By Luther Weeks on January 30, 2009
Includes many of the same recommendations in the Principles and Best Practices for Post-Election Audits and expands the scope to include auditing of the whole election process.
Posted in Post-Election Audits, Reports
By Luther Weeks on January 28, 2009
We conclude, based on our observations and analysis of audit reports submitted to the Secretary of the State that the November post-election audits still do not inspire confidence…Among our greatest concerns are the discrepancies between machine counts and hand-counts reported to the Secretary of the State by several municipalities. In many cases, these discrepancies are not thoroughly and reasonably explained. We believe that the ad-hoc counting procedures used by many municipalities were not sufficient to count ballots accurately and efficiently
In some cases as many as twenty-four (24) fewer ballots were counted by hand than recorded by optical scanners. For individual candidate races, vote counts between hand counts and scanner tapes varied by as much as three-hundred-sixty-six (366) votes in one race or as much as 46% in another.
We find no reason to attribute all errors to either humans or machines.
Posted in Chain of Custody, CT, Post-Election Audits
By Luther Weeks on January 27, 2009
“Our economy is in dire straights,” she said. “We have a desperate need for strong leadership in our state. People are looking for new leadership full of action and creative ideas full of vision.”
Posted in Election2010
By Luther Weeks on January 26, 2009
Article in Akron Beacon Journal expresses concerns with a statewide recount. What about a nationwide recount? What would the National Popular Vote cause?
We have nothing against the well intentioned voters and legislators supporting the National Popular Vote Agreement. We encourage them to recognize and consider the impact of unintended consequences.
Posted in National, National Popular Vote, Recounts/Recanvasses
By Luther Weeks on January 21, 2009
the “gross” error rate is about 1 in 1000, or a gross accuracy of 99.91%.
Posted in National, Post-Election Audits
By Luther Weeks on January 13, 2009
Another story of candidates and parties shorted votes. This time it is the Working Families Party and Joe Courtney.
Update 1/15: Add Sherman and Plainfield to the list
Posted in CT, CT Skulduggery and Errors
By Luther Weeks on January 8, 2009
We call for action to enhance integrity and confidence in Connecticut elections, during the 2009 legislative session.
We believe the incremental costs of post-election audits that meet the requirements of the petition are appropriate considering the key role voting plays in democracy. Yet, we recognize that less costly alternatives may need to be considered.
Posted in Chain of Custody, CT, CT Law, Post-Election Audits
By Luther Weeks on January 8, 2009
Secretary Bysiewicz slammed a PEW report on Military voting citing their incorrect information on Connecticut. She also stated strong objections to voting via Internet.
Update 1/16: PEW Director responds, defends report.
Posted in CT, Internet Voting
By Luther Weeks on January 3, 2009
Could IRV (Instant Runoff Voting) avoid recounts? A slew of stories from Minnesota claim that recounts are a headache and that IRV is the cure.
Recounting Is Not A Problem – Its A Symptom Of Election Integrity in Minnesota
Posted in FAQ, Instant Runoff Voting