Florida voting machines help you pick the right candidate

[xultar]

...Down in the Sunshine State, during a week of early voting before next week's nationwide midterm election, certain voting machines have been registering some votes for Democrats as selections for the Republican candidate. For instance, Gary Rudolf, a voter at a polling site near Ft. Lauderdale, tried to vote for gubernatorial candidate Jim Davis (D); however, when the voting machine gave him the final review screen, it showed his vote was about to be cast for Charlie Crist (R). The problem took three tries to get resolved with the help of a local poll worker. Mary Cooney, a Broward County Supervisor of Elections spokeswoman, informed The Miami Herald that it's "not uncommon for screens on heavily used machines to slip out of sync, making votes register incorrectly. Poll workers are trained to recalibrate them on the spot -- essentially, to realign the video screen with the electronics inside. The 15-step process is outlined in the poll-workers manual." Huh? How exactly does a computer -- one that is being used heavily for one day a year, and not a $100 PDA -- "slip out of sync" ? Further, no one in Broward County is even sure how large of a problem this is "because there's no process for poll workers to quickly report minor issues, and no central database of machine problems." Is it any wonder that major candidates are urging voters to vote the analog old-fashioned way?

http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/30/florida-diebold-machines-help-you-pick-the-right-candidate/

Miami Herald article

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/breaking_news/15869924.htm

[ContraBass Black]

1. Any touch screen needs repeated calibration.

But the calibration process should be an on-screen prompt to "Touch here, now touch here, now touch here," not a fifteen step operation.

[Pawel K]

18. I have been using my PDA for 2 years now and have not had to recalibrate it

granted this screen is much smaller but for what the tax payers are paying for these machines something like this should not occur. And if it does like you said it should be a simple calibration.

[jberryhill]

26. Hang out at a horse track or simulcast parlor someday...

Thousands of everyday Joes put 2 bucks at a time on the line with these things, and they'd certainly riot if the machines were this bad.

[yourout]

2. I program cheap $400 industrial touchscreens that run 24/7....

with 100s of touches by a dozen different people every day.

And they NEVER need calibration or have "glitches".

It's all a load of bunk.

[knitter4democracy]

7. I was thinking that.

I mean, ATMs don't have all sorts of problems with calibration, do they? I've never had an ATM change my dollar amount or register a different number. I think this is a programmed thing, not a hardware thing.

[Toots]

11. ATM made by Diebold no less

No this excuse doesn't make sense..

[knitter4democracy]

19. I'd forgotten about that.

You're right--they are made by the same company! Hmmmm--something smells on the touchscreen voting.

[cooolandrew]

3. Video the vote

It seems to me the best way to combat the fraud is video record your vote and then contact these people who will correct it. Vote early is best.

www.videothevote.com

[magellan]

4. Anyone ever have this problem with an ATM?

I haven't. If it was common, you'd see it at least once or twice in many years of using ATMs.

[SmokingJacket]

14. Fifteen years ago I knew an ATM that would once in a while

spit out a random twenty-dollar bill. Ah, the good old days.

But other than that, no.

[Fredda Weinberg]

5. What Diebold machines in Florida?

They use ES&S in Broward, last I looked.

[xultar]

8. Here is the real article...from the Miami Herald. It didn't mention

actual machine type...

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/breaking_news/15869924.htm

I posted from a blog...so I'll remove the reference to Diebold.

[Stevepol]

9. What's the difference? Don't they have the same platform, etc.?

Bob Urosevic left ES&S for Diebold and took the same malicious programming with him he used at ES&S to get Hagel in in 96. He left his brother Todd in charge I think. It's like a family recipe.

[soup]

10. Are all of the Diebold machines used in FL optical scan?

Or, do they have touch screen machines in place, as well?

This article prompts my question:

But watchdog groups like Haengel's say there should be more information about the companies that make and maintain Florida's equipment, and about the proprietary software that is used, particularly in the 15 counties that use electronic voting machines.

Their concern isn't limited to Sequoia. Of the three companies certified to do business in Florida only one is publicly traded - Diebold Elections Systems, based in North Canton, Ohio. The other two - Sequoia of Oakland, Calif., and Elections Systems & Software of Omaha, Neb. - are privately held, so less information on them is available.

Diebold has contracts with 30 Florida counties; Sequoia has contracts with five counties; and ES&S - which had employed former Florida Secretary of State Sandy Mortham as one of its lobbyists - has contracts with 32 for regular precinct coverage, according to state records. Some companies have additional contracts to handle absentee ballots or disabled accessible machines.
http://www.sptimes.com/2006/10/31/State/Exactly_who_is_runnin.shtml

'Only' 15 Counties in FL use touch screens? If 5 of them use Sequoia touch screens, where can I find the breakdown for the other 10? Are they all ES&S? If only 15 counties are using the touch screens, how does that comply with HAVA, and equal protection, and standardizing the voting systems?

Thanks in advance for any help.
Having some comprehension problems this morning, a dasty code has filled by head with cottond soaked id oatbeal. (translation: a nasty cold has filled my head with cotton soaked in oatmeal.)

[magellan]

17. No, here's the breakdown of systems in FL

----------------- Diebold Election Systems, Inc. 2005 B (Blended)+(Plus Audio) (touchscreen)

Counties:

Brevard
Flagler
Madison
Monroe
St. Lucie
Taylor
Walton

----------------- Diebold Election Systems, Inc.Release 1-18-19, Version 2 (optical scanner)
Alachua
Baker
Calhoun
Citrus
Columbia
Desoto
Dixie
Duval
Gilchrist
Glades
Hardee
Hernando
Jefferson
Leon
Levy
Manatee
Okaloosa
Okeechobee
Osceola
Polk
Putnam
Seminole
Volusia
Wakulla

----------------- ES&S Voting System, Release 4.5 Version 2 (touchscreen)

Bay
Bradford
Broward
Charlotte
Collier
Franklin
Gadsden
Gulf
Hamilton
Hendry
Highlands
Jackson
Lafayette
Lake
Lee
Liberty
Marion
Martin
Miami-Dade
Nassau
Pasco
Sarasota
Sumter
Suwannee
Union

----------------- ES&S Voting System, Release 4.5, Version 1 (touchscreen)

Clay
Escambia
Holmes
Orange
Santa Rosa
St. Johns
Washington

----------------- Sequoia AVC "Edge" Voting System, Release Level 4.3.320 (touchscreen)

Hillsborough
Indian River
Palm Beach
Pinellas

http://election.dos.state.fl.us/votemeth/systems/countysys.asp

[soup]

29. Thank you, magellan.

I had tried using 'the' Google, but couldn't seem to put the correct search criteria together to find a list.

I appreciate your help and will save this for future reference. :hi:

[magellan]

21. FL uses Diebold, ES&S and Sequoia

See my post #17 above.

edit: directions

[nashville_brook]

27. actually, FL has NO IDEA who runs our machines...

Exactly who is running the new voting machines?
Florida's counties are not required to ask.

(from St. Pete Times -- much more at link)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=2526341&mesg_id=2526341

Florida knows more about the clerk who sells lottery tickets at the corner store than it does about the technician who troubleshoots voting machines at the corner precinct. That's because lottery ticket retailers must undergo criminal background checks, but there are no such state requirements for the employees of the companies that manufacture and maintain voting equipment for Florida's 67 counties.

A Florida felon can't vote, but he or she can own, sell, program and fix the machines that nonfelons use to vote - unless counties prohibit that in their individual contracts.

[nashville_brook]

28. DIEBOLD has 30 counties in Florida

-- Sequoia has contracts with five counties;
-- ES&S, which had employed former Florida Secretary of State Sandy Mortham as one of its lobbyists - has contracts with 32 for regular precinct coverage,
-- Some companies have additional contracts to handle absentee ballots or disabled accessible machines.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=2526341&mesg_id=2526341

[Rene]

6. I wonder if folks should write down serial number and make of machines

and take pictures/vidwo of machines they see performing wrongly. Those machines should be locked and sealed and examined for their software code. I good programmer would find the 'fixed' programming.

I'm absolutely positive that there's software hacking that's already in place....if not at the local machine, then were votes are centrally tabulated. I wonder EXACTLY where that is?

My background is in Mainframe and Distributed computers/data centers for 40 years. I've sen it all. I KNOW computer based voting can and will be hacked via internal programming or outside remote access and vote count switching. Voter suppression with electronic purging etc is another whole
story.

The companies that 'own' these machines will charge a fortune to change the programming for EVERY future election....and will have to be re-examined for fraud at every election......this will be an on-going nightmare.

[Coexist]

12. why don't these articles ever mention that

THESE FUCKING GLITCHES ONLY EVER FAVOR THE FUCKING REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES.

COME ON. WHAT THE FUCK.

[xultar]

22. Ding Ding Ding! n/t

[Coexist]

24. add yet ANOTHER state to that list: Texas

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/10/31/103523/75

[Hav]

13. .

And this is still early voting. What will happen on the day of the election? Or Presidential elections?
I've said it before, I have my doubts that these companies can't build reliable machines for such an important purpose like elections. That's crap. They wouldn't be in the business anymore if they were so bad.

[Senator]

15. It's always the "voter's fault" -- that's the conspiracy

It is not the voter's job to make sure their vote is not stolen.

They now have NO IDEA how many switched votes got past people who were confused by the "review screen" or felt rushed or whatever.

It it THEIR RESPONSIBILITY to make sure the screen is NEVER "out of sync."

They now have an invalid election (again).

Everywhere an "out of sync-able" machine is used, there is a false result.

No paper ballot, no confidence. Period.

--

[SoCalDem]

16. THAT's IT.. All those guys whose wives get pissed off at the porn

now have an excuse..

"Honey, ya'see ..I was working on my Excel spreadsheet and when the computer saw the word "spread", the goldarned thing just "slipped out of sync" and started showing Boobies :)

:evilgrin:

[ArmchairMeme]

20. PDA comparison good

I have a PDA which is also a phone. I have not had to do a screen recalibration since I installed the operating system software. I realized that whenever I make a phone call my cheek rests upon the screen for the duration of the call. This action does necessitate a screen calibration nor does the repeated use of the onscreen buttons for any of the software applications.

I firmly believe this is a programmed software implementation designed into these voter machines.

As I have never used one of these voter machines another question comes to mind do these voter machines have infrared ports? This could be the doorway to these "glitches".

[reprehensor]

23. Theft.

Flat out theft.

[happydreams]

25. You need to fix your subject heading

capitalize "right". :evilgrin: