EPOLL BOOKS FAILED MISERABLY IN SEPT 2006 PRIMARYELECTION
Maryland: Diebold E-Poll Book Modifications Come Into Question
By John Gideon, VotersUnite.org
October 15, 2006
Diebold's new ExpressPoll 2000/4000 electronic poll book failed miserably in the September Maryland primary election
... According to the Associated Press a software patch produced by Diebold fixed one problem that plagued the equipment in Maryland's primary. Another problem, reported by the Baltimore Sun (article in archives) required a software patch that was produced by a Diebold sub-contractor, Advantech Co., Ltd., who was responsible for the e-poll books "losing synch".
http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1886&Itemid=113
ADDRESSING THE PROBLEMS REPORTED IN MARYLANDS 2006 PRIMARY ELECTION
Feb 25, 2007
Electronic pollbook problems
à ‚¬ Some voters were incorrectly marked as "already voted" in the electronic
pollbook records.
à ‚¬ In many precincts, e-pollbook totals did not match the number of ballots cast in
the polling place that day.
à ‚¬ Party registration was sometimes listed incorrectly, forcing long-time party
members who were listed as "unaffiliated" to vote on provisional ballots.
à ‚¬ Ongoing problems with synchronization caused the records of various pollbooks
in the same polling place to be mismatched with those of the other pollbooks in
that polling place.
à ‚¬ Pollbooks sometimes crashed during the encoding of Voter Access Cards, and
then marked the voter as "already voted" upon restart.
à ‚¬ Scarcity of pollbook printers in counties that used them caused long waits to
check in at some polling places.
http://www.saveourvotes.org/reports/PrimaryProblemsReport.pdf
E-POLL BOOKS IMPROVED BUT STILL PROBLEMS IN NOV 7 2006 GEN. ELECTION-BACKUP RECOMMENDED
1) My Day at the Polls - Maryland General Election 2006
Tuesday, November 07, 2006 Avi Rubin.
...I was impressed with the performance of the e-poll books that failed so miserably in our primary.
...
I still feel that I would prefer a paper card check in system because of fear of how stuck we would be if the power went out, or if the machines failed in an unexpected way. But, with a simple augmentation to our procedures, I would be happy to use these poll books. The modification I would make would be for the check in judges to also have a printed booklet of all the registered voters, sorted in alphabetical order. It would only have to have names, and say, birth dates (to make duplicates unlikely). The judges would have to place a check mark next to each voter's name as they voted. Thus, if the e-poll books worked fine, the burden would be rather small.
...
(The privacy issues about whether it is a good idea to have so many electronic copies of this database out there is another story...)
http://avi-rubin.blogspot.com/2006/11/my-day-at-polls-maryland-general.html
2) Local Polling Places Report Some Problems
Nov 7 2006 - WTOP BALTIMORE (8:40 a.m.) - Baltimore County Election Director Jackie McDaniel tells WBAL Radio that some precincts have reported not receiving equipment and a few are reporting that their electronic voter check-in books are not working properly and voters have had to use provisional ballots.
http://www.votersunite.org/article.asp?id=6735
PAPER BALLOT LAW PASSED IN APRIL 2007
Maryland Passes Paper Ballot Bill: 'A Victory for Democracy'
By TrueVoteMD
April 10, 2007
In the closing hours of the 2007 legislative session, a four year effort to require paper ballots for Maryland's voting system passed the House and the Senate unanimously. The bill, SB 392/HB18, requires a voter-verified paper trail to be implemented in 2010
http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2369&Itemid=113
E-POLL BOOKS STILL PROBLEMS-BREAKDOWNS, NOT ENOUGH MACHINES = BOTTLENECK IN 2008 ELECTIONS
1) Election workers prepare for long day as polls open (Anne Arundel County, MD)
February 12, 2008 By E.B. FURGURSON III The Capital
...despite voting machine and polling book snafus that caused some delay when the doors opened
http://www.votersunite.org/article.asp?id=7533
2) Mechanical problems cause voting delays in Suburban Maryland
Daily Record. November 4, 2008. by STEVE LASH
Prince George County. At Takoma Park Middle School, where the electronic poll book broke down at 8 a.m., the precinct's chief Democratic election judge Marlon Sellow tried repeatedly to get a replacement from the Montgomery County Board of Elections. To calm the concerns of the voters, whose patience he praised, Sellow said he told them the precinct was not provided enough electronic poll books to accommodate the large turnout. This incomplete truth -- after all, the problem was not quantity but quality -- helped to maintain the voters' faith in the system, Sellow said.
http://www.votersunite.org/article.asp?id=8136
E-POLL BOOKS STILL PROBLEMS-BREAKDOWNS, NOT ENOUGH MACHINES = BOTTLENECK IN 2008 ELECTIONS
1) Election workers prepare for long day as polls open (Anne Arundel County, MD)
February 12, 2008 By E.B. FURGURSON III The Capital
...despite voting machine and polling book snafus that caused some delay when the doors opened
http://www.votersunite.org/article.asp?id=7533
2) Mechanical problems cause voting delays in Suburban Maryland
Daily Record. November 4, 2008. by STEVE LASH
Prince George County. At Takoma Park Middle School, where the electronic poll book broke down at 8 a.m., the precinct's chief Democratic election judge Marlon Sellow tried repeatedly to get a replacement from the Montgomery County Board of Elections. To calm the concerns of the voters, whose patience he praised, Sellow said he told them the precinct was not provided enough electronic poll books to accommodate the large turnout. This incomplete truth -- after all, the problem was not quantity but quality -- helped to maintain the voters' faith in the system, Sellow said.
http://www.votersunite.org/article.asp?id=8136
2010 AND STILL NO MONEY IN BUDGET FOR OPTICAL SCAN SYSTEMS
Gail Ewing: Accountable voting put on hold
March 12, 2010 ...Gov. O'Malley took op scan out of the FY2011 budget. Joseph Bryce, chief legislative officer for the governor, says the problem was "purely fiscal." The governor has done what it took to try to make op scan happen, but the money just wasn't there.
http://www.gazette.net/stories/03122010/policol175947_32553.php
Maryland: Diebold E-Poll Book Modifications Come Into Question
By John Gideon, VotersUnite.org
October 15, 2006
Diebold's new ExpressPoll 2000/4000 electronic poll book failed miserably in the September Maryland primary election
... According to the Associated Press a software patch produced by Diebold fixed one problem that plagued the equipment in Maryland's primary. Another problem, reported by the Baltimore Sun (article in archives) required a software patch that was produced by a Diebold sub-contractor, Advantech Co., Ltd., who was responsible for the e-poll books "losing synch".
http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1886&Itemid=113
ADDRESSING THE PROBLEMS REPORTED IN MARYLANDS 2006 PRIMARY ELECTION
Feb 25, 2007
Electronic pollbook problems
à ‚¬ Some voters were incorrectly marked as "already voted" in the electronic
pollbook records.
à ‚¬ In many precincts, e-pollbook totals did not match the number of ballots cast in
the polling place that day.
à ‚¬ Party registration was sometimes listed incorrectly, forcing long-time party
members who were listed as "unaffiliated" to vote on provisional ballots.
à ‚¬ Ongoing problems with synchronization caused the records of various pollbooks
in the same polling place to be mismatched with those of the other pollbooks in
that polling place.
à ‚¬ Pollbooks sometimes crashed during the encoding of Voter Access Cards, and
then marked the voter as "already voted" upon restart.
à ‚¬ Scarcity of pollbook printers in counties that used them caused long waits to
check in at some polling places.
http://www.saveourvotes.org/reports/PrimaryProblemsReport.pdf
E-POLL BOOKS IMPROVED BUT STILL PROBLEMS IN NOV 7 2006 GEN. ELECTION-BACKUP RECOMMENDED
1) My Day at the Polls - Maryland General Election 2006
Tuesday, November 07, 2006 Avi Rubin.
...I was impressed with the performance of the e-poll books that failed so miserably in our primary.
...
I still feel that I would prefer a paper card check in system because of fear of how stuck we would be if the power went out, or if the machines failed in an unexpected way. But, with a simple augmentation to our procedures, I would be happy to use these poll books. The modification I would make would be for the check in judges to also have a printed booklet of all the registered voters, sorted in alphabetical order. It would only have to have names, and say, birth dates (to make duplicates unlikely). The judges would have to place a check mark next to each voter's name as they voted. Thus, if the e-poll books worked fine, the burden would be rather small.
...
(The privacy issues about whether it is a good idea to have so many electronic copies of this database out there is another story...)
http://avi-rubin.blogspot.com/2006/11/my-day-at-polls-maryland-general.html
2) Local Polling Places Report Some Problems
Nov 7 2006 - WTOP BALTIMORE (8:40 a.m.) - Baltimore County Election Director Jackie McDaniel tells WBAL Radio that some precincts have reported not receiving equipment and a few are reporting that their electronic voter check-in books are not working properly and voters have had to use provisional ballots.
http://www.votersunite.org/article.asp?id=6735
Maryland Passes Paper Ballot Bill: 'A Victory for Democracy'
By TrueVoteMD
April 10, 2007
In the closing hours of the 2007 legislative session, a four year effort to require paper ballots for Maryland's voting system passed the House and the Senate unanimously. The bill, SB 392/HB18, requires a voter-verified paper trail to be implemented in 2010
http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2369&Itemid=113
E-POLL BOOKS STILL PROBLEMS-BREAKDOWNS, NOT ENOUGH MACHINES = BOTTLENECK IN 2008 ELECTIONS
1) Election workers prepare for long day as polls open (Anne Arundel County, MD)
February 12, 2008 By E.B. FURGURSON III The Capital
...despite voting machine and polling book snafus that caused some delay when the doors opened
http://www.votersunite.org/article.asp?id=7533
2) Mechanical problems cause voting delays in Suburban Maryland
Daily Record. November 4, 2008. by STEVE LASH
Prince George County. At Takoma Park Middle School, where the electronic poll book broke down at 8 a.m., the precinct's chief Democratic election judge Marlon Sellow tried repeatedly to get a replacement from the Montgomery County Board of Elections. To calm the concerns of the voters, whose patience he praised, Sellow said he told them the precinct was not provided enough electronic poll books to accommodate the large turnout. This incomplete truth -- after all, the problem was not quantity but quality -- helped to maintain the voters' faith in the system, Sellow said.
http://www.votersunite.org/article.asp?id=8136
E-POLL BOOKS STILL PROBLEMS-BREAKDOWNS, NOT ENOUGH MACHINES = BOTTLENECK IN 2008 ELECTIONS
1) Election workers prepare for long day as polls open (Anne Arundel County, MD)
February 12, 2008 By E.B. FURGURSON III The Capital
...despite voting machine and polling book snafus that caused some delay when the doors opened
http://www.votersunite.org/article.asp?id=7533
2) Mechanical problems cause voting delays in Suburban Maryland
Daily Record. November 4, 2008. by STEVE LASH
Prince George County. At Takoma Park Middle School, where the electronic poll book broke down at 8 a.m., the precinct's chief Democratic election judge Marlon Sellow tried repeatedly to get a replacement from the Montgomery County Board of Elections. To calm the concerns of the voters, whose patience he praised, Sellow said he told them the precinct was not provided enough electronic poll books to accommodate the large turnout. This incomplete truth -- after all, the problem was not quantity but quality -- helped to maintain the voters' faith in the system, Sellow said.
http://www.votersunite.org/article.asp?id=8136
2010 AND STILL NO MONEY IN BUDGET FOR OPTICAL SCAN SYSTEMS
Gail Ewing: Accountable voting put on hold
March 12, 2010 ...Gov. O'Malley took op scan out of the FY2011 budget. Joseph Bryce, chief legislative officer for the governor, says the problem was "purely fiscal." The governor has done what it took to try to make op scan happen, but the money just wasn't there.
http://www.gazette.net/stories/03122010/policol175947_32553.php
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