All this and more in today's voting news below...
*Editor's correction. I mis-spelled Illinois Green Party Gubernatorial Candidate's name in Sunday's voting news. Unfortunately I can't blame the voting vendor. The correct spelling is Rich WhitNey, not Whitley.
AL: Official: 71 voters received "bad' ballots
http://www.sandmountainreporter.com/news/local/article_f7864c5e-daf7-11df-bd53-001cc4c03286.html Mistakes on absentee ballots may cause citizens to cast the wrong vote...On Oct. 9, a letter was sent to the 71 voters explaining the mistake along with a new, corrected ballot. Those voters are asked to fill out the entire "good" ballot and return both the "bad" and the "good" ballots.
http://www.4029tv.com/news/25435089/detail.html
BENTONVILLE, Ark. -- Those who vote early will likely come across electronic voting machines, but those machines were the source a major problem that could have seriously affected the election schedule in Benton County.
They all need a device called a PEB, or a personal electronic ballot in order to work correctly. They're used to test voting machines before Election Day to make sure there aren't any errors with their programming.
But just a few days ago, Benton County officials realized those PEBs hadn't come in the mail yet, and they might not be ready for early voting, which started on Monday.
CA: Fresno Co. candidate levels voting rights charges
http://www.fresnobee.com/2010/10/18/2123218/sterling-levels-voting-rights.html
Fresno County cuts polling sites in half
..
The county is reducing the number of precincts from 405 in June to 205 next month because of budget cuts,
CO: Black-box issue sheds light
http://www.aspentimes.com/ARTICLE/20101016/LETTER/101019869/
CT: Vote With a Click?
Candidates for Secretary of the State say they want to make voting easier, perhaps online. http://westport.patch.com/articles/vote-with-a-click-2
"Because elections must be free of the possibility of fraud, every method of voting must have a "paper trail", where, even if initially tabulated by a computer, there is still an actual paper ballot to examine if there is a question of fraud," Farrell said in the Patch Voter Guide.
DC: Flaws in D.C.'s online voting system should serve as a warning to all states*
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/18/AR2010101804529.html
Verified Voting, a nonprofit that works to ensure reliable elections, called the District's experiment "a visceral demonstration of just how serious the threats really are." (cross posted in Internet Voting Watch)
FL: Elections supervisor Kathy Dent may not run again
http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20101018/COLUMNIST/10181032/2055/NEWS?Title=Elections-supervisor-Kathy-Dent-may-not-run-again#
Dent has had a challenging fall. She was criticized for allegedly influencing a county charter review board candidate to not seek a recount in an August primary that was decided by just 151 votes. The candidate, Kathy Bolam, has since sued Dent.
Then weeks later Dent drew the ire of Democrats and some Republican candidates for unexpectedly moving up the day to send out absentee ballots to voters with little notice to candidates.
...
Dent is no stranger to criticism. In 2006 she was a frequent target and was ultimately sued because of the hotly contested congressional race that had 18,000 undervotes and made Sarasota County a national symbol for problems with touch-screen voting systems.
FL: FLORIDA VOTER PROTECTION LAWS IN A NUTSHELL
http://www.advancementproject.org/digital-library/publications/florida-voter-protection-laws-in-a-nutshell-0
GUAM: Overseas Service Members Can Email or Download Absentee Ballot for Delegate Race http://www.pacificnewscenter.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=8693:election-commission-files-&catid=45:guam-news&Itemid=156
IL: Handful of Illinois counties miss military ballot deadline, GOP threatens lawsuit
http://ballotnews.org/2010/10/15/handful-of-illinois-counties-miss-military-ballot-deadline-gop-threatens-lawsuit/
IL: Ballots will be fixed to read 'Whitney' instead of 'Whitey' *
http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2010/10/ballots-will-be-fixed-to-read-whitney-instead-of-whitey.html Chicago election officials say crews will work overtime to reprogram thousands of electronic voting machines that mistakenly list a gubernatorial candidate's name as "Rich Whitey" instead of Rich Whitney.
Chicago elections board chairman Langdon Neal said 530 machines being used for early voting and an additional 4,200 destined for the Nov. 2 election will be reprogrammed and retested.
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