An empowering, fast-moving 18-minute briefing on the dangers to democracy posed by privately owned electronic voting machines, what patriotic citizens, activists and officials of all parties are doing about it - and how you can help.
12 November 2006
09 November 2006
Dist. 13 voting analysis shows broad problem
A review of Sarasota County voting results shows that in almost every precinct a high percentage of voters didn't cast ballots in the hotly contested 13th Congressional District, a trend that likely affected the outcome of the race.
Democrat Christine Jennings lost to Republican Vern Buchanan by 368 votes, making it the second closest congressional race in the country.
Read More >>
Sarasota voters report touch-screen woes
Read More >>
MoveOn offering $250k for evidence of voter fraud
The political action committee, MoveOn.org, is offering a $250,000 reward for material evidence leading to a felony conviction for an organized effort of partisan voter suppression or electronic voting fraud.
Read More >>
Faults and dirty tricks hit results
Problems with electronic voting machines and allegations of ballot rigging and intimidation triggered a flurry of dirty tricks accusations from both sides today.
Read More >>
18,000 votes in U.S. House race may be lost
The latest Florida election whodunit, replete with a razor-thin vote margin and a looming recount, played out here Wednesday as state and county officials were at a loss to explain why 18,382 votes weren't cast or recorded in the nationally watched congressional race to replace Katherine Harris.
Read More >>
A review of Sarasota County voting results shows that in almost every precinct a high percentage of voters didn't cast ballots in the hotly contested 13th Congressional District, a trend that likely affected the outcome of the race.
Democrat Christine Jennings lost to Republican Vern Buchanan by 368 votes, making it the second closest congressional race in the country.
Read More >>
Sarasota voters report touch-screen woes
Read More >>
MoveOn offering $250k for evidence of voter fraud
The political action committee, MoveOn.org, is offering a $250,000 reward for material evidence leading to a felony conviction for an organized effort of partisan voter suppression or electronic voting fraud.
Read More >>
Faults and dirty tricks hit results
Problems with electronic voting machines and allegations of ballot rigging and intimidation triggered a flurry of dirty tricks accusations from both sides today.
Read More >>
18,000 votes in U.S. House race may be lost
The latest Florida election whodunit, replete with a razor-thin vote margin and a looming recount, played out here Wednesday as state and county officials were at a loss to explain why 18,382 votes weren't cast or recorded in the nationally watched congressional race to replace Katherine Harris.
Read More >>
07 November 2006
It's a Candidate Calling. Again.
Republicans Deny Subterfuge as Phone Barrages Anger Voters
Washington Post
This year's heavy volume of automated political phone calls has infuriated countless voters and triggered sharp complaints from Democrats, who say the Republican Party has crossed the line in bombarding households with recorded attacks on candidates in tight House races nationwide.
Some voters, sick of interrupted dinners and evenings, say they will punish the offending parties by opposing them in today's elections. But critics say Republicans crafted the messages to delude voters -- especially those who hang up quickly -- into thinking that Democrats placed the calls.
Republicans denied the allegation, noting that their party acknowledges its authorship at the recorded calls' end. After citizens' complaints in New Hampshire, however, the National Republican Congressional Committee agreed to end the calls to households on the federal do-not-call list, even though the law exempts political messages from such restrictions.
Whether "robo-calls" are positive or negative, mean-spirited or humorous, thousands of Americans are sick of them, according to campaign organizations that have been fielding complaints over the past two weeks.
An Ohio woman, who did not leave her name, called The Washington Post in tears yesterday, saying she could not keep her phone line open to hospice workers caring for her terminally ill mother because of nonstop political robo-calls.
Pamela Lorenz, a retired nurse in Roseville, Calif., called her own experience "harassment as far as I'm concerned" and said, "If I were voting right now, the opponent who's doing this, he'd be off my list for throwing that much trash."
Hour after hour and day after day for two weeks, Lorenz's home has received the same NRCC recorded message attacking Charlie Brown, the Democrat who is challenging Rep. John T. Doolittle (R) in a hard-fought battle in northeastern California. "It is a recorder calling," Lorenz said. "I can't call it back to get them to stop."
Voters in Northern Virginia have been exposed to fewer of the aggressive "push poll" type calls than elsewhere. But they said they have been getting so many of the conventional automated calls plugging candidates that they have started hanging up as soon as the recordings begin or screening them with caller ID.
"I hang up as soon I hear it start. I've already heard most of what people have to say. I don't have time to listen to them," said Angela Elliott, a Fairfax Circle resident who is registered as an independent and has been getting more Democratic calls than Republican ones.
Nicholas Beltrante, of the Alexandria section of Fairfax County, said he has been getting an average of three to five automated calls per day from both Democrats and Republicans. "I made up my mind weeks ago, and the moment I identify them as one of those calls I just hang up," he said.
As annoyed as they are, Northern Virginia voters said their irritation will not prompt them to vote against the campaigns placing the calls, because the calls are positive in nature.
Jane Edmondson, a McLean community activist, registered Democrat and Democratic donor, said she has stopped answering calls that appear as 800 or 877 numbers on her caller ID, for fear that they are robo-calls. At church Sunday, she said, she and others were jealous of one churchgoer who said his caller ID identifies campaign calls as "political calls." "We all said, 'Why don't we get that?' " she said.
Democrats cited federal records indicating that the NRCC recently spent about $600,000 in at least 45 contested House districts for robo-calls, which are among the least expensive campaign tools. The brief calls typically begin with a speaker offering "some information" about the Democratic nominee and then immediately accusing the nominee of seeking to raise taxes, among other perceived wrongs.
Many voters hang up as soon as a robo-call begins -- without waiting for the criticisms or the NRCC sign-off at the end -- so they think it was placed by the Democratic candidate named at the start, said Sarah Feinberg, spokeswoman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. "Our candidates are inundated with phone calls from furious Democrats and independents saying . . . 'I'm outraged and I'm not going to vote for you anymore,' " she said.
Feinberg said some voters have received robo-calls late at night, despite federal rules barring such calls after 9 p.m. NRCC spokesman Carl Forti said his organization ends all calls by 9 nightly.
Democrats also cited Federal Communications Commission guidelines saying the originators of automated calls must identify themselves at the beginning of each call. Republican Party lawyers, however, said the requirement does not apply to political nonprofit organizations. They rebuffed a "cease and desist" letter sent yesterday by the DCCC.
In a conference call with reporters yesterday, the DCCC chairman, Rep. Rahm Emanuel (Ill.), compared the widespread robo-calling to a 2002 Republican effort in New Hampshire to jam Democratic phone lines to prevent the Democrats' get-out-the-vote effort. The Republican National Committee has spent more than $2 million to defend its officials in the case, he said. "Make no mistake, this is a dirty trick, one they've done before, one they've gotten caught on and one they continue to do," Emanuel said.
Karyn Hollis, a Villanova University English professor who supports Democrat Lois Murphy in her bid to oust Rep. Jim Gerlach (R-Pa.), said she has received numerous robo-calls attacking Murphy. "You just get sick of these calls," Hollis said. A quick hang-up can lead the recipient to conclude that Murphy supporters placed the call, she said. Listening to the full message, she said, subjects the voter to a litany of attacks against Murphy.
"It's a double thing," Hollis said. "Either way they win."
Many robo-calls involve celebrities and are positive and straightforward, such as recordings from former president Bill Clinton urging voters to support Democratic nominees. In New Jersey, comic actor Joe Piscopo has recorded messages on behalf of GOP Senate candidate Tom Kean Jr.
In Connecticut, NRCC robo-calls have targeted Dianne Farrell, the Democrat seeking to unseat Rep. Christopher Shays (R). Asked if Farrell has her own automated calls, campaign spokeswoman Jan Ellen Spiegel replied: "Only one, and it's rather distinctive because it's Paul Newman. We haven't gotten complaints about that one."
Read More >>
Republicans Deny Subterfuge as Phone Barrages Anger Voters
Washington Post
This year's heavy volume of automated political phone calls has infuriated countless voters and triggered sharp complaints from Democrats, who say the Republican Party has crossed the line in bombarding households with recorded attacks on candidates in tight House races nationwide.
Some voters, sick of interrupted dinners and evenings, say they will punish the offending parties by opposing them in today's elections. But critics say Republicans crafted the messages to delude voters -- especially those who hang up quickly -- into thinking that Democrats placed the calls.
Republicans denied the allegation, noting that their party acknowledges its authorship at the recorded calls' end. After citizens' complaints in New Hampshire, however, the National Republican Congressional Committee agreed to end the calls to households on the federal do-not-call list, even though the law exempts political messages from such restrictions.
Whether "robo-calls" are positive or negative, mean-spirited or humorous, thousands of Americans are sick of them, according to campaign organizations that have been fielding complaints over the past two weeks.
An Ohio woman, who did not leave her name, called The Washington Post in tears yesterday, saying she could not keep her phone line open to hospice workers caring for her terminally ill mother because of nonstop political robo-calls.
Pamela Lorenz, a retired nurse in Roseville, Calif., called her own experience "harassment as far as I'm concerned" and said, "If I were voting right now, the opponent who's doing this, he'd be off my list for throwing that much trash."
Hour after hour and day after day for two weeks, Lorenz's home has received the same NRCC recorded message attacking Charlie Brown, the Democrat who is challenging Rep. John T. Doolittle (R) in a hard-fought battle in northeastern California. "It is a recorder calling," Lorenz said. "I can't call it back to get them to stop."
Voters in Northern Virginia have been exposed to fewer of the aggressive "push poll" type calls than elsewhere. But they said they have been getting so many of the conventional automated calls plugging candidates that they have started hanging up as soon as the recordings begin or screening them with caller ID.
"I hang up as soon I hear it start. I've already heard most of what people have to say. I don't have time to listen to them," said Angela Elliott, a Fairfax Circle resident who is registered as an independent and has been getting more Democratic calls than Republican ones.
Nicholas Beltrante, of the Alexandria section of Fairfax County, said he has been getting an average of three to five automated calls per day from both Democrats and Republicans. "I made up my mind weeks ago, and the moment I identify them as one of those calls I just hang up," he said.
As annoyed as they are, Northern Virginia voters said their irritation will not prompt them to vote against the campaigns placing the calls, because the calls are positive in nature.
Jane Edmondson, a McLean community activist, registered Democrat and Democratic donor, said she has stopped answering calls that appear as 800 or 877 numbers on her caller ID, for fear that they are robo-calls. At church Sunday, she said, she and others were jealous of one churchgoer who said his caller ID identifies campaign calls as "political calls." "We all said, 'Why don't we get that?' " she said.
Democrats cited federal records indicating that the NRCC recently spent about $600,000 in at least 45 contested House districts for robo-calls, which are among the least expensive campaign tools. The brief calls typically begin with a speaker offering "some information" about the Democratic nominee and then immediately accusing the nominee of seeking to raise taxes, among other perceived wrongs.
Many voters hang up as soon as a robo-call begins -- without waiting for the criticisms or the NRCC sign-off at the end -- so they think it was placed by the Democratic candidate named at the start, said Sarah Feinberg, spokeswoman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. "Our candidates are inundated with phone calls from furious Democrats and independents saying . . . 'I'm outraged and I'm not going to vote for you anymore,' " she said.
Feinberg said some voters have received robo-calls late at night, despite federal rules barring such calls after 9 p.m. NRCC spokesman Carl Forti said his organization ends all calls by 9 nightly.
Democrats also cited Federal Communications Commission guidelines saying the originators of automated calls must identify themselves at the beginning of each call. Republican Party lawyers, however, said the requirement does not apply to political nonprofit organizations. They rebuffed a "cease and desist" letter sent yesterday by the DCCC.
In a conference call with reporters yesterday, the DCCC chairman, Rep. Rahm Emanuel (Ill.), compared the widespread robo-calling to a 2002 Republican effort in New Hampshire to jam Democratic phone lines to prevent the Democrats' get-out-the-vote effort. The Republican National Committee has spent more than $2 million to defend its officials in the case, he said. "Make no mistake, this is a dirty trick, one they've done before, one they've gotten caught on and one they continue to do," Emanuel said.
Karyn Hollis, a Villanova University English professor who supports Democrat Lois Murphy in her bid to oust Rep. Jim Gerlach (R-Pa.), said she has received numerous robo-calls attacking Murphy. "You just get sick of these calls," Hollis said. A quick hang-up can lead the recipient to conclude that Murphy supporters placed the call, she said. Listening to the full message, she said, subjects the voter to a litany of attacks against Murphy.
"It's a double thing," Hollis said. "Either way they win."
Many robo-calls involve celebrities and are positive and straightforward, such as recordings from former president Bill Clinton urging voters to support Democratic nominees. In New Jersey, comic actor Joe Piscopo has recorded messages on behalf of GOP Senate candidate Tom Kean Jr.
In Connecticut, NRCC robo-calls have targeted Dianne Farrell, the Democrat seeking to unseat Rep. Christopher Shays (R). Asked if Farrell has her own automated calls, campaign spokeswoman Jan Ellen Spiegel replied: "Only one, and it's rather distinctive because it's Paul Newman. We haven't gotten complaints about that one."
Read More >>
43 Polling Locations in Clevelend Report Problems
Read More >>
Democrats turn the tables in Washington
In Montana, veteran Republican power broker Conrad Burns trailed Democrat Jon Tester, 49 percent to 48 percent. Many precincts were yet to report because problems with new voting equipment meant the last voter did not cast his ballot until 11:55 p.m. and required a recount of every vote in Yellowstone County.
Read More >>
Conservative Radio Host Telling Listeners To Crank Call Dem Voter Hotline...
Laura Ingraham has asked her listeners to call the Dem Voter protection hotline -- and they are now being flooded with calls from crank callers. Please call Laura and tell her what you think about this: 800.876.4123. You can e-mail her here. Apparently, voter intimidation and fraud are a joke to Laura Ingraham. Let's let her know that it is no joke.
Read More >>
Read More >>
Democrats turn the tables in Washington
In Montana, veteran Republican power broker Conrad Burns trailed Democrat Jon Tester, 49 percent to 48 percent. Many precincts were yet to report because problems with new voting equipment meant the last voter did not cast his ballot until 11:55 p.m. and required a recount of every vote in Yellowstone County.
Read More >>
Conservative Radio Host Telling Listeners To Crank Call Dem Voter Hotline...
Laura Ingraham has asked her listeners to call the Dem Voter protection hotline -- and they are now being flooded with calls from crank callers. Please call Laura and tell her what you think about this: 800.876.4123. You can e-mail her here. Apparently, voter intimidation and fraud are a joke to Laura Ingraham. Let's let her know that it is no joke.
Read More >>
Long lines, problems with voting machines reported across Ohio
Long lines, problems with ballot-reading machines and some frustrated voters who left polls without casting ballots were reported early on Tuesday in Ohio's first punch-card free general election.
Read More >>
Some voting poll locations reporting problems
Read More >>
Problems Reported With Voting Machines by Microvote
A programming error in the blue "start" card on the machines is causing them to lock up and poll workers at each polling place are being instructed how to fix the machines over the phone.
Read More >>
Several Reports Say New Voting Machines Not Working
Paper ballots were brought to some of the locations, but not all, according to some voters.
Read More >>
Mo. elections chief in election dispute
Missouri's chief elections official said Monday she was asked for photo identification at the voting booth despite a court ruling striking down the requirement.
Read More >>
Poll workers struggle with vote machines
Programming errors and inexperience with electronic voting machines frustrated poll workers in hundreds of precincts early Tuesday, delaying voters in Indiana and Ohio and leaving some in Florida with little choice but use paper ballots instead.
Read More >>
Local Polling Places Report Some Problems
In Montgomery County, election officials say it's not a problem, but a number of voting machines, including those at Temple Emmanuel in Kensington, are running on batteries.
Power cords are en route, Marjorie Roher, an administration specialist with the Montgomery County Board of Elections, told WTOP at 8:30 a.m.
Read More >>
ID rules, machines early voting problems
"We got five machines — one of them‘s got to work," said Willette Scullank, a trouble shooter from the Cuyahoga County, Ohio, elections board.
Read More >>
CBS4 Investigates Electronic Voting Machines
Mike Williams was the attorney for the group of voters that filed lawsuit. A judge wouldn't block electronic voting for the election, but did call security worse than bad. "He (the judge) used the word abysmal," Williams said.
Read More >>
Republican "fake phone call" scandal spreads - now in Philly too
This is the Republican October Surprise, launched in November. It's to cheat, pretend that they are Democrats calling voters and then piss the voters off so much that they don't vote for the Democrats.
Read More >>
More GOP dirty phone tricks in New Hampshire
Read More >>
Congressional candidates cry foul play
With less than four days to go until Election Day, one candidate is accusing the Republican party of sending harassing phone calls.
Read More >>
Long lines, problems with ballot-reading machines and some frustrated voters who left polls without casting ballots were reported early on Tuesday in Ohio's first punch-card free general election.
Read More >>
Some voting poll locations reporting problems
Read More >>
Problems Reported With Voting Machines by Microvote
A programming error in the blue "start" card on the machines is causing them to lock up and poll workers at each polling place are being instructed how to fix the machines over the phone.
Read More >>
Several Reports Say New Voting Machines Not Working
Paper ballots were brought to some of the locations, but not all, according to some voters.
Read More >>
Mo. elections chief in election dispute
Missouri's chief elections official said Monday she was asked for photo identification at the voting booth despite a court ruling striking down the requirement.
Read More >>
Poll workers struggle with vote machines
Programming errors and inexperience with electronic voting machines frustrated poll workers in hundreds of precincts early Tuesday, delaying voters in Indiana and Ohio and leaving some in Florida with little choice but use paper ballots instead.
Read More >>
Local Polling Places Report Some Problems
In Montgomery County, election officials say it's not a problem, but a number of voting machines, including those at Temple Emmanuel in Kensington, are running on batteries.
Power cords are en route, Marjorie Roher, an administration specialist with the Montgomery County Board of Elections, told WTOP at 8:30 a.m.
Read More >>
ID rules, machines early voting problems
"We got five machines — one of them‘s got to work," said Willette Scullank, a trouble shooter from the Cuyahoga County, Ohio, elections board.
Read More >>
CBS4 Investigates Electronic Voting Machines
Mike Williams was the attorney for the group of voters that filed lawsuit. A judge wouldn't block electronic voting for the election, but did call security worse than bad. "He (the judge) used the word abysmal," Williams said.
Read More >>
Republican "fake phone call" scandal spreads - now in Philly too
This is the Republican October Surprise, launched in November. It's to cheat, pretend that they are Democrats calling voters and then piss the voters off so much that they don't vote for the Democrats.
Read More >>
More GOP dirty phone tricks in New Hampshire
Read More >>
Congressional candidates cry foul play
With less than four days to go until Election Day, one candidate is accusing the Republican party of sending harassing phone calls.
Read More >>
VotersUnite! Election Problem Log
Read More >>
More problems in Ohio
Well, none of the cards or miniature readers worked. From 6:30 a.m. on, poll workers in contact with the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections were told that they were, in fact, aware of the problem and that, to be sure, help was on the way. Between five and ten minutes away. They were repeatedly given the five-to-ten-minute story for three hours. Help never came.
Read More >>
GOP Spins Exit Polls Ahead Of Vote Fraud
In the early hours of voting on the mid-term elections, the GOP is already trying to spin exit polls in order to lessen suspicions surrounding expected attempts at vote fraud that will emerge later today.
Read More >>
VOTESCAM
The first 8 chapters. online.
Read More >>
Polling places turn to paper ballots after glitches
Read More >>
Ky. Poll Worker Charged With Assault
A poll worker was arrested Tuesday and charged with assault and interfering with an election for allegedly choking a voter and pushing the voter out the door, an official said.
Read More >>
FBI looking into possible Va. voter intimidation
In the Washington, D.C., area, NBC affiliate News4 reported on its Web site that it had received e-mail from a viewer in Virginia who said he received a phone call from so-called volunteers threatening voters with arrest if they cast ballots.
Read More >>
Long Lines, Voting Machine Problems Reported Across State
Read More >>
Read More >>
More problems in Ohio
Well, none of the cards or miniature readers worked. From 6:30 a.m. on, poll workers in contact with the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections were told that they were, in fact, aware of the problem and that, to be sure, help was on the way. Between five and ten minutes away. They were repeatedly given the five-to-ten-minute story for three hours. Help never came.
Read More >>
GOP Spins Exit Polls Ahead Of Vote Fraud
In the early hours of voting on the mid-term elections, the GOP is already trying to spin exit polls in order to lessen suspicions surrounding expected attempts at vote fraud that will emerge later today.
Read More >>
VOTESCAM
The first 8 chapters. online.
Read More >>
Polling places turn to paper ballots after glitches
Read More >>
Ky. Poll Worker Charged With Assault
A poll worker was arrested Tuesday and charged with assault and interfering with an election for allegedly choking a voter and pushing the voter out the door, an official said.
Read More >>
FBI looking into possible Va. voter intimidation
In the Washington, D.C., area, NBC affiliate News4 reported on its Web site that it had received e-mail from a viewer in Virginia who said he received a phone call from so-called volunteers threatening voters with arrest if they cast ballots.
Read More >>
Long Lines, Voting Machine Problems Reported Across State
Read More >>
Voter smashes touch-screen machine in Allentown
A man who reportedly believed Republicans were conspiring to steal today’s election entered an Allentown polling site, signed in and proceeded to smash the screen of one of the electronic voting machines with a metal cat paperweight, poll volunteers said.
Read More >>
Right wing/GOP pundit Laura Ingraham tries to jam DNC voter protection line
Today, like most of her GOP cohorts, Ingraham engaged in an effort to undermine voting in America.
Read More >>
Some county voters face glitchy machines, resort to voting on paper
Read More >>
Voting nightmare: Democrats seek extension
Democratic party leaders are planning to seek a two-hour extension for voting in Denver, due to massive computer problems which have created long lines, and kept many from casting their vote.
Party spokesman Brian Mason said a motion is being prepared, in response to "the huge problems in Denver this morning."
Read More >>
MELTDOWN '06: Missouri Election Integrity Org Says More Reports of Touch-Screen Vote Flipping…
As of 8:00 a.m. the non-partisan group Missourians for Honest Elections has already received news of two incidents in today's election in which touch screen machines incorrectly recorded voters' intentions. These occurred at the Brentwood Community Center in St. Louis County.
There have also been several verified reports from voters in St. Louis County who had this happen to them when trying vote absentee at the St. Louis County Board of Elections in Maplewood. We have had an unsatisfactory, mixed response from the County Board of Elections concerning this matter.
Read More >>
Some Glitches as Utah Voters Head to the Polls
Utah County Clerk Kim Jackson says 32 of 118 polling locations were affected by the glitch. Jackson says elections officials have now walked through the process with precinct chairs to iron out the problems. The technical troubles there reportedly have been fixed.
Read More >>
A man who reportedly believed Republicans were conspiring to steal today’s election entered an Allentown polling site, signed in and proceeded to smash the screen of one of the electronic voting machines with a metal cat paperweight, poll volunteers said.
Read More >>
Right wing/GOP pundit Laura Ingraham tries to jam DNC voter protection line
Today, like most of her GOP cohorts, Ingraham engaged in an effort to undermine voting in America.
Read More >>
Some county voters face glitchy machines, resort to voting on paper
Read More >>
Voting nightmare: Democrats seek extension
Democratic party leaders are planning to seek a two-hour extension for voting in Denver, due to massive computer problems which have created long lines, and kept many from casting their vote.
Party spokesman Brian Mason said a motion is being prepared, in response to "the huge problems in Denver this morning."
Read More >>
MELTDOWN '06: Missouri Election Integrity Org Says More Reports of Touch-Screen Vote Flipping…
As of 8:00 a.m. the non-partisan group Missourians for Honest Elections has already received news of two incidents in today's election in which touch screen machines incorrectly recorded voters' intentions. These occurred at the Brentwood Community Center in St. Louis County.
There have also been several verified reports from voters in St. Louis County who had this happen to them when trying vote absentee at the St. Louis County Board of Elections in Maplewood. We have had an unsatisfactory, mixed response from the County Board of Elections concerning this matter.
Read More >>
Some Glitches as Utah Voters Head to the Polls
Utah County Clerk Kim Jackson says 32 of 118 polling locations were affected by the glitch. Jackson says elections officials have now walked through the process with precinct chairs to iron out the problems. The technical troubles there reportedly have been fixed.
Read More >>
Common Cause reports e-voting snafus nationwide
Problems with voting machines across the U.S. are being reported to watchdog groups, including significant problems of votes being incorrectly recorded Tuesday.
Read More >>
NBC5 Viewers Report Voting Problems
Used the touch screen voting machine - if this is the new technology, forget it. When I would touch on the candidate of my choice, in several instances the check mark would jump to the other candidate. After finally resolving this I reviewed my choices on the screen ( before seeing a printout ) only to find that six candidate choices had mysteriously changed, so again I went back to correct these "mistakes." Finally, everything looked good so I ran the printout to review my choices only to find that again choices( different ones ) were wrong so I went back and made the changes - imagine my dismay when this happened two more times after that. At last everything was right so I pushed the final button to have my votes cast - or were they??? Sure hope so !
Read More >>
Ken Blackwell Outsources Ohio Election Results to GOP Internet Operatives, Again
The State of Ohio's real-time, streaming election results are first diverted through Chattanooga, TN, to a GOP-only web firm and the servers currently hosting georgewbush.com, as well as other key Republican web sites.
Read More >>
Voting Expert: Widespread Election Fraud Again
But not enough, this time.
Read More >>
Sample Ballots in Pr. George's Misidentify Candidates
"I think it's pretty low that Ehrlich and Steele would print up a fake ballot and bus in unemployed people and exploit them," Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley, the Democratic candidate for governor, said this morning as he greeted voters as a polling site in Greenbelt. "It doesn't get much lower than that."
Read More >>
Voting Problems In West Hartford
Twenty-eight votes for the 18th house district race are null because two voting machines listed the wrong candidates for that seat at a Farmington Avenue polling place.
Read More >>
Problems with voting machines across the U.S. are being reported to watchdog groups, including significant problems of votes being incorrectly recorded Tuesday.
Read More >>
NBC5 Viewers Report Voting Problems
Used the touch screen voting machine - if this is the new technology, forget it. When I would touch on the candidate of my choice, in several instances the check mark would jump to the other candidate. After finally resolving this I reviewed my choices on the screen ( before seeing a printout ) only to find that six candidate choices had mysteriously changed, so again I went back to correct these "mistakes." Finally, everything looked good so I ran the printout to review my choices only to find that again choices( different ones ) were wrong so I went back and made the changes - imagine my dismay when this happened two more times after that. At last everything was right so I pushed the final button to have my votes cast - or were they??? Sure hope so !
Read More >>
Ken Blackwell Outsources Ohio Election Results to GOP Internet Operatives, Again
The State of Ohio's real-time, streaming election results are first diverted through Chattanooga, TN, to a GOP-only web firm and the servers currently hosting georgewbush.com, as well as other key Republican web sites.
Read More >>
Voting Expert: Widespread Election Fraud Again
But not enough, this time.
Read More >>
Sample Ballots in Pr. George's Misidentify Candidates
"I think it's pretty low that Ehrlich and Steele would print up a fake ballot and bus in unemployed people and exploit them," Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley, the Democratic candidate for governor, said this morning as he greeted voters as a polling site in Greenbelt. "It doesn't get much lower than that."
Read More >>
Voting Problems In West Hartford
Twenty-eight votes for the 18th house district race are null because two voting machines listed the wrong candidates for that seat at a Farmington Avenue polling place.
Read More >>
Election fixing charges fly in Utah county
SALT LAKE CITY (AP)
Voting appears to be very popular in Daggett County, Utah.
Daggett County has registered 947 voters for Tuesday's election. According to the most recent Census figures, that's four more than the county's population in 2005.
A spokesman for Attorney General Mark Shurtleff says complaints of vote-stuffing in the county are being investigated. Democrats suspect County Clerk Vickie McKee is letting outsiders swell the Daggett County registration rolls to give Republicans an advantage. The Democrats also say the father of a Republican deputy running for sheriff has 14 adults registered at his household. McKee hasn't responded to messages from The Associated Press.
Read More >>
SALT LAKE CITY (AP)
Voting appears to be very popular in Daggett County, Utah.
Daggett County has registered 947 voters for Tuesday's election. According to the most recent Census figures, that's four more than the county's population in 2005.
A spokesman for Attorney General Mark Shurtleff says complaints of vote-stuffing in the county are being investigated. Democrats suspect County Clerk Vickie McKee is letting outsiders swell the Daggett County registration rolls to give Republicans an advantage. The Democrats also say the father of a Republican deputy running for sheriff has 14 adults registered at his household. McKee hasn't responded to messages from The Associated Press.
Read More >>
Voters: Beware of Phony Voter Guides
California voters have been flooded with deceptive, official-looking voter guides in the weeks running up to today's election.
Mailings titled "Voter Information for Democrats" and "Senior Citizen Voter Information" resemble voter guides put out by the political parties and advocacy groups, like the AARP or the League of Conservation Voters.
But the groups behind these mailings are hiding their true identities -- they are in part funded by the tobacco and oil industries, according to campaign watchdog groups.
"These mailers are designed to be misleading," says Kim Alexander of the non-profit, non-partisan California Voter Foundation. "Many voters believe they represent an ideology that they really don't."
For example, the guide titled "Voter Information for Democrats" features a smiling Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.) on its cover and urges voters to vote "No" on two ballot propositions that Feinstein and other Democrats actually support. One proposition would increase the tax on cigarettes while the other would create new taxes for the oil industry.
Front groups for corporations, including R.J. Reynolds, Philip Morris, Chevron Corporation, Occidental Oil & Gas and Aera Energy, helped pay for the mailing, according to campaign finance filings.
The records show the same groups contributed to the "Coalition for Senior Citizen Security" for the guide titled "Senior Citizen Voter Information."
While the pamphlets state that the groups are "not an official political party or organization," Alexander says people still get confused and advises voters to always read the fine print.
Read More >>
California voters have been flooded with deceptive, official-looking voter guides in the weeks running up to today's election.
Mailings titled "Voter Information for Democrats" and "Senior Citizen Voter Information" resemble voter guides put out by the political parties and advocacy groups, like the AARP or the League of Conservation Voters.
But the groups behind these mailings are hiding their true identities -- they are in part funded by the tobacco and oil industries, according to campaign watchdog groups.
"These mailers are designed to be misleading," says Kim Alexander of the non-profit, non-partisan California Voter Foundation. "Many voters believe they represent an ideology that they really don't."
For example, the guide titled "Voter Information for Democrats" features a smiling Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.) on its cover and urges voters to vote "No" on two ballot propositions that Feinstein and other Democrats actually support. One proposition would increase the tax on cigarettes while the other would create new taxes for the oil industry.
Front groups for corporations, including R.J. Reynolds, Philip Morris, Chevron Corporation, Occidental Oil & Gas and Aera Energy, helped pay for the mailing, according to campaign finance filings.
The records show the same groups contributed to the "Coalition for Senior Citizen Security" for the guide titled "Senior Citizen Voter Information."
While the pamphlets state that the groups are "not an official political party or organization," Alexander says people still get confused and advises voters to always read the fine print.
Read More >>
Sen. Allen's Campaign Connected To Phone Call Threatening
People With Arrest If They Show Up To Vote...
Read More >>
People With Arrest If They Show Up To Vote...
Read More >>
06 November 2006
Eternal Vigilance
The Fight to Save our Election System
A New Documentary by David Earnhardt
Read More >>
The Fight to Save our Election System
A New Documentary by David Earnhardt
Read More >>
03 November 2006
GOP Handbook Teaches "Insidious Voter Intimidation Tactic"
Md. Democrats Say GOP Plans to Block Voters
Washington Post
A recently distributed guide for Republican poll watchers in Maryland spells out how to aggressively challenge the credentials of voters and urges these volunteers to tell election judges they could face jail time if a challenge is ignored.
Democrats said yesterday they consider the handbook, obtained by The Washington Post, evidence of a Republican effort to block people from voting Tuesday.
"The tenor of the material is that they are asking folks, if not directing them, to challenge voters," said Bruce L. Marcus, an attorney for the state Democratic Party. "It's really tantamount to a suppression effort."
Advocacy groups including the National Campaign for Fair Elections, Common Cause and the NAACP, as well as a George Washington University professor who is an expert on voter suppression, agreed with that assessment.
Barbara Burt of Common Cause said the technique, last seen in Ohio in the 2004 presidential election, is an "insidious voter intimidation tactic."
Read More >>
Md. Democrats Say GOP Plans to Block Voters
Washington Post
A recently distributed guide for Republican poll watchers in Maryland spells out how to aggressively challenge the credentials of voters and urges these volunteers to tell election judges they could face jail time if a challenge is ignored.
Democrats said yesterday they consider the handbook, obtained by The Washington Post, evidence of a Republican effort to block people from voting Tuesday.
"The tenor of the material is that they are asking folks, if not directing them, to challenge voters," said Bruce L. Marcus, an attorney for the state Democratic Party. "It's really tantamount to a suppression effort."
Advocacy groups including the National Campaign for Fair Elections, Common Cause and the NAACP, as well as a George Washington University professor who is an expert on voter suppression, agreed with that assessment.
Barbara Burt of Common Cause said the technique, last seen in Ohio in the 2004 presidential election, is an "insidious voter intimidation tactic."
Read More >>
02 November 2006
Hacking Democracy
This cautionary documentary exposes the vulnerability of computers - which count approximately 80% of America's votes in county, state and federal elections - suggesting that if our votes aren't safe, then our democracy isn't safe either. Premieres Thursday, November 2 at 9pm.
Electronic voting machines count about 87% of the votes cast in America today. But are they reliable? Are they safe from tampering? From a current congressional hearing to persistent media reports that suggest misuse of data and even outright fraud, concerns over the integrity of electronic voting are growing by the day. And if the voting process is not secure, neither is America's democracy. The timely, cautionary documentary HACKING DEMOCRACY exposes gaping holes in the security of America's electronic voting system.
Read More >>
Diebold demands that HBO
cancel documentary on voting machines
Diebold Inc. insisted that cable network HBO cancel a documentary that questions the integrity of its voting machines, calling the program inaccurate and unfair.
The program, "Hacking Democracy," is scheduled to debut Thursday, five days before the 2006 U.S. midterm elections. The film claims that Diebold voting machines aren't tamper-proof and can be manipulated to change voting results.
[...] "We stand by the film," said Jeff Cusson, a spokesman for HBO, which is a unit of Time Warner Inc.
"We have no intention of withdrawing it from our schedule. It appears that the film Diebold is responding to is not the film HBO is airing."
Read More >>
This cautionary documentary exposes the vulnerability of computers - which count approximately 80% of America's votes in county, state and federal elections - suggesting that if our votes aren't safe, then our democracy isn't safe either. Premieres Thursday, November 2 at 9pm.
Electronic voting machines count about 87% of the votes cast in America today. But are they reliable? Are they safe from tampering? From a current congressional hearing to persistent media reports that suggest misuse of data and even outright fraud, concerns over the integrity of electronic voting are growing by the day. And if the voting process is not secure, neither is America's democracy. The timely, cautionary documentary HACKING DEMOCRACY exposes gaping holes in the security of America's electronic voting system.
Read More >>
Diebold demands that HBO
cancel documentary on voting machines
Diebold Inc. insisted that cable network HBO cancel a documentary that questions the integrity of its voting machines, calling the program inaccurate and unfair.
The program, "Hacking Democracy," is scheduled to debut Thursday, five days before the 2006 U.S. midterm elections. The film claims that Diebold voting machines aren't tamper-proof and can be manipulated to change voting results.
[...] "We stand by the film," said Jeff Cusson, a spokesman for HBO, which is a unit of Time Warner Inc.
"We have no intention of withdrawing it from our schedule. It appears that the film Diebold is responding to is not the film HBO is airing."
Read More >>
Election Judges Report Getting Mysterious Calls
ABC News - November 02
BALTIMORE (AP) - Election officials in Baltimore say someone has been calling election judges and falsely telling them that they're Election Day assignments have changed.
While the judges are supposed to be getting calls this week reminding them about their schedules, officials say any legitimate changes to assignments won't be made until early next week.
Officials don't know if the calls are being made in error or if someone is trying to cause trouble, but state elections chief Linda Lamone has contacted the FBI.
Read More >>
ABC News - November 02
BALTIMORE (AP) - Election officials in Baltimore say someone has been calling election judges and falsely telling them that they're Election Day assignments have changed.
While the judges are supposed to be getting calls this week reminding them about their schedules, officials say any legitimate changes to assignments won't be made until early next week.
Officials don't know if the calls are being made in error or if someone is trying to cause trouble, but state elections chief Linda Lamone has contacted the FBI.
Read More >>
Just Push the Yellow Button and Vote as Many Times as You Want
Bradblog - 11/2/2006
New Vulnerability Discovered on Touch-Screen Systems Made by One of Country's Largest Voting Machine Companies Will Affect Elections in Dozens of States!
California's Secretary of State Bruce McPherson Denies Knowledge of Vulnerability Well After His Office Had Been Notified…
"Just push the yellow button and you can vote as many times as you want," Tom Courbat, an Election Integrity advocate from Riverside County, California informed The BRAD BLOG tonight. Not that we're in any mood to report more such stories, but this seems to be a big one. A very big one.
It seems there's a little yellow button on the back of every touch-screen computer made by Sequoia Voting Systems, that allows any voter, or poll worker, or precinct inspector to set the system into "Manual Mode" allowing them to cast as many votes as they want.
Read More >>
Bradblog - 11/2/2006
New Vulnerability Discovered on Touch-Screen Systems Made by One of Country's Largest Voting Machine Companies Will Affect Elections in Dozens of States!
California's Secretary of State Bruce McPherson Denies Knowledge of Vulnerability Well After His Office Had Been Notified…
"Just push the yellow button and you can vote as many times as you want," Tom Courbat, an Election Integrity advocate from Riverside County, California informed The BRAD BLOG tonight. Not that we're in any mood to report more such stories, but this seems to be a big one. A very big one.
It seems there's a little yellow button on the back of every touch-screen computer made by Sequoia Voting Systems, that allows any voter, or poll worker, or precinct inspector to set the system into "Manual Mode" allowing them to cast as many votes as they want.
Read More >>
01 November 2006
Federal observers and monitors heading to polls
November 1, 2006
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Justice Department plans to dispatch more than 800 federal observers and monitors to 20 states to protect voting rights in potentially troubled polling locations, officials announced Tuesday.
That is a record number of federal officials watching polling stations in an off-year election.
"Yes, the anticipated closeness of races is one factor in our decisions about where we'll be sending people," said Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Wan Kim.
Kim said he would not identify until Monday the more than 65 cities and counties to which the observers will be sent.
The locations where federal observers will be stationed are selected because of past polling problems, an uneasy history among ethnically or racially diverse groups, or where fears and allegations of potential violations are asserted.
The Justice Department is reluctant to make public plans for elections observers. One official said that is because observers are viewed, in part, as frontline collectors of data that could be used to construct cases against local jurisdictions.
Read More >>
[This is a practice commonly known as "the fox guarding the hen house". dixychik]
November 1, 2006
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Justice Department plans to dispatch more than 800 federal observers and monitors to 20 states to protect voting rights in potentially troubled polling locations, officials announced Tuesday.
That is a record number of federal officials watching polling stations in an off-year election.
"Yes, the anticipated closeness of races is one factor in our decisions about where we'll be sending people," said Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Wan Kim.
Kim said he would not identify until Monday the more than 65 cities and counties to which the observers will be sent.
The locations where federal observers will be stationed are selected because of past polling problems, an uneasy history among ethnically or racially diverse groups, or where fears and allegations of potential violations are asserted.
The Justice Department is reluctant to make public plans for elections observers. One official said that is because observers are viewed, in part, as frontline collectors of data that could be used to construct cases against local jurisdictions.
Read More >>
[This is a practice commonly known as "the fox guarding the hen house". dixychik]
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)