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Jim Sanders, Sacremento Bee: Saying he is concerned
about the reliability of touch-screen voting machines,
California Secretary of State Kevin Shelley on Friday
decertified every model used in the state but left the
door open for 10 counties to win approval prior to the
November election.
Shelley's action is intended to force counties and
manufacturers to quickly implement nearly two dozen
security measures or risk losing their franchises for
the upcoming presidential election.Shelley said doubts
about the security and reliability of touch-screen
voting have "shaken public confidence." "It is my job,
my foremost responsibility, to take all steps
necessary to make sure every vote cast in California
will be accurately counted," Shelley said.
Shelley formally requested that state Attorney General Bill Lockyer consider taking civil and criminal action against Diebold for installing machines that were not properly certified and then lying about their status.
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All voting machines decertified
But an official says 10 counties might be able to get
approval before the November election.
By Jim Sanders -- Bee Capitol Bureau
Published 2:15 am PDT Saturday, May 1, 2004
Saying he is concerned about the reliability of
touch-screen voting machines, California Secretary of
State Kevin Shelley on Friday decertified every model
used in the state but left the door open for 10
counties to win approval prior to the November
election.
Shelley's action is intended to force counties and
manufacturers to quickly implement nearly two dozen
security measures or risk losing their franchises for
the upcoming presidential election.
Shelley said doubts about the security and
reliability of touch-screen voting have "shaken public
confidence." "It is my job, my foremost
responsibility, to take all steps necessary to make
sure every vote cast in California will be accurately
counted," Shelley said.
Most of the measures ordered Friday were proposed this
week by a state advisory panel.
Shelley's sharpest attack was leveled at one
manufacturer, Diebold Election Systems, which has
installed its controversial TSx system in San Joaquin,
Solano, Kern and San Diego counties.
Shelley formally requested that state Attorney General
Bill Lockyer consider taking civil and criminal action
against Diebold for installing machines that were not
properly certified and then lying about their status.
"We will not tolerate deceitful tactics as engaged in
by Diebold," Shelley said.
Mark Radke, a Diebold spokesman, could not be reached
for comment Friday, but the firm has denied the
accusations in the past.
Shelley banned use of the Diebold TSx model outright,
meaning the company - unlike its competitors - cannot
win recertification this year.
Under Shelley's order, 10 counties that currently have
other touch-screen models potentially could use them
in November, provided that security measures are
implemented that include:
* Giving voters the option to use paper ballots.
* Allowing no connection to the Internet.
* Ensuring that printouts can be made of ballots cast
electronically.
* Allowing state officials to participate in technical
reviews of randomly chosen machines on Election Day.
* Submitting detailed documents to Shelley about
testing, software and inner workings of the machines.
The 10 counties that potentially could offer
touch-screen voting on Election Day are Alameda,
Merced, Napa, Orange, Plumas, Riverside, San
Bernardino, Santa Clara, Shasta and Tehama.
Counties that do not currently have touch-screen
machines will not be able to buy them unless there is
a verifiable paper trail.
Kim Alexander of the California Voter Foundation,
which has pushed for banning touch-screen voting, was
encouraged by Shelley's order.
"Requiring counties to provide voters with what I call
the 'paper or plastic' option ensures that those
voters who do not have confidence in electronic voting
still have the ability to cast a vote with
confidence," she said.
But supporters of touch-screen voting expressed doubt
that Shelley's conditions are practical.
"On the face, it sounds like a good thing, but I don't
think it will work," said Patricia Yeager, executive
director of the California Foundation for Independent
Living Centers.
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About the Writer
---------------------------
The Bee's Jim Sanders can be reached at (916) 326-5538
or jsanders@sacbee.com.