Re: An Exit Strategy for Electronic Voting? VOTE PROVISIONAL TO PROTEST PAPERLESS TOUCHSCREENS

[Ralph Shnelvar <ralphs@xxxxxxxxx>]

s much as I respect Bob and Bob's opinion, I respectfully disagree.

Whether _your_ vote counts or not is almost totally irrelevant.  If there
are a large number of fake votes, it pretty much doesn't matter how you
vote.

It is far more important to make sure that there isn't spurious noise (or
deliberate manipulation) in the system.

Absentee ballots should be outlawed or severely limited.  Absentee ballots
are an open invitation for abuse.

DREs and other computer counting systems are suspect for all the reasons
that we have been discussing.

Thus the most effective (to me) method of striking a blow for hand counted
paper ballots (or, at least, paper ballots that are the gold standard for
what counts as a vote) is to start a movement that fores officials to sit up
and take notice: provisional ballots as political protest.

Thus I side with Pete.

Ralph Shnelvar



On Sun, 27 Aug 2006 12:05:13 -0600, you wrote:

>I had thought to vote in this manner in 2004 but thought better of it when I 
>realized that my vote might get "set aside" if it became associated with 
>other ballots that had a higher hurdle to overcome in proving legitimacy.
>
>Are we forgetting the snafus in 2004 in Ohio and other states where 
>provisional ballots were tossed aside and were considered the last ballot 
>type to use in vote totals announced in vote tallies, sometimes not even 
>being counted till after results had been announced?  If this past election 
>teaches us anything it is that the votes need to be in hand at the time of 
>the close of the polls and not be part of a "dubious class" of ballots that 
>may be harder to claim as legitimate.  If enough people do utilize this form 
>of voting, it could create a new phenomenon of intentionally voting by 
>provisional ballot, but I think it may antagonze election officials and 
>tempt them into lumping them with suspect ballots that may only get counted 
>in close races, after the fact, and possibly with less oversight.
>
>I have adopted the absentee ballot voting method BUT IN PERSON in a clerk's 
>office.  I can ask for my absentee ballot in person, wait for a few minutes 
>while they prepare it, vote in the clerk's office and turn it in in person 
>into their ballot box (in the secrecy sleeve) after signing the outside of 
>the envelope.  There it joins other absentee ballots that have been dropped 
>off, and I have never had to wait in line to vote.  No one checks whether I 
>have any literature with me that helps me understand the issues on the 
>ballot or whether I have campaign literature with me to refresh my memory.   
>The staff is very helpful and I leave after feeling that the manner in which 
>I cast my vote was at least as clear as I could make it on paper.  Whether I 
>have the same confidence in how my ballot is optically scanned along with 
>others is a separate matter that still needs legislative refining, but I've 
>avoided using DRE's and avoided risking loss of the absentee ballot in the 
>mail.   And since I vote during early voting periods, my vote is reported as 
>part of the election night tally, so I feel some satisfaction in thinking my 
>vote was counted as part of the vote night total instead of wondering if it 
>languishes in provisional "maybe it will be counted" land.
>
>Bob McGrath
>
>
>>From: Ralph Shnelvar <ralphs@xxxxxxxxx>
>>Reply-To: ralphs@xxxxxxxxx
>>To: <cvv-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>>Subject: Re: An Exit Strategy for Electronic Voting?  VOTE PROVISIONAL TO 
>>PROTEST PAPERLESS TOUCHSCREENS
>>Date: Sat, 26 Aug 2006 22:19:07 -0600
>>
>>Pete:
>>
>>I love this idea and I'll try to think of ways to publicize the idea and
>>have people do it.
>>
>>Ralph Shnelvar
>>
>>On Sat, 26 Aug 2006 12:57:54 -0600, you wrote:
>>
>> >now that I have finished serving as an election judge at the recent 
>>primary
>> >election, I feel free to air a dangerous idea.
>> >
>> >Massive provisional voting.  No, make that MASSIVE PROVISIONAL VOTING!!!
>> >
>> >I realized how dangerous this idea was, when I tried to discuss it during
>> >poll judge training.  When the officials saw where my questions were
>> >heading, they cut me off, changed the subject, and refused to recognize 
>>me,
>> >preventing the gathering from hearing it: May any voter, by voluntary
>> >preference, choose a provisional ballot, if they would rather vote on 
>>paper
>> >than touch-screen DRE?
>> >
>> >If you truly object to paperless electronic voting, then don't do it!  
>>You
>> >have a choice.  And, by HAVA, this choice is universally available
>> >nation-wide!  No, we're not talking about mail-in or absentee ballots.
>> >
>> >VOTE PROVISIONAL to TELL OFFICIALS you DEMAND A PAPER BALLOT.
>> >
>> >Believe me, they will notice!  Provisional ballots are a manpower 
>>nightmare;
>> >they are far more costly to cope with than even absentee ballots to 
>>process,
>> >since they can't be matched up with mail-out documentation.  Election
>> >departments dread provisional ballots, and they will go to great lengths
>> >(within HAVA rules) to avoid them.
>> >
>> >Admittedly, provisional ballots face more bureaucratic hurdles than any
>> >other method, and there is risk of disqualification, error, or even
>> >mishandling.  I suppose election administrators could even deliberately 
>>lose
>> >provisional ballots.  Onsey-twosey, that would be hard to counteract; but 
>>to
>> >disenfranchise hundreds or thousands of organized and attentive electors 
>>in
>> >the glare of publicity -- I think they would recognize the peril.
>> >
>> >If restoring the paper ballot is not your priority, then this isn't for 
>>you.
>> >If you think a DRE is the lesser of some evils, then this isn't for you.  
>>If
>> >you hope somebody will come up with something better than paperless
>> >electronic voting sometime, but in the meantime you'll put up with it, 
>>then
>> >this isn't for you.
>> >
>> >Or if your partisan paranoia prevents you from any violation of 
>>convention
>> >that might imperil your precious preference, then you're whipped, they 
>>got
>> >you, you're going to give it up to some bits and circuits -- the vendors 
>>and
>> >the county clerks know a wimp when they see his/her electronic vote.
>> >
>> >But if you care enough to stand up to them, to risk it, to put this above
>> >partisan issues, this is for you.
>> >
>> >I DEMAND A PAPER BALLOT, AND I'LL VOTE PROVISIONAL TO GET IT!
>> >
>> >I personally have voted only provisional ballots since (including) the 
>>2006
>> >general election.  My money is where my mouth is.  How about you?
>> >
>> >Best hopes,
>>