Yesterday's Chicago Sun-Times featured this story by Art Golab reporting on a class action lawsuit that was filed Monday stemming from the release of more than 1.3 million registered voters' Social Security numbers by the Chicago Board of Elections. Excerpts are below.
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Lead plaintiff in the suit is 43rd Ward aldermanic candidate Peter Zelchenko, who discovered the security breach and who also uncovered a similar problem last October on the board's Web site. The most recent release of at least 100 compact discs to alderman and ward committeemen, with another six discs unaccounted for, was revealed on Monday in the Sun-Times.
The suit, filed by attorney Nicholas Kefalos, alleges the board violated the Illinois Personal Information Protection Act and seeks unspecified compensation for all Chicago voters whose Social Security numbers were disclosed.
"Actual damages could be $50 or $100 for each person to at least establish a credit watch," Kefalos said.
The CDs also included birth dates, phone numbers and addresses.
"You couldn't have come up with a better threat for identity fraud if you had orchestrated it," Zelchenko said.
But board spokesman Tom Leach said most of the CDs were distributed three years ago, and that since then there has been "absolutely no evidence" of identity theft.
"We don't want the message to get out that there should be panic in the streets," Leach said.
The board is attempting to retrieve the discs.
Though required by law to notify voters of the breach, Leach said the board will not do so individually, but will instead advertise.
So, right now, voters have no way of knowing whether their information was exposed.
But since the board stopped collecting full Social Security numbers about three years ago, those who registered earlier are at greater risk.
Kefalos said that people who register with Zelchenko's Web site, Re4m.org, will be notified if their Social Security numbers were exposed as soon as the courts give permission.
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Monday, January 8, 2007
Debra Bowen Sworn in as California's 30th Secretary of State
Today, Debra Bowen was inaugurated as California's Secretary of State. According to her office's news release, she is only the sixth woman elected to statewide office in California.
Delaine Eastin, who served with Secretary of State Bowen in the Legislature for many years and was the fifth woman elected to statewide office, was the "mistress of ceremonies" for the inaugural event, which took place this afternoon in the Secretary of State's auditorium in Sacramento. The inauguration was attended by several hundred people, including statewide officeholders, past and present California lawmakers election verification activists, past and present agency staff, a few registrars of voters, and lobbyists.
Secretary of State Bowen spoke quite a bit about transparency during her speech, and about having an "open process" in her office. She said she wants to eliminate the use of private, invisible, proprietary software that prohibits the public from seeing what's counting our votes. She also stated that Kevin Shelley was right about a lot of things, which brought cheers from the activists in the room.
She said, "We choose our own futures through voting and participation," and said she will work to rebuild people's faith in the integrity of the electoral system.
Secretary Bowen has also changed the address of the Secretary of State's web site -- the official address is now www.sos.ca.gov (though the old address still works, too.)
Delaine Eastin, who served with Secretary of State Bowen in the Legislature for many years and was the fifth woman elected to statewide office, was the "mistress of ceremonies" for the inaugural event, which took place this afternoon in the Secretary of State's auditorium in Sacramento. The inauguration was attended by several hundred people, including statewide officeholders, past and present California lawmakers election verification activists, past and present agency staff, a few registrars of voters, and lobbyists.
Secretary of State Bowen spoke quite a bit about transparency during her speech, and about having an "open process" in her office. She said she wants to eliminate the use of private, invisible, proprietary software that prohibits the public from seeing what's counting our votes. She also stated that Kevin Shelley was right about a lot of things, which brought cheers from the activists in the room.
She said, "We choose our own futures through voting and participation," and said she will work to rebuild people's faith in the integrity of the electoral system.
Secretary Bowen has also changed the address of the Secretary of State's web site -- the official address is now www.sos.ca.gov (though the old address still works, too.)
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Certified state election results now online
California Secretary of State Bruce McPherson this week released the certified Statement of Vote for the November 7, 2006 election. This report contains the final vote counts for all statewide, legislative and congressional contests and statewide ballot propositions. It also reports each county's voter registration and participation numbers.
However, some data that's not included in the most recent Statement of Vote is the number of "votes not cast" in each of the contests. While this data is not required by law to be included, it has traditionally been featured in the Statement of Vote and can be a useful tool in assessing the reliability of different voting systems. In fact, it was the "votes not cast" rate that was used by the ACLU to argue for the decertification of punch card voting systems several years ago.
According to the Secretary of State's news release announcing the Statement of Vote, 56.2 percent of the state's registered voters, or approximately 8.9 million Californians, cast ballots in the November 7 election. 41.5 percent of those who participated voted absentee, down from the 46.9 percent absentee voting rate in the June 2006 primary. Among eligible voters, the participation rate in November was 39.3 percent. To get a historical perspective on California's turnout rates, take a look at this section of the Statement of Vote.
However, some data that's not included in the most recent Statement of Vote is the number of "votes not cast" in each of the contests. While this data is not required by law to be included, it has traditionally been featured in the Statement of Vote and can be a useful tool in assessing the reliability of different voting systems. In fact, it was the "votes not cast" rate that was used by the ACLU to argue for the decertification of punch card voting systems several years ago.
According to the Secretary of State's news release announcing the Statement of Vote, 56.2 percent of the state's registered voters, or approximately 8.9 million Californians, cast ballots in the November 7 election. 41.5 percent of those who participated voted absentee, down from the 46.9 percent absentee voting rate in the June 2006 primary. Among eligible voters, the participation rate in November was 39.3 percent. To get a historical perspective on California's turnout rates, take a look at this section of the Statement of Vote.
Tuesday, December 5, 2006
Election certification deadline looms
Today is the deadline for counties to certify their results from the November 7 election. As this recent article in the Riverside Press-Enterprise by Jim Miller and Michelle DeArmond explains, the certification process is taking longer in some counties because of the increase in provisional and absentee voting. Excerpts are below.
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By the close of business Tuesday, the count should be over.
For almost four weeks, election workers throughout the state have been processing the estimated 8.7 million ballots cast Nov. 7, including hundreds of thousands of absentee and provisional ballots that swamped counties on or just before Election Day.
Come 2008 and beyond, counting votes will get only more complicated, experts say. Elections nationwide have become a thicket of varied ballot types, new rules and some public skepticism about the process.
"It's taking longer than it used to, and that's a trend," said Steve Weir, Contra Costa County's registrar of voters and president of the California Association of Clerks and Elections Officials.
In California, the availability of touch-screen voting in 22 of the state's 58 counties -- including Riverside and San Bernardino -- feeds an expectation of quick results after the polls close. Counties, though, also have to process sacks of late-arriving paper absentee and provisional ballots.
Some California election offices effectively held three Nov. 7 elections: pre-election voting, Election Day voting and absentee voting.
"The job of running our elections has become increasingly complex," said Ray Martinez, former commissioner of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. "My concern ... is voter confidence. We've had a serious erosion in the trust that people have in the integrity of election outcomes."
Kim Alexander, president of the California Voter Foundation, said critics should be concerned by things besides how long it takes to count ballots.
"What does concern me greatly is that there were sporadic problems throughout the state with voting equipment, and that was not isolated to Riverside County," she said. "I think that the registrars and the poll workers are, on the whole, in over their heads with the voting equipment and the procedures and the requirements that have been placed on them. We need to get a handle on that process."
Absentee voting used to be the exception. In the November 1978 election, 7.1 million ballots were cast statewide, but only 314,000 were absentee ballots.
Earlier that year, though, lawmakers had relaxed the rules to let anyone request an absentee ballot.
In 2002, absentee voting became even easier. A law took effect that allows people sign up to be permanent absentee voters. Before then, a permanent absentee voter had to have certain medical conditions.
---
People signed up in droves. Almost 4 million people were registered as permanent absentee voters before last month's election, a 16-fold increase from six years ago.
Election offices statewide had about 2.3 million completed ballots in hand before Election Day. Many more arrived in the mail or were dropped off at polling places on Election Day.
In addition to late-arriving absentee votes, counties received thousands of provisional ballots cast by people whose names were not on the precinct lists because they were in the wrong precinct, had failed to reregister at a new address or for other reasons.
Both sets of ballots created extra work for election officials. Each ballot has to be checked to ensure that it had come from an eligible voter. Workers have to verify that the voter didn't also vote at a polling place.
"Those provisional ballots can take hours to check -- each," said Ernest Hawkins of the Election Center, a Texas nonprofit that focuses on improving the voting process.
---
Requiring postmarks on absentee ballots poses problems. Some postmarks are hard to read. Also, ballots can be postmarked by the deadline but not arrive until after the election. That increases the risk of fraud.
Ballots could be shortened significantly if cities, counties, school boards and other agencies held their elections separate from congressional and state voting. But that would decrease voter turnout.
--------
By the close of business Tuesday, the count should be over.
For almost four weeks, election workers throughout the state have been processing the estimated 8.7 million ballots cast Nov. 7, including hundreds of thousands of absentee and provisional ballots that swamped counties on or just before Election Day.
Come 2008 and beyond, counting votes will get only more complicated, experts say. Elections nationwide have become a thicket of varied ballot types, new rules and some public skepticism about the process.
"It's taking longer than it used to, and that's a trend," said Steve Weir, Contra Costa County's registrar of voters and president of the California Association of Clerks and Elections Officials.
In California, the availability of touch-screen voting in 22 of the state's 58 counties -- including Riverside and San Bernardino -- feeds an expectation of quick results after the polls close. Counties, though, also have to process sacks of late-arriving paper absentee and provisional ballots.
Some California election offices effectively held three Nov. 7 elections: pre-election voting, Election Day voting and absentee voting.
"The job of running our elections has become increasingly complex," said Ray Martinez, former commissioner of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. "My concern ... is voter confidence. We've had a serious erosion in the trust that people have in the integrity of election outcomes."
Kim Alexander, president of the California Voter Foundation, said critics should be concerned by things besides how long it takes to count ballots.
"What does concern me greatly is that there were sporadic problems throughout the state with voting equipment, and that was not isolated to Riverside County," she said. "I think that the registrars and the poll workers are, on the whole, in over their heads with the voting equipment and the procedures and the requirements that have been placed on them. We need to get a handle on that process."
Absentee voting used to be the exception. In the November 1978 election, 7.1 million ballots were cast statewide, but only 314,000 were absentee ballots.
Earlier that year, though, lawmakers had relaxed the rules to let anyone request an absentee ballot.
In 2002, absentee voting became even easier. A law took effect that allows people sign up to be permanent absentee voters. Before then, a permanent absentee voter had to have certain medical conditions.
---
People signed up in droves. Almost 4 million people were registered as permanent absentee voters before last month's election, a 16-fold increase from six years ago.
Election offices statewide had about 2.3 million completed ballots in hand before Election Day. Many more arrived in the mail or were dropped off at polling places on Election Day.
In addition to late-arriving absentee votes, counties received thousands of provisional ballots cast by people whose names were not on the precinct lists because they were in the wrong precinct, had failed to reregister at a new address or for other reasons.
Both sets of ballots created extra work for election officials. Each ballot has to be checked to ensure that it had come from an eligible voter. Workers have to verify that the voter didn't also vote at a polling place.
"Those provisional ballots can take hours to check -- each," said Ernest Hawkins of the Election Center, a Texas nonprofit that focuses on improving the voting process.
---
Requiring postmarks on absentee ballots poses problems. Some postmarks are hard to read. Also, ballots can be postmarked by the deadline but not arrive until after the election. That increases the risk of fraud.
Ballots could be shortened significantly if cities, counties, school boards and other agencies held their elections separate from congressional and state voting. But that would decrease voter turnout.
Friday, December 1, 2006
Security Of Electronic Voting Is Condemned - washingtonpost.com
Today's Washington Post features this article by Cameron Barr regarding draft recommendations issued this week by NIST (the National Institute of Standards and Technology) that condemn paperless electronic voting systems because they do not allow election officials to recount ballots independently from a voting machine's software.
If the recommendation is adopted it will be part of the next version of the federal voting system standards. The sad irony here is, that if NIST had been authorized to immediately begin its oversight of the federal standards after HAVA was enacted in October 2002, such a recommendation could have come years sooner, and before so much money had been unwisely spent on paperless electronic voting machines. Regardless, the draft recommendation may provide incentives to more states that have implemented paperless e-voting to retrofit the machines with voter-verified paper audit trail printers, or move to a paper-based voting system.
Exceprts from the Washington Post article are featured below.
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Paperless electronic voting machines used throughout the Washington region and much of the country "cannot be made secure," according to draft recommendations issued this week by a federal agency that advises the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.
The assessment by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, one of the government's premier research centers, is the most sweeping condemnation of such voting systems by a federal agency.
In a report hailed by critics of electronic voting, NIST said that voting systems should allow election officials to recount ballots independently from a voting machine's software. The recommendations endorse "optical-scan" systems in which voters mark paper ballots that are read by a computer and electronic systems that print a paper summary of each ballot, which voters review and elections officials save for recounts.
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NIST's recommendations are to be debated next week before the Technical Guidelines Development Committee, charged by Congress to develop standards for voting systems. To become effective, NIST's recommendations must then be adopted by the Election Assistance Commission, which was created by Congress to promote changes in election systems after the 2000 debacle in Florida.
If the commission agrees with NIST, the practical impact may not be felt until 2009 or 2010, the soonest that new standards would be implemented. The standards that the Election Assistance Commission will adopt are voluntary, but most states require election officials to deploy voting systems that meet national or federal criteria.
---
NIST says in its report that the lack of a paper trail for each vote "is one of the main reasons behind continued questions about voting system security and diminished public confidence in elections." The report repeats the contention of the computer security community that "a single programmer could 'rig' a major election."
---
Computer scientists and others have said that the security of electronic voting systems cannot be guaranteed and that election officials should adopt systems that produce a paper record of each vote in case of a recount. The NIST report embraces that critique, introducing the concept of "software independence" in voting systems.
NIST says that voting systems should not rely on a machine's software to provide a record of the votes cast. Some electronic voting system manufacturers have introduced models that include printers to produce a separate record of each vote -- and that can be verified by a voter before leaving the machine -- but such paper trails have had their own problems.
----
"Why are we doing this at all? is the question people are asking," said Warren Stewart, policy director of VoteTrustUSA, a group critical of electronic voting systems. "We have a perfectly good system -- the paper-ballot optical-scan system."
If the recommendation is adopted it will be part of the next version of the federal voting system standards. The sad irony here is, that if NIST had been authorized to immediately begin its oversight of the federal standards after HAVA was enacted in October 2002, such a recommendation could have come years sooner, and before so much money had been unwisely spent on paperless electronic voting machines. Regardless, the draft recommendation may provide incentives to more states that have implemented paperless e-voting to retrofit the machines with voter-verified paper audit trail printers, or move to a paper-based voting system.
Exceprts from the Washington Post article are featured below.
---------
Paperless electronic voting machines used throughout the Washington region and much of the country "cannot be made secure," according to draft recommendations issued this week by a federal agency that advises the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.
The assessment by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, one of the government's premier research centers, is the most sweeping condemnation of such voting systems by a federal agency.
In a report hailed by critics of electronic voting, NIST said that voting systems should allow election officials to recount ballots independently from a voting machine's software. The recommendations endorse "optical-scan" systems in which voters mark paper ballots that are read by a computer and electronic systems that print a paper summary of each ballot, which voters review and elections officials save for recounts.
---
NIST's recommendations are to be debated next week before the Technical Guidelines Development Committee, charged by Congress to develop standards for voting systems. To become effective, NIST's recommendations must then be adopted by the Election Assistance Commission, which was created by Congress to promote changes in election systems after the 2000 debacle in Florida.
If the commission agrees with NIST, the practical impact may not be felt until 2009 or 2010, the soonest that new standards would be implemented. The standards that the Election Assistance Commission will adopt are voluntary, but most states require election officials to deploy voting systems that meet national or federal criteria.
---
NIST says in its report that the lack of a paper trail for each vote "is one of the main reasons behind continued questions about voting system security and diminished public confidence in elections." The report repeats the contention of the computer security community that "a single programmer could 'rig' a major election."
---
Computer scientists and others have said that the security of electronic voting systems cannot be guaranteed and that election officials should adopt systems that produce a paper record of each vote in case of a recount. The NIST report embraces that critique, introducing the concept of "software independence" in voting systems.
NIST says that voting systems should not rely on a machine's software to provide a record of the votes cast. Some electronic voting system manufacturers have introduced models that include printers to produce a separate record of each vote -- and that can be verified by a voter before leaving the machine -- but such paper trails have had their own problems.
----
"Why are we doing this at all? is the question people are asking," said Warren Stewart, policy director of VoteTrustUSA, a group critical of electronic voting systems. "We have a perfectly good system -- the paper-ballot optical-scan system."
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Manual Count update
Yesterday I visited the third and final county in my post-election manual count observations. The first county I visited was Yolo, which uses a paper-based, optical scan voting system made by Hart. The second was San Joaquin, using Diebold's TSx electronic voting machines. The third was Napa, where Sequoia electronic voting machines were used on Election Day.
Manual counts are still underway this week in many counties, especially larger ones. Counties have until December 5 to certify their results from the Nov. 7 election. Every county I have contacted and visited has been helpful and welcoming of the scrutiny. Today's Los Angeles Times "Political Muscle" blog features this entry, Democracy Gets Audited in California by Robert Salladay highlighting some of the observations I and others have so far of the process. People who want to visit a county's manual count can use this CVF tip sheet to get started.
Manual counts are still underway this week in many counties, especially larger ones. Counties have until December 5 to certify their results from the Nov. 7 election. Every county I have contacted and visited has been helpful and welcoming of the scrutiny. Today's Los Angeles Times "Political Muscle" blog features this entry, Democracy Gets Audited in California by Robert Salladay highlighting some of the observations I and others have so far of the process. People who want to visit a county's manual count can use this CVF tip sheet to get started.
Monday, November 13, 2006
CA Secretary of State-elect Debra Bowen profiled in LA Times
The Los Angeles Times published this article by Jenifer Warren over the weekend, profiling California Secretary of State-elect Debra Bowen and highlighting the issues and challenges she will face when she takes office. Excerpts are featured below.
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After all the votes were counted, Bowen, 51, emerged the winner in a tight race for California secretary of state. She is the only woman elected this year to a constitutional office, and one of only six women in California history to capture a statewide post.
Bowen succeeds Bruce McPherson, a Republican who was appointed to the job by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2005 after Democrat Kevin Shelley resigned. McPherson lost his bid to stay in office after a contentious race marked largely by the candidates' differences over the trustworthiness of electronic voting machines.
An attorney who served three terms in the Assembly and two tours in the Senate, Bowen is no-nonsense, analytical and viewed as a savvy problem-solver with a strong work ethic.
Although little-known statewide, she earned serious stripes in Sacramento for her calm, decisive leadership of the Senate's energy committee during the state's energy crisis of 2001.
More recently, she has used her position as chairwoman of the Senate Elections Committee to champion election reform. Her view: Voters have lost confidence in the security and sanctity of elections, an erosion that began with the 2000 presidential recount in Florida and continues amid fears that electronic voting machines are not foolproof.
Bowen's long-serving aide, Evan Goldberg, describes her as ideally suited for secretary of state at a time when technology is dramatically changing the ballot-box experience. An engineer's daughter and self-described computer nerd, Bowen blends a passion for open government with an ability to engage in techno-talk with the best of them.
Experts say she will need that ability and more to navigate the tricky times ahead.
"The challenge we face is trying to rebuild voter confidence," said Kim Alexander of the nonprofit California Voter Foundation. "Sen. Bowen is a sharp, intellectual public servant … but it won't be easy restoring accountability in a way that satisfies voters and the registrars."
During the campaign, Bowen expressed doubts about the reliability of voting machines already in use in many counties around the state. She said she would conduct a thorough review of such machines to ensure they meet security standards, and warned that those falling short won't be used — even if it means the loss of millions counties have invested in the equipment.
"It's unfortunate," she said of the potential losses while campaigning in October, but "democracy is too important. The integrity of elections is too important."
Such statements have made many local elections officials more than a little uneasy. In an e-mail sent shortly after Bowen's election, the president of the statewide association of registrars, Steve Weir of Contra Costa County, said, "I make no bones about it, I'm worried."
Los Angeles County Registrar Conny McCormack said such qualms are natural with the departure of McPherson, who was well-liked and described as a stabilizing force after the tumult and discord registrars said they experienced under Shelley.
McCormack said she is hopeful about the future, but noted that if Bowen finds reason to reject voting machines in use in many counties, it would be devastating.
"We certainly don't want to go backwards and see this equipment decertified," McCormack said. She added that it would be ironic if Bowen, herself a victor in Tuesday's election, decided that the machines were faulty.
"Winners don't normally make those accusations," she quipped.
Acknowledging the anxiety within one of her prime constituencies, Bowen said the review of voting machines would be "orderly and meticulous," with input from all parties.
And in an interview, she said she was more concerned about more run-of-the-mill problems clouding Tuesday's balloting, including reports that at some polling places in Orange and San Joaquin counties voters were forced to stand in line for two to three hours.
"That's disturbing, and I don't like hearing that some voters were given paper ballots in a language that wasn't their own because there wasn't a sufficient backup plan," Bowen said. "We have to work on that. And if counties need resources to get it done, I'll go to bat for them."
---------
After all the votes were counted, Bowen, 51, emerged the winner in a tight race for California secretary of state. She is the only woman elected this year to a constitutional office, and one of only six women in California history to capture a statewide post.
Bowen succeeds Bruce McPherson, a Republican who was appointed to the job by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2005 after Democrat Kevin Shelley resigned. McPherson lost his bid to stay in office after a contentious race marked largely by the candidates' differences over the trustworthiness of electronic voting machines.
An attorney who served three terms in the Assembly and two tours in the Senate, Bowen is no-nonsense, analytical and viewed as a savvy problem-solver with a strong work ethic.
Although little-known statewide, she earned serious stripes in Sacramento for her calm, decisive leadership of the Senate's energy committee during the state's energy crisis of 2001.
More recently, she has used her position as chairwoman of the Senate Elections Committee to champion election reform. Her view: Voters have lost confidence in the security and sanctity of elections, an erosion that began with the 2000 presidential recount in Florida and continues amid fears that electronic voting machines are not foolproof.
Bowen's long-serving aide, Evan Goldberg, describes her as ideally suited for secretary of state at a time when technology is dramatically changing the ballot-box experience. An engineer's daughter and self-described computer nerd, Bowen blends a passion for open government with an ability to engage in techno-talk with the best of them.
Experts say she will need that ability and more to navigate the tricky times ahead.
"The challenge we face is trying to rebuild voter confidence," said Kim Alexander of the nonprofit California Voter Foundation. "Sen. Bowen is a sharp, intellectual public servant … but it won't be easy restoring accountability in a way that satisfies voters and the registrars."
During the campaign, Bowen expressed doubts about the reliability of voting machines already in use in many counties around the state. She said she would conduct a thorough review of such machines to ensure they meet security standards, and warned that those falling short won't be used — even if it means the loss of millions counties have invested in the equipment.
"It's unfortunate," she said of the potential losses while campaigning in October, but "democracy is too important. The integrity of elections is too important."
Such statements have made many local elections officials more than a little uneasy. In an e-mail sent shortly after Bowen's election, the president of the statewide association of registrars, Steve Weir of Contra Costa County, said, "I make no bones about it, I'm worried."
Los Angeles County Registrar Conny McCormack said such qualms are natural with the departure of McPherson, who was well-liked and described as a stabilizing force after the tumult and discord registrars said they experienced under Shelley.
McCormack said she is hopeful about the future, but noted that if Bowen finds reason to reject voting machines in use in many counties, it would be devastating.
"We certainly don't want to go backwards and see this equipment decertified," McCormack said. She added that it would be ironic if Bowen, herself a victor in Tuesday's election, decided that the machines were faulty.
"Winners don't normally make those accusations," she quipped.
Acknowledging the anxiety within one of her prime constituencies, Bowen said the review of voting machines would be "orderly and meticulous," with input from all parties.
And in an interview, she said she was more concerned about more run-of-the-mill problems clouding Tuesday's balloting, including reports that at some polling places in Orange and San Joaquin counties voters were forced to stand in line for two to three hours.
"That's disturbing, and I don't like hearing that some voters were given paper ballots in a language that wasn't their own because there wasn't a sufficient backup plan," Bowen said. "We have to work on that. And if counties need resources to get it done, I'll go to bat for them."
Tuesday, November 7, 2006
Help Verify the Vote: Observe California's Manual Count
Election Day has come to a close and the ballot counting has begun. Like many of you, I will be up this evening watching the returns on TV and online. I also will, over the upcoming weeks, be visiting several county election offices to observe their one percent manual counts.
Under state law, counties must recount, in public and by hand, the ballots from one percent of their precincts and compare the hand-counted results to the software-counted results. This is what some consider to be the most important procedure in the election. It provides the public with a window into the vote counting process.
You can help verify the vote in California by observing the manual count. CVF has put together "Observing Manual Counts - A Checklist and Questionnaire" to help observers. If you'd like additional information, please email me, kimalex- at -calvoter.org. Additional information about California's manual count law is available.
Under state law, counties must recount, in public and by hand, the ballots from one percent of their precincts and compare the hand-counted results to the software-counted results. This is what some consider to be the most important procedure in the election. It provides the public with a window into the vote counting process.
You can help verify the vote in California by observing the manual count. CVF has put together "Observing Manual Counts - A Checklist and Questionnaire" to help observers. If you'd like additional information, please email me, kimalex- at -calvoter.org. Additional information about California's manual count law is available.
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