Published: Thursday, August 5, 2004
Radio ads criticize paperless balloting
Ben & Jerry's founder Ben Cohen is campaigning against Snohomish County's touch-screen system.
By Jerry Cornfield
Herald Writer
EVERETT - The latest concoction from a millionaire founder of the Ben & Jerry's ice-cream empire is a bit too sour for Bob Terwilliger's taste.
Its flavor is politics, 100 percent pure, no sugar added.
The Snohomish County auditor got a big scoop of it this past week as dozens of residents phoned his office to voice concern about the use of touch-screen voting machines.
People called after hearing a radio ad created by TrueMajority, the Vermont-based Internet political operation funded with Cohen's riches.
The 30-second spot contends that electronic voting machines cannot be trusted to record votes as cast unless there is a paper record of the individual vote. "The truth is your vote might disappear," warns a narrator, who dishes up the county auditor's phone number and urges listeners to call Terwilliger to "demand a paper record."
Ten people did that first day, July 28. By the time the last ad ran Tuesday, 82 calls had been logged by Betty Scrapper, Terwilliger's secretary.
more...
http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/04/08/05/loc_ballot001.cfmarticle goes on to later say that... "(Snohomish County auditor Bob Terwilliger) has invited skeptics to watch when experts certifiy the devices for upcoming elections."
Will anybody in WA have reports on this so called certification?