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California County Sues State Over E-Vote Ban

Posted by timothy on from the when-mandates-attack dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Riverside County teamed up this week with groups representing the disabled to sue California's secretary of state, who banned voting machines that, the plaintiffs argue, help the disabled exercise their right to vote anonymously. Here's the story. I guess Diebold does have some fans afterall."

5 of 33 comments (clear)

  1. Ha! by FreeMath · · Score: 4, Insightful
    "This is another flip-flop by state officials, based on shifting political winds, rather than considering what is best for the people of California," County Supervisor John Tavaglione said. "They're punishing us for using a system that has worked effectively and without error." Emphasis mine
    Well how would you know if there was an error if there is no physical evidence. Looks like someone forgot to check their facts.
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  2. As a disabled person myself by magefile · · Score: 4, Insightful

    BS. I mean, I understand what they're thinking, but this is insecure!

    Try voting with a write-in, or ask someone you trust (relative? friend? hired personal aid?) to help, either in-booth, or with a write-in.

    IANAL, but I believe you are allowed to bring an assistant into the booth if you so choose.

    1. Re:As a disabled person myself by bergeron76 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      IANAL, but I believe you are allowed to bring an assistant into the booth if you so choose.

      Just out of curiosity, why would you have to be a Lawyer to know if you are allowed to bring an assistant into a voting booth?

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    2. Re:As a disabled person myself by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

      But that's the point they're making. If you need an assistant, your vote is no longer private and secret.

      Of course, the real issue here isn't anything that is suggested in the article. The truth is that they just want to take advantage of disabled people and they see e-voting as a way to do this.

  3. This is Asinine by jmt9581 · · Score: 4, Insightful
    The ban only applies to machines that don't leave a proper paper trail, these lobbying groups should be putting pressure on Diebold to release a product that doesn't suck.

    "This is another flip-flop by state officials, based on shifting political winds, rather than considering what is best for the people of California," County Supervisor John Tavaglione said. "They're punishing us for using a system that has worked effectively and without error."

    What a disab^H^H^H^H stupid thing to say. This totally overlooks the fact that there's no error because the machines leave no way for people to verify correct results in an election. That's like a hospital not recording statistics on surgically caused deaths and then claiming that they have no record of any deaths being caused under surgery.

    Until a suitable alternative presents itself, the disabled will have to cast their vote in an environment of reduced anonymity. That's been the procedure before the Diebold machines were available, and that should be the procedure until a suitable alternative to paper ballots is made available.

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