Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News, Monday 04/14/08

[tbyg52]

Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News, Monday 04/14/08

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[tbyg52]

1. States nt

[tbyg52]

7. IN: Two more E.C. vote fraud cases completed

Two public safety officials pleaded guilty recently to crimes related to the 2003 East Chicago Democratic primary election, the Indiana attorney general reported Monday .

East Chicago firefighter Demetreos Hasapis, 44, pleaded guilty in Lake Criminal Court to unauthorized entry at the polls and was sentenced to a suspended 60-day sentence at the Lake County Jail, with 60 days of probation. His felony charge of voting in another precinct was reduced to the misdemeanor under a plea agreement with Lake County prosecutors, court records show.

More:
http://www.thetimesonline.com/articles/2008/04/14/updates/breaking_news/doc48038274afd35323720884.txt

[tbyg52]

8. IL: The Hart InterCivic Federal Fraud Complaint 'Under a Microsope' in Kane County, IL

In Aurora, Illinois today, Beacon News' Dan Campana files a very good report on the federal fraud suit filed against Austin, Texas, based voting machine company Hart InterCivic. The suit, alleging dozens of false claims and fraudulent activities by Hart in order to receive federal Help America Vote Act (HAVA) money, was filed originally by former employee turned whistleblower William Singer back in 2006, but did not become unsealed until March 27th, when The BRAD BLOG covered it, along with posting the full stunning complaint .

Beacon News is based in Kane County, IL, which uses the faulty Hart voting systems in question.

Campana's report today --- which quotes yours truly in a number of places --- is the only corporate media coverage of the lawsuit in the nearly three weeks since the case was finally unsealed. Until now, there's been the fairly extensive coverage found on this blog, an item on the same day the case was unsealed filed by Kim Zetter at WIRED's "Threat Level" blog (which we replied to here), and a very short squib from AP on the same day, which, according to a quick Google News search, was carried by only a single news outlet, CBS 4 in Denver.

More:
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=5893

[tbyg52]

10. TX: Double Voting In TX Primary Still Unresolved

The saying "vote early and often in the Texas primary" was taken literally last month when 1,148 Harris County residents voted twice and, so far, got away with it.

According to reports, some voters cast ballots by mail during the Early Voting Period and then showed up the day of the primary and were allowed to vote again. Others voted in both the Republican and Democratic primaries. It's still unclear why there were no records of original votes and whether voting authorities plan to act to address the problem.

Many voters have pleaded innocent due to the confusing way Texas handles its primary. It is the only state in the nation to hold both a primary and a caucus on the same day, where you can "vote" twice -- the first being a ballot cast in a voting booth, the second, held after the polls close, is a caucus vote, where citizens verbally "vote" for their candidate.

More:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/erin-medlicott/double-voting-in-tx-prima_b_96451.html

[sonias]

49. What this prooves is that the elections administrator is incompetent

Beverly Kaufman of Harris county obviously doesn't know how to run her elections division. There are many safeguards she obviously isn't following that would not allow this to happen. The main person responsible for this double voting - is her.

Oh and by the way she is a republican. Surprise, surprise! :eyes:


Sonia

[tbyg52]

12. N.J. voting technology in question after discrepancies in February vote

Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) were declared winners of the New Jersey presidential primaries, but the ongoing investigation of the discrepancies recorded by several of the state’s electronic voting machines shows that some of the votes may not add up.

Last Tuesday, a court subpoenaed electronic voting machines used for the primary elections in six New Jersey counties, including Mercer County, questioning the accuracy and security of the machines. Later that day, Sequoia Voting Systems, the company that manufactures the machines, filed a motion to quash the subpoenas, claiming that the subpoenas sought to test their machines under “unknown circumstances and protocols,” which could “unfairly undermine both the reputation of Sequoia’s products and public confidence in election results.”

Two University computer science professors, Andrew Appel ’81 and Ed Felten, have served as expert witnesses in the case, testifying on the security and reliability of Direct Recording Electronic voting machines (DREs), which do not generate any voter-verified paper ballots. Both professors said they had serious doubts about the DREs and cited their own research suggesting that the machines are easy to hack.

More:
http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/2008/04/14/20852/

[tbyg52]

16. CT: State fixing voter system after primary glitches

Connecticut officials said they are addressing glitches in the centralized voter system in time for state and federal elections in November.

"We're diligently at work on the issue," said Adam Joseph, spokesman for Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz. "All of our meetings with the Department of Information Technology have been very productive."

The system combines the databases of municipal registrars into a single electronic system to prevent voter fraud. In particular, the system makes it easier for registrars to ensure that someone does not vote more than once in the same election.

Participation was mandated by the federal Help America Vote Act after the irregularities of the 2000 presidential election.

More:
http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/localnews/ci_8916016

[tbyg52]

20. IL: Election reform proposal stalled

In the last year, an attempt in Springfield to better monitor the accuracy of electronic voting results has collected more dust than it has supporters.

Proposed by Moline Democrat Rep. Mike Boland in February 2007, House Bill 1642 calls for an election day audit of results and establishes “certain” federal and independent testing standards for electronic and optical scan voting technology. The bill has languished in the House Rules Committee ever since.

“It would be wise, given Illinois history, that we ought to have some safeguards to protect the system,” Boland said, acknowledging Illinois is ahead of many other states because of mandated paper trails. “Unfortunately, (the bill) hasn’t gone anywhere.”

More:
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/news/893484,AU13_ESLATE_WEB2.article

[tbyg52]

22. CO: Electronic voting machines get OK for this year, but future's iffy

Colorado election officials have the green light to use electronic voting and tallying machines in the presidential election.

But the light might not stay green for long.

A growing number of studies by technology experts show that the machines, mostly bought and deployed within the past five years, can easily be hacked and can lose or miscount votes. Election officials in New Jersey, California and South Carolina encountered malfunctions or miscounts during recent presidential primaries.

Most Colorado county clerks are confident that security procedures they use and tests they do before and after elections will ensure accuracy. Clerks trust the machines but acknowledge that the future use of the equipment is uncertain.

More:
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/apr/14/electronic-voting-machines-get-ok-for-this-year/

[tbyg52]

25. FL: Is 3rd System The Charm?

For the third time in three presidential elections, Pasco County voters will cast their ballots using a different voting system.

"In 2000, it was punch cards. In 2004, it was ... touch screens, and in 2008, it will be paper ballots with an optical scan," Pasco Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley said.

Elections officials began dismantling the iVotronic touch-screen systems after Tuesday's municipal elections, the last time the equipment will be used in Pasco. The touch-screen ballots will be replaced with machines that produce and collect paper ballots in time for an August primary and the November presidential election.

The Florida Legislature has mandated that counties switch to the new technology by July 1. If they opt in before June 30, the state will pay for most of the optical scanners needed to tabulate the ballots.

More:
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2008/apr/13/pa-is-3rd-system-the-charm/

[tbyg52]

29. NY: Help at polls for disabled voters

Albany County legislators are expected to approve tonight the purchase of 210 voting machines for the September primary that are specifically designed to allow a voter -- and, particularly, disabled people -- to mark a ballot with a special device.

The court-ordered requirement that the so-called ballot-marking device voting machines be in place by this year's primary in the county's 188 polling places needed action by the 39-member legislature to approve the financing.


Lawmakers will be asked to OK an amendment to the budget to allow the county to meet the state requirement of 5 percent matching funds, or $80,448, of the total of more than $1.6 million for the machines and related equipment and software.

More:
http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=680536&category=REGION&newsdate=4/14/2008

[tbyg52]

30. PA: Memo to voters: Take your IDs

The Democratic race for president has attracted a record number of new voters for the Pennsylvania primary. And while that’s a good thing, one state legislator fears it could be troublesome at the polls on April 22.

That’s because those newly registered voters – more than 156,000 statewide – must do one more thing before they vote: they must show proper identification.

The days are long gone when the poll workers, who were neighborhood fixtures, knew everyone who walked in the door. So in 2004, the state required that all first-time voters must prove that’s their name on the registration list.

While that doesn’t sound difficult, state Rep. Babette Josephs of Philadelphia isn’t so sure.

Josephs, who’s chairwoman of the House State Government Committee, said new voters don’t realize they need to show ID at the polling place. As a result, she said, they may be denied the right to vote.

More:
http://www.standardspeaker.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=7223&Itemid=9

[tbyg52]

31. NY: Lawmakers OK $100,000 to store voting machines

Orange County legislators have approved spending $100,000 to store up to 200 new electronic voting machines.

Lawmakers unanimously approved the request after chopping it from $300,000 and leaving open the question of where the optical-scan machines will be kept.

(A little) more:
http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080414/NEWS/80413011

[tbyg52]

32. CA: Neighborhood Walk to the Polls is an Endangered Species in California

By Assemblymember Alberto Torrico

Should voters have to complete the equivalent of a 10k race just to cast their ballots?

That was the predicament some voters faced in the February primary election. What should have been a casual stroll to the polls turned into a seven-mile round trip trek for some of the thousands of voters squeezed into one polling location.

Voting shouldn’t be a test of physical endurance. That’s why I have introduced AB 2633, which would place limits on precinct consolidations in statewide elections. It requires consolidated precincts to be contiguous and all polling places to be located within the boundaries of one of the consolidated precincts.

More:
http://www.californiaprogressreport.com/2008/04/neighborhood_wa.html

[tbyg52]

34. IN: Voter registrations have workers racing against the clock

A race against the clock is under way in the Vanderburgh County Voter Registration Office, where workers showed up Sunday morning to chip away at processing thousands of new voters in time for Indiana's May 6 primary election.

Connie Carrier and Tony Bushrod, the county's voter registration co-directors, worked Saturday and Sunday with stacks of new registrations that came in before the April 7 deadline to vote.

More:
http://www.courierpress.com/news/2008/apr/14/voter-registrations-have-workers-racing-against/

[tbyg52]

40. NJ: New Jersey Department of State Disputes Vote Findings

The New Jersey Department of State last week issued the following statement on the reported findings of Princeton Professor Ed Felten concerning Sequoia voting machines used in the Feb. 5 presidential primary:

The Department of State offers its unequivocal support for Bergen and Gloucester counties on this matter. Election officials have our strongest backing, and we are working together to guarantee that the public has accurate information and the highest confidence in our voting process.

We want to stress there is no court order requiring any county to release voting machines to the plaintiffs in the Gusciora case.

On the issue cited by Professor Felten on his blog that states there were voting machines that recorded more votes than voters, we have worked with the two counties involved to verify that the number of votes cast are in fact equal to the number of voters who voted on those machines.

More:
http://www.govtech.com/gt/286101?topic=117673

[Wilms]

43. N.J. voting technology in question after discrepancies in February vote

http://www.dailyprincetonian.com:8080/img/global/header/banner_main.png

N.J. voting technology in question after discrepancies in February vote

By Josephine Wolff
Senior Writer

Monday, April 14th, 2008

snip

The controversy surrounding the New Jersey primaries began in March, when a Union County clerk noticed that the number of Democratic and Republican voters recorded by the DRE paper reports generated after the election did not match the number of votes cast in each primary on those machines.

One machine, for example, recorded that its Republican ballot was activated 60 times and its Democratic ballot was activated 362 times. Yet the same report shows that 61 votes had been cast on the machine for Republican candidates and only 361 for Democrats.
Similar discrepancies were later discovered on at least eight other machines in Union County and several more throughout the state.

“What’s alarming here is not the size of the discrepancy but its nature,” Felten said on his blog freedom-to-tinker.com. “This is a single voting machine, disagreeing with itself about how many Republicans voted on it.”

snip

http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/2008/04/14/20852/

[tbyg52]

44. Yeah, I shoulda linked these two together.

It's been a long day.... :hi:

[Wilms]

45. And yeah, I should have noticed it up-thread.

Still, it seems an important reference for the story.

[tbyg52]

50. Oh, absolutely - I was *thanking* you!

[tbyg52]

41. DE: Bill would restrict voting to property owners

As far as Rocky DeMaio is concerned, there's something fundamentally wrong with people voting to raise his taxes when they don't pay the tax themselves.
Advertisement

The Wilmington resident finds it particularly galling that 18-year-old high-school students, encouraged by their teachers to do their civic duty, can vote to raise his property taxes.

"I don't have a problem with everybody paying their fair share, but I don't want people telling me to pay a tax that they're not responsible for as well," DeMaio said.

So last week, Hudson introduced House Bill 358, a one-line bill that would restrict voting in school-tax referendums to those who actually pay the tax. Only citizens who live in the district and own property there would be allowed to vote in referendums, though renters and other nonproperty owners living in the district still could vote in school board elections.

More:
http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080414/NEWS02/804140348

[tbyg52]

2. National nt

[tbyg52]

11. The little blog that did

If the mass media ever did its job, Brad Friedman could go back to his former life, the one before 2004 when election scandals became his full-time vocation.

Friedman, 41, who lives in Los Angeles, used to be a computer programmer.

Today, he operates the widely known -- in certain circles -- bradblog.com Web site that first publicized William Singer's complaints against eSlate manufacturer Hart Intercivic.

While the Associated Press offered a scant few paragraphs to describe the recent unsealing of Singer's whistleblower lawsuit filed against Hart Intercivic in federal court in Colorado, Friedman wrote and extensively analyzed the case.

More:
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/news/892977,2_1_AU14_ESLATE_S2.article

[tbyg52]

13. Illinois Paper: 'The BRAD BLOG - The Little Blog That Did'

snip

We're greatly appreciative of Campana's coverage. Not only because he's very kind to us, but because --- as a total of four of his stories filed over the last two days reveal --- he has actually done what so few corporate journalists seem able to do today: Actual journalism.

Before we saw the piece mentioned above today, we had kind words about his coverage yesterday of the wholly under-reported Hart InterCivic federal fraud suit. But beyond that detailed piece, his follow-up story today and "related coverage" offered on both days has been top-notch. Here are links to each of his stories today and yesterday...

* Sunday: Did your vote count?:
Unsealed federal lawsuit reignites eSlate debate
* Election reform proposal stalled

* Monday: Silent fight over voting machines:
Technician says lawsuit followed years of trying to get word out
* The little blog that did:
For four years, Bradblog.com has reported on voting machine problems

More:
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=5895

[Wilms]

46. GD: Discussion

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x3157523

[tbyg52]

51. Thanks! Appreciate it!

I am aware I miss stuff like this, as collecting the articles and getting them posted pretty much strains my connection to the limit.....

[tbyg52]

14. Did your vote count?

The debate isn’t new.

Whether online or in isolated news reports around the country, critics of electronic voting have argued its dangers while elections officials defend the technology as secure and accurate.

A recently unsealed and first-of-its-kind federal lawsuit against Hart Intercivic — the maker of the eSlate voting machines that are used in Kane County — is certain to ramp up a new wave of debate. Already in Kane, which has spent $3.1 million on eSlates used in five elections since 2006, the question has resurfaced — are votes safe?

While Kane County Clerk Jack Cunningham insists that “once the ballot goes into the box, it’s counted,” others aren’t so sure.

More:
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/news/893473,AU13_ESLATE_WEB1.article

[tbyg52]

15. Fight over eSlates

At one time highly praised by Hart Intercivic bosses for his expertise, technician William Singer finally gave up.

He'd grown tired of complaining to supervisors about shoddy work on electronic voting machines, including eSlate, and refused to be part of what he said was the deceit involved in securing government contracts.

A whistleblower lawsuit against the manufacturer of the eSlate electronic voting system used by Kane County has sparked renewed local debate over the merits and apparent dangers of electronic voting.

He quit the company in January 2004, just as Kane County officials prepared their search for new voting technology.

More:
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/couriernews/news/893146,3_1_EL14_A1ESLATE_S1.article

[tbyg52]

18. Emergency Assistance for Secure Elections Act

Rep. Holt’s HR 5036, the Emergency Assistance for Secure Elections Act, is listed among the bills that might come to the House floor the week beginning April 14. After its introduction on January 17, HR 5036 was referred to both the Committee on House Administration and the Committee on Science and Technology “for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker”.

The Committee on House Administration held its markup session on April 2 and made some amendments. The Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation has yet to consider it, so the version that comes to the House next week is the version as amended by the House Administration Committee. The bill has 92 co-sponsors.

The Congressional Research Service’s summary of the Bill as introduced states that the legislation:

Directs the Administrator of General Services to reimburse certain jurisdictions for the costs of: (1) converting from electronic or other voting systems to paper ballot voting systems for the general elections for federal office to be held in November 2008; and (2) providing emergency paper ballots if the jurisdiction uses a direct recording electronic voting system which happens to fail.

More:
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0804/S00183.htm

[tbyg52]

19. Democrats Sue Federal Election Commission Over McCain Spending

snip

The Democrats are suing the FEC to force the FEC to act against McCain. However, since the FEC only has two commissioners and four vacancies, it is without a quorum, so the lawsuit asks that the Democratic National Committee be given permission to sue McCain directly, since it is hopeless that the FEC can act. See their complaint here.

More:
http://www.ballot-access.org/2008/04/14/democrats-sue-federal-election-commission-over-mccain-spending/

[tbyg52]

27. Dem FEC Nominee Withdraws, Leading to Further Delay

Things were already looking pretty hopeless for the FEC, but they just got bleaker. In a letter to White House chief of staff Josh Bolten today, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) says that Robert Lenhard, one of the Democratic nominees for the commission, has withdrawn his name because of the ongoing stalemate.

It will most likely take "several months" to replace Lenhard, Reid writes, meaning that it's sure to be awhile before Democrats and Republicans can agree on a batch of nominees. Not that there have been any signs of hope anyway: Democrats continue to insist that the Senate vote on vote-suppression guru Hans von Spakovsky separate

More:
http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/04/dem_fec_nominee_withdraws_lead.php

[tbyg52]

28. Diebold takeover attempt in limbo

A month after Diebold Inc. received an unsolicited bid to take it over, the 149-year-old maker of automated teller machines, security systems and electronic voting devices continues to sit tight, maintaining the offer is too low.

Meanwhile the pursuer, United Technologies Corp. of Hartford, Conn., hasn't budged from its March 2 position, arguing its $40 per share cash offer, about $2.6 billion, is more than fair, representing about a 60 percent premium compared with the Diebold stock price of $24.12 on Feb. 29.

The UTC offer came even without fresh financial data about Diebold, which hasn't filed a revenue and earnings report to the Securities and Exchange Commission since April 25 of last year. That Diebold report, covering the first quarter of 2007, disclosed a loss of $5.9 million due largely to charges for a plant closing in France.

Diebold, based in Green, had earnings of $86.5 million and revenue of $2.9 billion in 2006. It has about 17,000 employees.

More:
http://www.ohio.com/business/17378469.html

[tbyg52]

3. Foreign nt

[tbyg52]

9. Zimbabwe Court Refuses to Release Vote Results

Zimbabwe’s High Court on Monday dismissed an opposition demand for the immediate release of the results of a presidential election held 16 days before. Independent monitors say that the country’s autocratic president, Robert Mugabe, trailed badly in the vote and may have lost outright.

The opposition Movement for Democratic Change, contending that Mr. Mugabe and the military are illegally clinging to power, has called on people across the country to protest by staying home from work on Tuesday.

“We are working with a regime that has perfected the art of interfering with the judiciary,” said an opposition spokesman, Nelson Chamisa. “The court has chosen to be a pillar in a collapsing regime.”

More:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/15/world/africa/15zimbabwe.html?em&ex=1208318400&en=542309f2e0199fab&ei=5087%0A

[tbyg52]

24. Australia: Democrats urge SA to lower voting age

The Australian Democrats want South Australia to take the lead and lower the voting age to 16.

Democrat state MP Sandra Kanck has urged the government to take up the recommendation from the 2020 Youth Summit held in Canberra at the weekend.

"Our state government is regulating more and more aspects of young people's lives in the name of law and order," Ms Kanck said.

"It's only fair that young people should get some say about all the rules that are being made about them."

More:
http://news.theage.com.au/democrats-urge-sa-to-lower-voting-age/20080414-25ys.html

[tbyg52]

39. Canada: New voting technology should lead to bigger election turnout

New Brunswickers will be able to vote in their hometown's municipal elections in May from anywhere in the province.

A new computer technology will allow eligible voters to visit any returning office in New Brunswick after April 21 and cast their vote, said Michael Quinn, the province's chief electoral officer.

"Someone from Bathurst who happens to be working in Saint John, can go to a returning office in Saint John and get a ballot for the contests that are going on in Bathurst," Quinn said.

It is hoped the flexibility of the new system will translate into a higher voter turnout for May's municipal elections, which will also include the election of representatives to serve on the province's district education councils, he said.

More:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/new-brunswick/story/2008/04/14/vote-tech.html

[tbyg52]

4. Blogs, Editorials, LTTEs, etc. nt

[tbyg52]

17. What’s Easier to Rig—the U.S. Presidential Elections or a Slot Machine?

Steve Freeman, a visiting professor at the University of Pennsylvania, compared the vulnerabilities of the two in his book, with some pretty alarming results. Among the problems he found:

–Unpredictable voting machine software is kept secret, while gambling software must be kept on file with the state.

–State inspectors randomly inspect gambling machines to ensure their software and computer chips haven’t been tinkered with. Voting machines don’t need to be checked, and no one knows what’s in them anyways.

–Slot machine manufacturers are subjected to background checks, while no one knows whether voting machine programmers have been convicted of, say, fraud (video).

More:
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2008/04/14/whats-easier-to-rig%E2%80%94the-us-presidential-elections-or-a-slot-machine/

[tbyg52]

21. OPINION: Remove a barrier to people voting

Voter involvement is as good a gauge of the health of our democracy as anything anyone has been able to come up with. But while we might like all those voters to have read all the position papers and watched every debate, there’s no requirement that citizens choose their candidates months before they vote.

Campaign activity is designed to crest on Election Day because political pros know some voters don’t focus on their decisions until the weekend before, make up their minds at the last minute and, unless reminded, may forget to make it to the polls. Their votes count just as much as the votes of those who are mentally committed early.

There’s no good reason why eligible voters must be denied access to the ballot box other than inertia if they failed to register 20 days before the election. Eight states now allow voters to register on Election Day. It’s time Massachusetts joined them.

The experience of these eight states is instructive. Three of them — Minnesota, Maine and Wisconsin — have had Election Day registration for more than 30 years. People have been registering up to Election Day in New Hampshire, Wyoming and Idaho for 15 years. The fears of voter fraud or confusion at the polling places have not panned out.

More:
http://www.enterprisenews.com/opinions/x273792404

[tbyg52]

26. Electoral College drives me nuts, but nobody seems too worked up about it

Hey, wake up! Yes, I know the presidential election is still six months away and we’re all sick of the candidates already. But every four years, the Electoral College sticks in my craw.

I know it’s mandated in the Constitution, designed in part to try to distribute power among states, but it’s an anachronism derived from the way the Roman Catholic Church elects popes.

Essentially, here’s how it works: You go vote. Your vote is tallied along with everyone else. North Carolina determines which candidate got the most votes. Then, ALL of the state’s 15 electoral votes go to the candidate with the most votes. The candidate who gets 270 electoral votes wins.

If your candidate doesn’t take the state, your vote is essentially erased.

More:
http://citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080414/COLUMNISTS09/80413026/1007/COLUMNISTS

[tbyg52]

33. Voter Registration: Steps States Can Take to Help Voters Register and Keep Them Registered

Maintaining accurate voter rolls and ensuring that all eligible voters who register to vote actually make it onto voting rolls are two of the most important functions of election administration. If an eligible voter cannot vote because his name doesn't appear on the voter roll used in an election, the problem will not be addressed by the federal guarantee of a provisional ballot. Such a ballot cannot register a person to vote, it can only preserve a ballot in the case the voter rolls at the precinct are mistaken or the voter needs to return with identification. If a voter is not registered because they were removed from the rolls, or even due to election official error processing their registration, his or her vote will not be counted.

snip

Conference Call: The Perils of Voter Purging and Options for Voter Registration Enhancement

Progressive States Network will host a conference call this Friday, April 18th, at 1:00 pm (EST) on The Perils of Voter Purging and Options for Voter Registration Enhancement. The call will discuss in more detail the policies and issues discussed in today's Stateside Dispatch.

Please RSVP at: http://snipr.com/voterpurging

More:
http://www.progressivestates.org/blog/818/voter-registration-steps-states-can-take-to-help-voters-register-and-keep-them-registered

[tbyg52]

36. Felons' right to vote can be confusing

Thomas Ray is a 53-year-old ex-convict with a potentially fatal disease and a revived desire to vote.

"I'm going to whether I'm eligible or not," he vowed during a recent interview. "I've just got to get registered."

Under Oregon law, Ray is eligible to vote despite his felony record. Unlike some states, Oregon reinstates voting rights to freed felons.

Ray was released from prison Jan. 31 after serving 3Πyears for a Marion County theft conviction.

Now on post-prison supervision and battling hepatitis C, he's among nearly 35,000 former prisoners and felons on probation who are eligible to vote while being monitored by parole and probation officers.

More:
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080414/NEWS/804140322

[tbyg52]

5. The Youth Vote nt

[tbyg52]

23. Campaigns work to get out the youth vote

According to state officials, of the 4 million registered Democratic voters in Pennsylvania, about 10 percent are between the ages of 18 and 24.

In Beaver County, of the 114,257 registered voters, both Democratic and Republican, 9,233 are between 18 and 25, or approximately 8 percent.

Source: Beaver County election bureau and The Associated Press

Chris Rizzo said he’s heard of some pretty fierce talks going on at the Harmony Hall dorm at Penn State-Beaver these days.

Not about Britney Spears and her questionable mental state. Rather, “they’re engaged in political discussions, some heated debates.

More:
http://www.timesonline.com/articles/2008/04/13/news/doc4802c9324796b600649175.txt

[tbyg52]

35. Power of youth

The Pennsylvania primary could turn on young voters, and doesn't Barack Obama know it.

Barack Obama has assembled teams of youths on college campuses to rally younger voters ahead of the April 22 Pennsylvania primary. Michael Stewart, president of the Penn State Students for Obama, left, speaks in February with Richard Ruggieri.

In a state that skews gray-haired and blue-collar, Obama has planted 50 student chapters among Pennsylvania’s college campuses. He is sending daily text messages to cell phones and brought Facebook’s co-creator into the state to train young volunteers. He drew more than 20,000 to a Penn State rally recently, launching into the “We Are! Penn State!” call and response with shrieking, sign-waving fans.

This presidential primary has been an amazing ride for a demographic group that historically has been either written off or taken advantage of by presidential campaigns. A select group of student volunteers have offered long hours for the price of pizza, but this year they’re showing up in massive numbers.

On Super Tuesday alone, 3 million people younger than 30 voted in 14 primaries around the country.

More:
http://www.centredaily.com/news/local/story/521171.html

[tbyg52]

37. "Get Out Her Vote" rocks Ohio State

Ohio State students, recent graduates and established female leaders rallied behind a common cause on Saturday - educating college-age students, especially women, about the issues at stake in this year's election.

"Get Out Her Vote: Ohio Summit," a one-day conference, took place in Mendenhall Laboratory and was hosted by the Feminist Majority Foundation, the nation's largest feminist organization that works for women's equality, reproductive rights and non-violence.

"By informing and encouraging the youth population, especially women, the youngest generation of voters can make a substantial difference," said Kate Nielson, National Campus Organizer for FMF in a press release. "This conference is unique because it will provide young women valuable leadership skills that they can use on their campuses and beyond."

Issues concerning women on the 2008 ballot include affordable birth control, misleading pregnancy clinics, rights for women in Afghanistan and fair wages for women.

More:
http://media.www.thelantern.com/media/storage/paper333/news/2008/04/14/Campus/get-Out.Her.Vote.Rocks.Ohio.State-3322951.shtml

[tbyg52]

6. Campaign Finance nt

[tbyg52]

38. Jane Hamsher: DNC Files Lawsuit About Campaign Finance Weasel John McCain

As many all know by now, John McCain applied for -- and was accepted into -- the public financing system for the primary. With that acceptance came certain requirements, one of those being that he can't spend more than $56,757,500 million during the primary.

As of February 29, 2008 McCain has -- by his own admission -- exceeded that amount. The FEC Chairman David Mason says McCain can't leave the public financing system without permission of the FEC, but John McCain is thumbing his nose at that. He has imperiously announced that the law doesn't apply to him, and is refusing to answer Mason's questions regarding a loan he took out that prevents him from opting out of the public financing system.

More:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jane-hamsher/dnc-files-lawsuit-about-c_b_96605.html

[tbyg52]

42. That's all, folks!

A few more rec's for the news appreciated! :hi:

[livvy]

48. Thanks! Great thread!

:applause:

[tbyg52]

52. Thanks! Appreciate the support! nt

[AtLiberty]

47. IL: Fight Over e-Slates

http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/couriernews/news/893146,3_1_EL14_A1ESLATE_S1.article

[tbyg52]

53. Thanks!

:hi: