Election Reform, Fraud and Related News Thursday 12/14/06

[EFerrari]

Election Reform, Fraud and Related News Thursday 12/14/06

All members welcome and encouraged to participate.

Remember Ohio

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


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


/oops

[EFerrari]

1. demodonkey's "Two Years Ago Today" Ohio Recount Thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=203&topic_id=462424&mesg_id=462424

[EFerrari]

2. CA: Riverside Co Taps Election Panel

Riverside County taps elections panel; public challenge to e-voting could come during 3-month investigation

By: CHRIS BAGLEY - Staff Writer

Two retired judges, a former newspaper publisher, a businesswoman and a former Riverside County supervisor have been tapped to examine the county's elections procedures, after a range of glitches and perceived delays cropped up in the Nov. 7 election.

The five-member panel is expected to begin a wide-ranging probe shortly after winter holidays. In announcing its creation Tuesday, Board of Supervisors Chairman Bob Buster said it will report to the board after three months.

"If any of these problems that have arisen can be eliminated or lessened in the future by improving the county's or the registrar's practices and procedures, I want to make sure we put forward our best effort to do so," Buster said.

The supervisors have indicated that they each intended to appoint one member to the panel. Former Third District Supervisor Kay Ceniceros, whose district included Sun City, Menifee and points east, was among the five picked.

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006/12/13/news/californian/18_00_2212_12_06.txt

[EFerrari]

3. CO: Denver holds back $52,160 from Sequoia

Denver holds back $52,160 from Sequoia
By Katy Human
Denver Post Staff Writer
Article Last Updated:12/14/2006 01:46:00 AM MST

The Denver Election Commission will withhold $52,160.25 of payment to election contractor Sequoia Voting Systems Inc. because of a series of errors that led to major problems in November's general election, commission spokesman Alton Dillard said.

"That's deductions for staff overtime, on-call overtime, the issue with postage on absentee ballots, the printing error ...," he said.

Sequoia vice president of communications Michele Shafer did not respond to calls or e-mails seeking comment.

The Election Commission has contracted with Sequoia for years, using the company's scanning machines for absentee-ballot counting, electronic-voting machines, voter-registration software and printing services.

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_4835334

:applause:

[EFerrari]

4. CO: Report blames Denver election woes on flawed software

Report blames Denver election woes on flawed software
Local election officials were also slammed for a 'casual approach' to technology
Todd Weiss

December 13, 2006 (Computerworld) -- Poor software design, serious IT management inefficiencies and an untested deployment of a critical application were all major factors in last month's Election Day problems in Denver, according to a scathing report from an IT consultant. The problems led to hours-long delays for voters looking to cast ballots and raised questions about the overall efficacy of e-voting.

The 32-page report, released Monday, concluded that the main reason for problems was the electronic poll book (ePollBook) software used by the independent Denver Election Commission (DEC) to oversee voting. The e-poll book software -- an $85,000 custom application created by Oakland, Calif.-based Sequoia Voting Systems Inc. -- included the names, addresses and other information for all registered voters in Denver.

Sequoia was already a voting services vendor to the city and county, and the application was designed to allow poll workers across the Denver area to check off voters as they came in to vote at newly created voting centers. Denver has moved from the old precinct-style polling places to a new "voting center" model where voters can go to any polling place in the area to cast ballots, regardless of where they live. The software was supposed to make it easy for officials at any voting center to check online and make sure a voter had not already voted somewhere else in Denver.

Instead, it led to massive problems on Election Day due to "decidedly subprofessional architecture and construction," according to the report from consultants Fred Hessler and Matt Smith at Fujitsu Consulting in Greenwood Village, Colo. Fujitsu was hired by Denver shortly after the election to find out what went wrong and help to fix the problems.

http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&taxonomyName=software&articleId=9006038&taxonomyId=18&intsrc=kc_top

[EFerrari]

5. CO: Groff calls for legislative study of election foul-ups

Groff calls for legislative study of election foul-ups


By Lynn Bartels, Rocky Mountain News
December 13, 2006
An influential Democrat wants to form a committee to study problems that occurred in Colorado's general election.

Senate President Pro Tem Peter Groff, of Denver, said in a news release Tuesday that he also wants to set criteria and standards.

With Democrats in charge of the Senate and the House and some Coloradans seething from November's election problems, Groff likely will get his wish.

Voters in Denver and Douglas County, in particular, stood in line for hours, and it is estimated that thousands did not vote.

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5209704,00.html

[EFerrari]

6. CO: Doubts voiced about special election

Doubts voiced about special election
Panelist says Jan. 30 too soon for Denver. The City Council is to decide this week whether to recommend the special vote to reform the troubled Election Commission.

By Katy Human
Denver Post Staff Writer
Article Last Updated:12/12/2006 11:29:33 PM MST

It's naive to think the city could run a special election next month to reform Denver's troubled Election Commission, an expert on Mayor John Hickenlooper's investigative task force said Tuesday.

"One month to put together an election is clearly, clearly out of touch with reality in today's election world," Larimer County Clerk and Recorder Scott Doyle said of a proposal Monday from a City Council committee.

The recommendation is just one of several that Denver officials will get from several sources over the next few days.

Tonight, a panel appointed by Hickenlooper in the wake of November's problem-plagued election is expected to come up with its recommendations.

http://www.denverpost.com/ci_4829212?source=rss

[EFerrari]

7. CO: Elected clerk for Denver urged

Elected clerk for Denver urged
Panel also backs voting centers
By Katy Human and George Merritt
Denver Post Staff Writers
Article Last Updated:12/14/2006 06:40:06 AM MST

A single elected clerk and recorder should be responsible for future Denver elections to prevent another vote with long lines and disenfranchised voters, a panel recommended Wednesday.

The 12-member panel, which holds no authority in the city but is expected to carry weight with city officials, also called for the Denver Election Commission to:

Hire a technical adviser to help prioritize and fix computer problems that plagued this year's elections.

Stick with vote centers instead of returning to traditional neighborhood precincts.

http://www.denverpost.com/lacrosse/ci_4836356

[EFerrari]

8. IL: Restitution to be made for election trouble

Restitution to be made for election trouble
By ERIN DOSS\Reporter

Iroquois County is receiving funds from Fidlar Election Company to make restitution for problems on election night.

Iroquois County Clerk Mark Henrichs said yesterday that the county have already received a $4,000 discount on an $18,000 bill, and said he is seeking additional relief.
Iroquois County Board chairman Ron Schroeder said Larry Mandel and Sue Rippe, company representatives, spoke to the board's Policy and Procedure Committee Monday.

He said Mandel gave a summary of what happened with the program election night. He said a problem was discovered with the audio file for the touch screen voting machines prior to the election. This required the company to reprogram the memory cards.

However, not all of the cards were successfully reconfigured, resulting in the inability of the system to upload the election data. Instead, the data had to be entered manually the next day.

http://www.watsekatimesrepublic.com/articles/2006/12/13/news/273news03.txt

[EFerrari]

9. IN: New legislator seeks election-day changes

New legislator seeks election-day changes
Wants regular ballots cast, more forms of ID accepted
By Rebecca S. Green
The Journal Gazette
A newly elected state senator from Muncie has announced plans to introduce legislation designed to prevent the problems that plagued Delaware County voters this past Election Day.

Voting machines in Delaware County malfunctioned in 75 precincts, preventing voters from casting ballots and forcing the extension of polling hours until 8:40 p.m.

The computer glitches forced voters to use provisional ballots, but many polling sites ran out of the paper ballots and turned away voters.

In Marion County, the electrical optical-scan machines that read the paper ballots were not working correctly in more than 100 precincts.

In a statement released Wednesday, State Sen. Sue Errington said she will offer legislation to automatically require polling places to remain open past 6 p.m. should issues arise that prevent people from casting their ballots. Under current law, polling places close at 6 p.m.

http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/fortwayne/news/local/16230260.htm

[EFerrari]

10. IN: RECOUNT: MACHINE CHALLENGE DROPPED

RECOUNT: MACHINE CHALLENGE DROPPED

One of the challenges filed in the recount petition by Democrat Larry Hile in the Indiana House District 31 race has been dropped, his lawyer said.

Attorney Bill Groth said he decided to drop the contest that a voting machine at Center Township Precinct 9 did not work properly. He is moving forward, though, with challenges asking that all absentee and provisional ballots be counted and that Center precincts 22 and 24 should not be included in District 31.

The recount for the petition has been completed, but the Indiana State Recount Commission has yet to rule on disputed ballots and the challenges.

The commission is working on another House race and most likely will not be ready to start hearing arguments for District 31 until Friday at the earliest, Jennifer Fanger, an official with the secretary of state's office, said.

http://www.chronicle-tribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061214/NEWS01/612140323/1002

[EFerrari]

11. MD: Recount confirms Dwyer's victory

Recount confirms Dwyer's victory
Regional Digest
Originally published December 13, 2006

A hand recount of more than 3,000 paper ballots in a hotly contested Anne Arundel County legislative race confirmed conservative Del. Donald H. Dwyer Jr.'s razor-thin victory over Del. Joan Cadden, election officials said yesterday.

Dwyer, a Glen Burnie Republican, defeated Cadden, a Brooklyn Park Democrat, by 25 votes for the third and final spot in a three-member legislative district representing District 31, officials said. Dwyer received 17,558 votes to Cadden's 17,533 votes.

Cadden had challenged the official result, which gave Dwyer a 28-vote edge.

It took county officials about seven hours to manually tally the more than 3,000 absentee and provisional ballots cast in the northern Anne Arundel district.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/politics/bal-md.sbriefs13dec13,0,3747358.story?coll=bal-mdpolitics-headlines

[philb]

19. Actually not, Cadden should have asked for a machine audit- switching was the problem

4774 Polling Place Problem Anne Arundel Maryland Chapel Pressed screen for Cardin, came up Steel. Was able to correct before casting ballot.

2302 Polling Place Problem Anne Arundel Maryland Voter had problem with machine 6 at Waugh Chapel Elem. School. The machine would not record the candidate she wanted to select. It kept reverting to other candidate. Eventually she got it wok, but is concerned others may not have been able to get it to properly work

1513 Polling Place Problem Anne Arundel Maryland Pasadena United Methodist Church Yes Machine #2 at this precinct records wrong candidate at summary page. Had to correct each candidate 3-4 times for it register correctly on summary screen. Concerned that others may not be checking summary screen and may inadvertently vote for wrong candidate.

3201 Other Problem Anne Arundel Maryland severna park elem sample ballot did not match screen


www.flcv.com/marylan6.html

[EFerrari]

12. PA: A Chesco judge's ruling: Recount by hand, machine?

A Chesco judge's ruling: Recount by hand, machine?
By Kathleen Brady Shea
Inquirer Staff Writer

A Chester County Court judge heard arguments yesterday about whether the recount in the 156th State House race - a razor-close contest that will determine which party controls the House - should be conducted by hand or machine.

Judge Howard F. Riley Jr. told attorneys from both parties that he wanted procedural guidelines for either scenario submitted by both sides today. The judge, who has also been presiding in a capital murder case, said he could not promise an immediate decision.

However, Riley said he wanted the input to speed the implementation of whichever procedure he orders.

Democrat Barbara McIlvaine Smith holds a 23-vote lead over Republican Shannon Royer in the 156th race, giving the Democrats a 102-101 edge over Republicans in the House.

http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/local/16235827.htm

[EFerrari]

13. WI Swing Votes

Swing votes
By Josh Grosteffon
12/13/2006

Carl Hamann is glad he requested a recount.

After a meeting of the Midland County Board of Canvassers and a hand recount of the ballots, Hamann received the two votes he needed to surpass Village President Ron Lowry in the Sanford Village Council election.

"I’m disappointed," Lowry said of the results, "but that’s how the system works."

Lowry appeared to beat Hamann by a ratio of 139 to 138, but two ballots not read by machines gave Hamann enough support to win a two year council seat.

http://www.ourmidland.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=17585329&BRD=2289&PAG=461&dept_id=472542&rfi=6

[philb]

20. Widespread touch screen switching, disappearing votes, glitches, compiler problems, long lines,

minority suppression, official and poll worker misfeasance and malfeasance, systematic illegal dirty tricks and Robo-calls in most close Congressional races.

www.flcv.com/eirstss6.html
www.flcv.com/eirsppp6.html
www.flcv.com/eirsoth6.html
www.flcv.com/eirsdt6.html

[EFerrari]

14. AR: Reduced Early Voting Proposed

Reduced Early Voting Proposed

By Rob Moritz

Arkansas News Bureau • [e-mail]

LITTLE ROCK — A proposal that would shorten the early voting period before an election is to be discussed by a state legislative committee today.

Ending the early voting period at 6 p.m. on the Friday before the election — eliminating early voting on the Saturday and Monday before the election — was one of several possible changes to state election laws discussed Wednesday by the Pulaski County Election Commission. Several Little Rock-area legislators attended the meeting.
“There is a very legitimate reason why it needs to be (changed),” said Sen. Mary Anne Salmon, D-North Little Rock.

“I think they brought up a lot of great ideas, especially from a county that in the past had some troubles; for them to be proactive, I think that’s great,” said Rep. Jeff Wood, D-Sherwood.

http://www.swtimes.com/articles/2006/12/14/news/news04.txt

[EFerrari]

15. WI: Doyle, legislative leaders reach agreement on ethics reform

Doyle, legislative leaders reach agreement on ethics reform

By Ryan J. Foley
The Associated Press

MADISON — Legislative leaders and Gov. Jim Doyle have reached an agreement on an ethics reform package that would merge the state Ethics and Elections boards into a new body with greater power to investigate public corruption.

Doyle, incoming Assembly Speaker Mike Huebsch, R-West Salem, and incoming Senate Majority Leader Judy Robson, D-Beloit, were scheduled to announce details at a Capitol news conference Thursday.

Huebsch spokesman Bob Delaporte said the leaders agreed on a package that is similar to a bill lawmakers debated last year. The measure passed the Senate with Doyle’s support, but Assembly Republicans killed it over concerns the new body would have too much power to go after lawmakers.

Delaporte said the agreement includes safeguards “to take a lot of the politics out of this and make sure that when they do an investigation that the best interest of the people of Wisconsin is the top priority.”

http://www.thenorthwestern.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061214/OSH/312140031

[EFerrari]

16. Election Law Blog: Senator Johnson's Illness and Control of the Senate

Senator Johnson's Illness and Control of the Senate

With the news this morning that Senator Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) has undergone emergency surgery and is in critical condition following a possible stroke, there is already speculation that control of the Senate could shift back to Republicans.

We all hope for a speedy and full recovery for the Senator. But what happens if he does not recover? The situation seems clearest in the event of a Senator's death. The 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution provides: "When vacancies happen in the representation of any state in the Senate, the executive authority of such state shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies: Provided, that the legislature of any state may empower the executive thereof to make temporary appointments until the people fill the vacancies by election as the legislature may direct."

According to news reports, under South Dakota law, the governor has the power to name a temporary appointee for the remainder of Sen. Johnson's term, which expires in 2008. According to news reports, the governor is a Republican and he could well name a Republican, shifting the balance in the senate from 51 D- 49 R to 50-50, with Vice President Cheney casting the deciding vote. (Last time we had a 5050 split, after Sen. Jeffords left the GOP and voted with Democrats, giving them control for a brief time.)

If the Senator is incapacitated, the Constitution gives the Senate the apparent sole authority to remove him from office. Article I, Section 5 provides in pertinent part that "Each House shall be the judge of the elections, returns and qualifications of its own members...." Historically, there have been Senators who have been incapacitated but who have remained part of the Senate. I would like to hear from others if there are historical examples of the Senate removing Senators on grounds of incapacitation.
Posted by Rick Hasen at 05:57 AM

http://electionlawblog.org/

[livvy]

17. #5 K & R. at 5:45 EST....What's the deal?

Have the all the ERD K&Rers been taking naps all day or what?



Thanks...nice thread, sfexpat.

[EFerrari]

18. Mid December doldrums, I expect. They'll be back.

[autorank]

21. Maybe, maybe not;) Great thread and nice horse too. Cute;)

CLIFF ARNEBECK, Attorney for Ohio Freedom Fighters, Jan 6, 2005 Patriots Day