Monday, August 02, 2004

How many wounds can our democracy take? Most agree that the Florida election debacle seriously called into question the foundations of democracy in the U.S.  The fundamental premise of democracy is free and fair elections, in which all votes are counted, and every vote has equal weight. It has been amply documented that due to corrupt felon disenfranchisement, along with poor ballot design and deliberate voter intimidation, the outcome in Florida did not reflect the true majority opinion of voters.   Free and fair elections are under attack today.  The growth of black box voting with no audit trail, plus the history of problems in elections using black box voting, have given rise to the nightmare possibility that the election in 2004 would be worse than the election in 2000.   Can our democracy stand a second illegitimate result?  Ronnie Dugger has an excellent article in the Nation outlining the situation.   At issue is the simple fact:  voting machines are set up, operated, and maintained by private contractors who refuse to publish the code used in counting votes, who resist any federal standards, and who have consistently demanded that they be trusted, despite a horrible record of failure, security lapses,  and inadequate oversight.   Some states have decertified black box machines for this election.  But in Florida, where the commitment of the state government to legitimate voting is under real suspicion, moves are afoot to guarantee that there will never be another recount.    How can they do this?  About one-third of Florida voters will be using the new programmed voting machines—but Florida lawmakers are proposing that these machines be exempt from any recount requirement.  As they are now configured, black box voting don’t allow a genuine recount—they simply regurgitate the programmers first count.   There is a court suit challenging the failure to provide for recounts in Florida under the supreme court ruling from 2000 that “every vote must be treated the same.”  In this case, those voting in black box districts are denied their ability to have a recount, while those in other districts are not.   Experts who have studied the issue have a simple solution:  Each voter using an ATM type voting machine will see a paper copy of their ballot with their choices, under glass, for them to confirm or void.  Once they confirm their vote, the result is electronically counted, but the voter verified paper ballot is also deposited separately in a secure storage area for verification and recount, if necessary.   Vendors complain about the unreliability of printers.  But bank machines have printers.  Since in many cases there are multiple machines at any given polling location, should a printer fail, that machine would simply be taken off line.   At a minimum, voters subjected to these types of machines should vote absentee in this election.  The republican party in Florida has even urged its supporters to do so.    The problem is that in a close election, changes in a few precincts by malicious programming could be virtually undetectable.   In order for the election not to be stolen, there has to be commitment across the spectrum that legitimate elections are the bedrock of U.S. democracy.  So far, Florida has not shown that commitment.    Just as at one time Federal officials would take control to ensure states would not bar minorities from voting, we again need the federal government to take control of voting in the state that cannot guarantee an accurate vote and recount, because the national election must not be sabotaged by corrupt Florida officials again.   If it is, then we really will be facing the most serious threat to democracy and liberty in 230 years. 2:45:42 PM   comment []

© Copyright 2004 Toby Sackton. Last update: 9/21/2004; 12:56:03 AM.