Voter fraud?

[Valvilis]

So my box had a bunch of e-mails in it today from all the progressive groups. Seems there was some funny business:

In Broward County, Florida, electronic voting machines counted backwards: as more people voted, the official vote count went down. [1]

In one Columbus, Ohio suburb, election officials have acknowledged that electronic voting machines credited Bush with winning 4,258 votes, even though only 638 people voted there. [2]

1. Broward Machines Count Backward, Palm Beach Post, November 5, 2004
www.palmbeachpost.com/politics/content/news/epaper/2004/11/05/a29a_BROWVOTE_1105.html

2. Glitch Gave Bush Extra Votes in Ohio, AP carried on CNN, November 5, 2004
www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/11/05/voting.problems.ap/

Apparently, the investigation starts as early as Monday.

[Seany-D]

I heard about the second, but not the first. Personally, I wonder about the ability to verify the accounting on a voting method that is entirely electronic; seems to me that something as important as the election of the leader of the US should have a paper backup (optical scan, voter punch card, etc.) to provide a surer method of verification. I say this not as a Diebold-kind of conspiracy theorist, but as a man that understands the benefit of having a paper backup after 12 years of accounting experience.

Sean "actually, I miss the switch-and-lever booths" Davis

[TheBuckeyeBitch]

If ATMs can have a paper trail (for both customers and the bank), then so can voting machines. That's my take on it, at any rate.

[Valvilis]

Candice Miller emailed me back today. She's totally pro-paper trail. She cosponsored HR 4187 which requires paper trails for all electronic voting.