As one who has been and remains absolutely opposed to direct-recording electronic (DRE) voting machines, I was thrilled to read this news this week out of Ohio.
Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner issued a short, unambiguous and to-the-point directive [PDF] last night, to all 56 counties in Ohio still employing unverifiable Direct Recording Electronic (DRE, usually touch-screen) voting machines, that they must make a paper ballot available at the polling place to any voter who wishes to vote on one.
Her directive even goes so far as to require those paper ballots actually be counted “on election night as part of the unofficial canvass.”
Ohio’s Secretary of State Issues Directive to Allow All Voters to Vote on Paper in 2008!
Electronic machines using proprietary software are the greatest threat to the integrity of our voting process in the history of this nation. They should be banned. The only automation allowed should be electronic scanning machines that scan ballots marked by voters, ballots that can also be read by human beings and audited.
Congress should intervene and pass legislation to put an end to the DRE machines, and provide assurance by requiring paper ballots that all American’s votes will be counted, counted honestly, and subject to review and audit to insure the integrity of our elections.
