Is anyone concerned with the electronic voting machines?

Among many other election-related concerns, yes, but I’m sure you could guess that.

I think this article on Kucinch’s appeal for progressives to vote and the ensuing comments (as of a few hours ago) pretty much cover all the bases. It’s all very difficult to reconcile.

Moreover, our joke excuse for Secretary of State and other establishment pols likely have conspired to keep the Greens and other third parties off the ballot.

I am concerned with the SEIU overseeing and working as technicians on the electronic voting machines in certain states.

I have been for years, and am honestly shocked that many people are only finding out about this issue now. I mean, that video is a few years old.

Then again, considering how inept and/or corrupt many in government are, I supposed it’s only fitting that those who manage the elections and those who make the machines are inept as well.

it may be the reason if there is a reason to contest election results from now on. All the voters need to get wind of is a glitch that may have lost their vote and we’ll have a SHTF scenario.

@palerider There have been reports of machines in Nevada that will automatically check Harry Reid.

@Nullo Yeah, I saw that. But the officials say that it couldn’t possibly happen and are blaming it on voter error. Who’s to know which is true? Faulty machines or inept voters? That’s the rub…

@palerider There is a third, more unsettling possibility: That there are parties deliberately tampering with machines. Which goes well with other reports of voter fraud.

@Nullo I consider the tampering under faulty machines. And I am sure that if either major political party could, they would tamper with them.

@palerider Ah, sorry, I was referring to parties as in, “party of four.”

I’ve never quite understood what’s so hard about voting and counting ballots by hand. We manage to do it here in the UK, and virtually all of the votes are counted within 8 hours of the polls closing. Why bother with machines?

@meiosis AFAIK, there was much unhappiness stemming from the 2000 election. Certain parties insisted on recount after recount after recount, and it was believed that, were the process automated, we could have avoided all of that unpleasantness.

Link

Money quotes.

According to the New York Times, O’Dell wrote a letter to Republican contributors in August that said “I am committed to helping Ohio deliver its electoral votes to the president next year.”

Edwards said that “people who make voting machines need to be real careful when they talk about delivering elections.”

Keep in mind O’Dell is the head of Diebold Election Systems. The company that made/makes a majority of the machines.

I thought the 2000 election difficulties were caused, in part, by voting machines. I’d never heard of hanging chads until then.

@Nullo What was the sarcasm for? ” Ah, sorry, I was referring to parties as in, “party of four.”

I was basically agreeing with you.

@meiosis It’s a lot harder to count @ 350 million votes (US) versus 65 million (UK) spread out over 3,717,813 sq mi (9,629,090 km2)US versus 94,060 sq mi (243,610 km2 )UK. And when not all citizens actually speak English, even though it is a requirement cor citizenship.

@palerider No sarcasm intended; I thought that you had misunderstood me.