Actions to secure electronic voting

Updated: Actions to secure electronic voting

With the new Princeton video on how easy it is to subvert elections using Diebold electronic voting machines, I think it's time to resurrect these old action items I had put together about a year ago. With the above video as evidence of malfeasance by elected officials, I think filing a complaint with your state's Attorney General is the best way to go at this point. Investigations into whether voting officials are being criminally negligent seems to be appropriate at this point in time. Check out Action Item 2 below.

0. [This isn't timely anymore, but it still doesn't hurt to send Debra Bowen's staff an e-mail about the Princeton video.] Feburary 21, 2006. Senator Debra Bowen is assisting in the fight against the Secretary of State's decision to provisionally certify Diebold voting machines. Please send her chief of staff an e-mail requesting that they subpoena all required parties to testify before the senate elections committee, 916-651-4106. His e-mail address is Evan.goldberg@sen.ca.gov. Also contact Bruce McPherson, the California Secretary of State and tell him he is abusing the public trust.

1. Use paper receipts from insignificant purchases to send messages to your legislators that a paper voting trail isn't rocket science. Even your local convenient store does paper receipts. This is a fun twist on traditional letter writing. You can even slap an address and stamp on the back of the receipt and slip it into the mail without an envelope!

Here’s an example of what I’m talking about on a half page flyer.

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2. Contact the California Attorney General, Bill Lockyer, and file a complaint that the California Secretary of State is improperly conducting the certification of electronic voting machines. You can read here about how state elections officials are obscuring the full nature of Diebold's problems. Ask California's Attorney General to have the California Division of Gambling Control investigate electronic voting machines. When Nevada's Gaming Control Board did this they found Diebold a "legitimate threat to the election process. "

The Attorney General’s web site is for citizens to make complaints. I'm an average citizen, "so here’s my “average citizen” argument for improper conduct on the part of the Secretary of State.

The only state employees with the experience and qualifications to determine whether electronic devices are secure and tamper proof are in the California Division of Gambling Control. The people that audit gaming machines have to ensure that casino’s are not able to tamper with them to change the amount of money they are taking in so that the state gets their cut. So they should be able to ensure that voting machines and tabulators are also tamper proof when counting the vote. If the Secretary of State did not use these people to determine the integrity of voting machines and tabulators then there is the appearance of something being amiss and it should be investigated.

File your complaint and ask two people you know to do the same.

File a complaint with the CA State Attorney General

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3. Contact ConsumerReports.org and ask them to do the ultimate in consumer protection by evaluating the security of electronic voting machines. Suggest they create a special on-line donation tool specifically for this purpose. They can use it to measure consumer’s interest and perform the test when they’ve raised the funds for it. I think they’ll easily have several hundred thousand dollars in a week. Make your suggestion to Consumer Reports and ask two people to do the same.

Contact Consumer Reports

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It’s clear the democratic leadership is doing nothing on this front, with the exception of a few brave individuals. If you can think of any other independent and respected groups that we might contact to investigate electronic voting machines, please let me know and I’ll add them to this list.

Please forward this on to grassroots groups in your area who may be interested in doing a local press conference to dump receipts at their local democratic and republican legislators offices.