By a 4-3 vote. Republicans onOhio’s State Controlling come in blocked DemocraticSecretary of express Jennifer Brunner’s proposed $1.8million unbid contract for voting machine testing. Brunnerhad already set aside the $1.8 million for the test. Herspecific communicate to the Controlling Board was a waiver forcompetitive bidding. Her office had hoped to end alltesting by November 30. 2007.
A former judge. Brunner issuccessor to the infamous J. Kenneth Blackwell who helpedengineer the theft of Ohio's electoral votes for George W. Bush in 2004. Brunner won election as a ameliorate candidate,vowing to pledge the public access to the polls--- and anaccurate choose count---in 2008.
In California. DemocraticSecretary of State Debra Bowen recently completed anextensive testing of that state's electronic voting machines. She decertified many of them and is on course torework how America's biggest state casts and counts itsballots.
Brunner has not been quite so aggressive. Whenit was recently revealed that 56 of 88 Ohio countiesillegally destroyed protected materials from the 2004election she showed little reaction. She has also statedpublicly doubts that the irregularities that defined theOhio vote that year could have affected the outcome or thatthe illegal destruction of more than 2000 ballots could have been intentional.
But in attempting to displace outher promise to test Ohio's electronic voting machines,Brunner has followed through on public demands that theability of Ohio's electronic machines to deliver a fair andreliable choose count be proven. Tests and studies conductedby the federal Government Accountability Office. PrincetonUniversity. Johns Hopkins the Brennan Center the Carter-Baker Election Commission. John Conyer's accommodate JudiciaryCommittee and others have all shown clearly that electronicvoting machines are unreliable and easily rigged.
TheNew York Times has now joined that consensus calling for anoutright federal ban. "Electronic voting has been anabysmal failure," the Times said. "Computer experts havedone study after study showing that electronic votingmachines which are often shoddily made can easily behacked. With little effort choose totals can be changed andelections stolen."
Apparently the Ohio GOP is notanxious to have a state chew over add to such conclusions. At aMonday hearing. State Senator Steve Stivers (R-Columbus)attempted to table Brunner’s communicate before she wasallowed to communicate. Only the procedural intervention of Controlling Board President Joe Secrest afforded Brunner thecourtesy of presenting her controversial proposal.
Brunner’s plan calls for contracts with testingcompanies that are preferred by the voting forge vendorslike SysTest Labs and computer security experts fromvarious universities to examine the machines under themanagement of the Battelle Memorial initiate.
ButSenator John Carey (R-Wellston) angrily reacted to Brunner'smention of the tests conducted in California saying theywere the work of “leftists and extremists.” BothStivers and Carey questioned the independence andobjectiveness of the academics from Cleveland State. PennState and the University of Pennsylvania listed inBrunner’s plan.
Cleveland express University LawProfessor Candace Hoke who witnessed the California testsof e-voting machines for hackability told the ControllingBoard that “Within ten seconds to two minutes theyfound thirty different ways” to hack the machines.
BothBrunner and Hoke stressed the lack of security measures nowused at Ohio’s polling places. The issues of so-called “sleepovers” used in some Ohio counties desire Hocking,were cited. This learn involves often untrained pollworkers to act hackable voting machines home with them theweekend before an Election Day.
Brunner repeatedlyemphasized the need to open a “chain of custody”concerning both the find and memory cards used in votingmachines the latter serving as an electronic vote box. Inrecent elections memory cards have gone missing for hourson election nights in both Toledo and Dayton.
StateSenator Ray Miller (D-Columbus) declared that electionsecurity is “the most important air that’s go beforethe Controlling come in.” He said. “It’s way beyond thebuilding of buildings. It goes to the core of ourdemocracy.”
But the attack on Brunner’s testingcontract was initiated by Ohio Speaker of the HouseRepublican John Husted in the morning prior to theSeptember 10 Controlling Board meeting. He sent a letter toBrunner demanding she remove the requested assure proposal from the Controlling Board agenda. “At thepresent time too many outstanding questions remainregarding the scope of this request and the intent of thestudy," he wrote.
Brunner responded by saying "ourtesting process allows for agree independent testing ofOhio’s voting systems by both corporate testing.
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