States Prepare for Tests of Voting- System Changes
13281
Local election officials are bracing for a long night and delays that may prevent some states from reporting final tallies until early Wednesday.
51343
Colorado voters will decide on Nov. 2 whether the state will change the way it allots its nine Electoral College votes and the change could decide whether George W. Bush or John Kerry wins the presidency.
113226
Local elections in 23 counties ran without a hitch on Tuesday in the biggest test yet of the state's new law requiring a photo ID to cast a ballot, election officials said.
5660
As the November presidential election nears, several groups are mobilizing to monitor the voting process -- including a group of observers from across the globe and over a thousand techies who will help evaluate voting machines. By Laila Weir.
15566
A Denver-based e-voting testing laboratory and experts from three universities have been hired by the state of Ohio to undertake independent evaluations of the states&#39; e-voting hardware, software, and processes. The move is aimed at finding and fixing potential problems before the 2008 presidential election.The work is being done under a $1.7 million contract awarded earlier this summer by the state to get an in-depth picture of how the e-voting system is working. Since the 2000 presidential election,&#160;critics of e-voting systems have voiced concerns&#160;about the accuracy, integrity, and security of e-voting results and have pushed for tougher means of ensuring that every vote cast is properly counted.Ohio has faced e-voting problems in several elections in which electronic machines were used, including a&#160;May 2006 primary election,&#160;when a host of accuracy problems were reported.The evaluation process was announced by newly elected Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner after she took office in January. Chris Nance, Ohio&#39;s assistant secretary of state, said Tuesday that the review will test a representative sample of the 40,000 e-voting machines and systems used in Ohio&#39;s 88 counties to determine what changes and improvements need to be made. &quot;This is a risk assessment&quot; being done to identify potential vulnerabilities in the related systems, Nance said.After a competitive hiring process this summer, Ohio tapped Denver-based SysTest Labs to conduct the evaluation. SysTest Labs is accredited by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission for e-voting system certification and testing.In a first for Ohio, and perhaps the nation, three computer security researchers from three major universities -- Pennsylvania State University, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of California, Santa Barbara -- are also conducting independent evaluations of the state&#39;s e-voting systems. Those reviews will be submitted along with the ones being done by SysTest Labs.Having evaluations from various sources &quot;creates this range of feedback,&quot; said Nance.The e-voting hardware in the state is primarily from Omaha-based Election Systems &amp; Software and Allen, Texas-based Premier Election Solutions, formerly known as Diebold Election Systems. Two counties use machines from Austin-based Hart InterCivic.Brian Phillips, president of SysTest Labs, said that the testing processes began Sept. 24 and will be completed by Nov. 30. The performance testing covers hardware and election management software, as well as the polling place devices and the central counting applications that tally all the votes, he said.The company is conducting configuration management testing to ensure that the e-voting system hardware and software matches the specifications of the certified systems allowed in elections across Ohio, he said. Also being reviewed are systems that prevent any changes or updates in the hardware or software without the approval of election officials.Final reports from the reviews will be delivered Dec. 14 to Brunner&#39;s office. Those reports will then be evaluated by the governor and legislature for any action that may be needed, Nance said.&quot;It is certainly the intention... for any secretary of state... to put in place a set of policies and procedures&quot; to ensure that every vote is properly counted, Nance said. &quot;The American electorate has seen that there are issues related to electronic voting. We would not have spent $1.7 million for this study if we felt we were on a fool&#39;s errand. It is our responsibility to put together our very best effort to do that.&quot;&quot;Is this a perfect plan? Is this the perfect approach? I don&#39;t think there is anything that is a perfect plan or approach. This is our best plan.&quot;Computerworld is an InfoWorld affiliate.
433895
Voters living abroad face an unwieldy system of absentee balloting that could prevent their votes from being counted.
425220
Election Day is still two weeks away, but voters across the state have the option Monday of beginning to cast their ballots early in this pivotal battleground state.
204796
State legislatures, always the undercard of the nation&#039;s elections, are suddenly important.
291752
A look at a number of states where poll monitors are massing for Tuesday's election. Authorities worry they could confuse or intimidate voters, particularly where races are close.
182201
The administration of Gov. Ed Rendell plans to put state workers at county election offices on Nov. 2 to watch for any problems in this battleground state.
109868
A team of international observers will travel to five states beginning Friday to monitor preparations for the Nov. 2 presidential election.
599865
The state set a court-ordered rule for recounting touch-screen ballots in close elections Friday, but voter-rights groups complained the changes fell far short of what is needed to ensure a fair vote.
551804
Most area voters won&#39;t need a lawyer Tuesday when they go to the polls. But they may need a little patience. &quot;Bring ID, and don&#39;t get discouraged when the lines are long,&quot; said St.
387954
Tens of thousands of poll monitors, challengers, lawyers and other activist observers are expected to clog voting precincts in battleground states Tuesday in what will probably be the most scrutinized U.S. election in at least 40 years.
590023
Florida's 67 county elections supervisors proposed dramatic reforms, including replacing Election Day with 11 days of voting and doing away with voting precincts.
643624
BAGHDAD -- Iraqi officials said yesterday that they must recount votes from about 300 ballot boxes because of various discrepancies, delaying the final results from the landmark national elections. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of other ballots were declared invalid because of alleged tampering.
143310
Voters clamored for reform after the fiasco in Florida four years ago. But when they return to vote again for president on Nov. 2, many may be surprised to discover how little has changed.