E Voting
Ernie the Attorney points today to a Findlaw article regarding the perils of electronic voting. The security issues are complicated, and a high rate malfunctions is troubling. The big push to electronic voting systems came after the nation’s nailbiting watch over the Florida recount where the presidential election hung over pregnant, dented and detached chads.
Elections, like most of politics, tend to be messy affairs. The punchcard system had the benefit of being well known, tried and tested. Yes it has major flaws, but the system had developed extensive measures to address these flaws. Most elections are not close enough to need to review the voting system. On the few occasions where the race it tight, the recount system works to assure the accuracy of the result. I have personal experience with recounts. Last June I was appointed to a panel charged with conducting a recount of the local primary election. It was the last election in local Wayne County to use punch cards. It was a long and tedious experience, examining every ballot, even though the turnout was light, it took us hours to complete. But through the experience, I saw the genius of the system. Out of the thousands of ballots, issues came up with only a handful. The rules gave us guidance on how to deal with pregnant, dented, and partially detached chads, and we worked through all of the challenged ballots. With us on the recount, we had old election officials, county clerks, and attorneys (like me), and I felt very confident in the outcome of our work.
Now, with electronic voting, all of these experienced folks are out of their depths. 30 years working the polls gives you no understanding of a complicated electronic device like an e-voting machine. Now, I guess, election challenges will involve technology experts and consultants. As none of them probably live around here, the candidates and maybe the county will have to shell out serious cash for these folks to come in and give their opinions (we all got “conscripted” into service (you do not say “no” to a local judge) and paid a statutory rate (like $100 per day)). Technology, as usual, does not completely solve the problems it was brought in to address, it just makes the problems more complicated, sophisticated, and beyond the understanding of most of the people involved.
