experts in compiling the paper. The full paper is available on the Web site of the group "Wij vertrouwen stemcomputers niet" (or "We don't trust voting computers"). The group describes itself as a "coalition of citizens concerned about the use of voting computers during Dutch elections."


The report details some serious flaws in the voting machines, which were obtained by the researchers from various municipalities in the Netherlands. "Anyone, when given brief access to the devices at any time before the election, can gain complete and virtually undetectable control over the election results," the report said.

These flaws were very identical to those discovered in Diebold Election Systems Inc.'s touch-screen voting machine. The ES3B machine is a joint venture between NV Nederlandsche Apparatenfabriek (Nedap) and Groenendaal. The latter is a software maker.

The report also said that the machines were so flawed that malicious elements could monitor radio emissions to judge the votes cast by people.

http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/9276.html

[Melissa G]

24. Pennsylvania Court Upholds Rigged Election, Bumps Green Party Candidate Ru

http://www.gp.org/images/homepage%20(1)_1x2.gif

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
OCTOBER 9, 2006
10:31 AM

CONTACT: Green Party of the United States
Scott McLarty, Media Coordinator, 202-518-5624, [e-mail]
Starlene Rankin, Media Coordinator, 916-995-3805, [e-mail]


Pennsylvania Court Upholds Rigged Election, Bumps Green Party Candidate Running for Senate
Greens outraged at Pennsylvania court decision upholding 'rigged' election after Green running for U.S. Senate is removed from the ballot.


WASHINGTON - October 9 - Green Party leaders called a Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling that upheld the removal of a Green candidate for U.S. Senate from the state ballot and order to pay as much as $1,000,000 in legal costs a serious blow to democracy and fair and open elections.

"Democratic and Republican officials in Pennsylvania have rigged the system in their own favor," said Nan Garrett, Georgia Green and member of the party's Ballot Access Committee. "The removal of Carl Romanelli <http://www.romanelli2006.com> is a defeat not just for Greens, but for all Pennsylvania voters, who will no longer see the name of an antiwar pro-choice candidate for U.S. Senate on the ballot on Election Day."

"Carl's removal isn't a victory for the Democratic Party or for Bob Casey . It's a disgrace to Democrats, the Casey campaign, and to the state of Pennsylvania. Thanks to the court's decision, the cradle of democracy is now the graveyard of democracy. Pennsylvania elections are as rigged as if someone had tampered with computer voting machines or tossed paper ballots in the trash," added Ms. Garrett, who is also Spokesperson for the National Women's Caucus of the Green Party.

As a result of the court's decision in response to Carl Romanelli's appeal of an earlier ruling:

Mr. Romanelli will not appear on the ballot because Democratic lawyers persuaded the court that enough of the 95,000 signatures he collected were technically invalid to bring him below the state's 67,000 signature requirement. According to the state's ballot access rules, Democratic and Republican candidates must gather 2,000 signatures to get on the primary ballot, while other parties' candidates and independents must gather 67,000. Greens have called the rules grossly unfair, antidemocratic, and evidence of a 'gentlemen's agreement' between Democrats and Republicans to keep other candidates out of state races.

Mr. Romanelli must pay $89,000 in court costs and all of the Democratic Party's legal bills for the challenge, which are expected to approach $1,000,000, as well as his own legal expenses. In August, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court recently similarly ordered Ralph Nader's independent 2004 campaign to pay more than $80,000 in legal costs after being knocked off the ballot.

The Romanelli campaign has held that the Democrats' challenge to the ballot petitions was brought in an unconstitutional manner, because the law requires challengers be specific in their charges, and because, even though Mr. Romanelli defeated the challenge a month ago and can demonstrate that his team has defeated the amended challenge, the court would not allow a defense.

"The right to present evidence and a defense is basic in America. Even murderers are given a day in court. After seven weeks, I was not. Yet, the court wants me to pick up the tab," said Mr. Romanelli, who noted that his campaign collected more signatures than any candidate in Pennsylvania history.

"The message of the Democratic Party's challenge and the court's ruling is this: if you're a third party or independent candidate, you risk being punished with personal bankruptcy just for trying to run for office," said Liz Arnone, co-chair of the Green Party of the United States. "Pennsylvania's outrageously prohibitive signature requirement and assessment of legal fees, if the signatures are successfully challenged, are meant to intimidate anyone outside the Democratic and Republican parties from running. Bob Casey and his fellow Democrats have exploited the means to kill democracy in Pennsylvania."

Greens noted that Marakay Rogers and Christine Valente, Green candidates for Governor and Lt. Governor of Pennsylvania, withdrew their petitions because of the threat of legal expenses. Ms. Rogers and Ms. Valente would have had to pay tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees for their own lawyers to defend ballot petitions against a line-by-line challenge by the Democratic Party's staff lawyers, since it would have taken several weeks to review the nearly 100,000 signatures collected by the candidates.

"Supporters of Bob Casey who are rejoicing at Carl Romanelli's removal should be ashamed of themselves," said Steve Kramer, co-chair of the Green Party. "Carl called for the immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops. He supports national health insurance and full reproductive rights for women. Bob Casey and Rick Santorum support the war on Iraq and continued occupation, corporate power and profit instead of universal health coverage, and ending a woman's right to choose. Whether Casey or Santorum wins on November 7, it'll be a Republican victory."

Casey supporters had claimed that Mr. Romanelli would have siphoned votes away from Mr. Casey, and complained that Mr. Romanelli accepted major campaigned contributions from registered Republicans.

"Carl has no power to take votes away from Bob Casey. Casey doesn't own anyone's vote except his own, and there's no evidence that all antiwar pro-choice voters who support Carl would otherwise vote for prowar, anti-choice Casey," said Paul Teese, Chair of the Green Party of Pennsylvania. "The donations that Carl accepted from Republican friends were entirely legal and carried no quid pro quo. In contrast, Casey and other Democrats take thousands of dollars from questionable sources all the time, and these corporate interests expect and get something in return."

The Green Party noted that Green candidates reject corporate campaign contributions, while Democratic and Republican politicians are notoriously awash in corporate money.

"Democrats have consistently leveled the self-serving 'spoiler' accusation against Greens, but have mostly rejected Green pleas to enact Instant Runoff Voting. If Democrats don't believe in open, competitive elections, why don't they change the name of their party?" Mr. Teese added.

Carl Romanelli, Marakay Rogers, and Christina Valente planned to continue campaigns and compete as write-in candidates; Mr. Romanelli intends to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the Pennsylvania Commonwealth and State Supreme Court rulings.

"We are extremely proud of Carl and other Pennsylvania Green candidates and party members for their courage, commitment and the personal sacrifice they have made to promote peace, justice, and democracy," said Liz Arnone.

http://www.commondreams.org/news2006/1009-04.htm

[Melissa G]

25. Voter Confidence Committee Presents Peter B. Collins (w/Brad, Guv, others)

Thanks to Guvworld for the post and the DU discussion here
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x452099
Voter Confidence Committee Presents Peter B. Collins (w/Brad, Guv, others)

[Melissa G]

26. ACLU files suit over Mississippi's voting laws

Thanks to carzen for the post and the DU discussion here
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x452292
ACLU files suit over Mississippi's voting laws
The American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi has filed a lawsuit over the state's denial of voting rights to people convicted of felony crimes that include shoplifting, timber larceny and extortion.

The suit was filed in Hinds County Chancery Court on behalf of two residents against Mississippi's secretary of state's office and the attorney general's office. The ACLU is asking the court for a preliminary injunction and temporary restraining order to allow people convicted of felonies to register to vote.

The Mississippi Constitution lists 10 crimes that result in the loss of voting rights if committed. Eleven other crimes were added to the list in 2004 based on an attorney general's opinion.

It is the latter group of crimes that the ACLU is challenging, said Nsombi Lambright, executive director of the state organization, which held a news conference Monday to announce the legal action.

"We're trying to get the state to stop taking voting rights away from people who have been convicted of crimes other than the 10 listed in the state's Constitution," she said.


http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/MS_ACLU_VOTING_LAWSUIT_MSOL-?SITE=VARIT&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2006-10-09-17-49-29

[freedomfries]

27. great threat! Kudos to Melissa G!

:yourock:

[Kurovski]

28. Agreed, and a kick to the top.

:hi:

[Melissa G]

30. Thanks, Kurovski and FF! I was out registering voters and could

not watch the thread. Thanks for the help!

[Kurovski]

31. Thank you for the double-duty, ma'am.

:patriot:

[rumpel]

29. Schwarzenegger will sign Bowens Bill SB 1235 -e-mail

Thank you for sending me your email in support of SB 1235. Hearing from my fellow Californians is so important to me as I work to improve our great state.

I decided to sign this bill after extensive consideration and thorough deliberation with proponents and opponents of this issue. To see the final language of the bill, please visit the Official California Legislative Information website at: www.leginfo.ca.gov. I remain committed to ensuring fair elections for the people of California.

Thank you again for writing to me. Your active participation in the democratic process will help ensure a brighter future for California.

Sincerely,



Arnold Schwarzenegger