Voting security under scrutiny

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Voting security under scrutiny « Thread Started on Dec 21, 2007, 9:00am » --------------------------------------------------------------------------------Voting security under scrutinyCincinnati Post - OH,USAread at source> http://news.cincypost.com/apps/pbcs.dll ... /712200371 By Julie Carr Smyth AP COLUMBUS -

Voting security under scrutiny

By Julie Carr Smyth
Associated Press

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COLUMBUS - Ohio's elections chief dashed confidence in the state's election system last week with her revelations that voting machines are vulnerable to manipulation.

The findings of an in-depth security review of the equipment present a serious setback to Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, who made a campaign promise to restore voter confidence in a system marred by allegations of partisan manipulation and inequity.

Following Friday's announcement, the Democratic official finds herself three months before a presidential primary with election officials, voting experts and citizens once again wondering whether their vote is safe.

Brunner admits she had hoped the cutting-edge analysis that gave unprecedented access to both corporate and academic scientists would turn out differently.

"I was very disappointed," she said.

She responded to the findings swiftly, working long hours for seven straight days after receiving the results - surrounded by lawyers, computer forensics experts, and election experts - to come up with her solution. It includes a $31 million recommendation to replace all electronic machines by November or, if that's not possible, to give voters a chance to vote on paper in counties where the machines remain in place.

To ease lines that might result, she also proposes early voting up to 15 days ahead of the election.

Brunner said, despite the shocking results, she believes the laser-beam look at controversial electronic voting technology eventually had to be taken. Scientists accessed codes in machines that give the computers instructions, met with experts from the voting machine companies, and questioned election officials with inside knowledge of the system, making it the most comprehensive study in the nation.

"It's better to know, and then you know where you have to go from there, than not to know and keep wandering around in the dark," Brunner said.

She said the feedback she's received since Friday has been overwhelmingly positive, with some people even thanking her for finally looking hard at the technology that has worried many voters for years.

Yet history suggested the results of the study would not be a big confidence-builder.

In California this summer, Secretary of State Debra Bowen pared back use of two kinds of machines and placed strict security limits on others after her review - forcing counties to scramble for alternate equipment just six months before that state's primary.

And the last time Ohio conducted such a machine review, Republican Secretary of State Ken Blackwell was forced to call off a plan to deploy new machines for the 2004 primary after 57 potential security flaws were pinpointed.

While overseeing his review, however, Blackwell was an honorary co-chair to President Bush's re-election campaign in Ohio and spearheaded a ballot initiative to ban gay marriage. After Bush won a close race in 2004, with a boost from the gay marriage amendment, the criticism intensified.

Blackwell's partisan activity provoked skepticism about his official acts, including the many directives he issued in advance of the 2004 and 2006 elections that were intended to clarify mandates of the federal Help America Vote Act. It also tainted his security review.

Brunner worked with machine makers to address the security concerns Blackwell's review unearthed. But she saw a dive back into the unseen workings of the electronic machines, called "black boxes" by their critics, as crucial to squelching any lingering doubt about the technology, particularly among fellow Democrats most cynical about Blackwell.

Brunner has made little formal use of a 40-member citizen advisory board she created specifically to help her ease tensions among anxious voters. In her first year, the panel has met only twice and made no formal recommendations.

She said she turns to advisory panel members routinely, more on an individual basis, to guide her executive decisions. She said engaging a wide range of people - from Ohio Republican Party political director Jonathan Gormley to Blackbox Voting founder Bev Harris - is helping assure elections will go more smoothly.

After forcing the resignations of the entire elections board in troubled Cuyahoga County, Brunner said she has rebuilt lines of communication with the 88 county election boards in her first year and built good will by clearing up a number of Blackwell directives that were spawning confusion.

Brunner remains intensely focused on bringing the election system up to snuff in time for the 2008 general election, said Peg Rosenfield, a League of Women Voters election expert who sits on the advisory board.