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RE: Hand Counting and Luddites

Peter, you miss the point, unique to Colorado and Nebraska -though
Florida is trying to copy us:

Paper ballots can be declared "official" but current Colorado law
means humans can NEVER count them. The law (quoted below) says any
recount (resulting from a close outcome or a candidate challenging
the outcome) MUST be done by the original counting method -as
Boulder County Commissioner Paul Danish found out in a close race in
1994. All they did was run the electronic count over and over, in
spite of his going to court to ask for a hand count.

This violates the basic principle of accounting: cross-check your
sums DIFFERENT ways.

Until this law is changed, the paper is irrelevant -it can ONLY be
counted by the same proprietary, secret system.

This is an example of how a "chain is only as strong as its weakest
link." You might think the paper is a "backup" system. It isn't,
now.

Evan Ravitz, programmer since 1968, friend of the Collier family,
who wrote the original book on this subject, "Votescam" 15 years
ago.


Most laws in the country can be found at www.findlaw.com

Colorado, then California, then Texas:


Colorado Revised Statute 1-10.5-108. Method of recount.

Statute text
(1) The recount shall be of the ballots cast, and the votes shall be
recorded on sheets other than those used at the election.

(2) Unless otherwise directed by the secretary of state, the ballots
cast shall be recounted utilizing the same procedures, methods, and
processes that were utilized for the original count of the ballots
cast.

History
Source: L. 99: Entire article added with relocations, p. 487,  13,
effective July 1. L. 2001: Entire section amended, p. 301,  4,
effective August 8.

Annotations
Editor's note: This section was formerly numbered as 1-10-306.

http://198.187.128.12/colorado/lpext.dll?f=templates&fn=fs-main.htm&2.0


California Elections Code:

15627.  If in the election which is to be recounted the votes
were recorded by means of a punchcard voting system or by
electronic or electromechanical vote tabulating devices, the
voter who files the declaration requesting the recount may
select whether the recount shall be conducted manually or by
means of the voting system used originally, or both.


BILL NUMBER: SB 1547	CHAPTERED  09/28/94

	CHAPTER   920
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE   SEPTEMBER 28, 1994

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/waisgate?WAISdocID=76483324700+0+0+0&WAISaction=retrieve


Texas:

§ 214.042. Counting Method for Recount

(a) A person requesting a recount of electronic voting system ballots has a choice of:
(1) an electronic recount using the same program as the original count;
(2) an electronic recount using a corrected program under Section 214.046(c), if obtainable; or
(3) a manual recount as provided by Subchapter A.

Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 211, § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1986.
Amended by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., 2nd C.S., ch. 59, § 18, eff. Oct. 20, 1987.

http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/cgi-bin/cqcgi?CQ_SESSION_KEY=ZYDMGPQMUSIQ&CQ_QUERY_HANDLE=128157&CQ_CUR_DOCUMENT=1&CQ_TLO_DOC_TEXT=YES


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Evan Ravitz         303 440 6838         evan@xxxxxxxx
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