The following letter was sent in response to an idea floated by Delegate Obie Patterson, Chair of the House Subcommittee on Elections, for two voting systems in each precinct -- one Diebold and one optical scan.  After this letter was sent the House backed off considering this option.

February 27, 2006

Obie Patterson

Chair, Subcommittee on Elections

Maryland House of Delegates
Lowe House Office Building, Room 416
Annapolis, MD 21401 – 1991

Via Fax: (301) 858-3295

Dear Delegate Patterson:

We are a newly formed cross partisan coalition of candidates focused on ensuring fully recountable elections in Maryland. We support HB 244/SB 713.

We are writing you and your colleagues today because there are reports your subcommittee is considering amending HB 244 to mandate a bifurcated system allowing optical scan and Diebold touchscreen in every precinct. In addition to increasing the cost and the training of poll workers, this system makes it impossible to fully recount the election. At best only a partial recount would be possible, and very likely no recount at all would take place.

The recount – or audit – would only be partial because the Diebold Touchscreen (TS) System does not allow an independent recount of the voters confirmed ballots. The TS only reprints the same result; i.e., if the software made a mistake in the initial count, it makes the same mistake every time.

The bifurcated system would potentially result in no recount at all. According to media reports, in the recent Virginia attorney general's race, the court did not order a complete recount in a race where the candidates were separated by only 340 votes. What was done for the Virginia election was a “retabulation” not a recount, i.e. just reviewing the previous count numbers. In the DRE districts the reprint button was merely pressed. And, the court refused to order a rerunning of the optical scan votes, except in the eight precincts that had “equipment problems,” where the ballots actually were hand recounted.

The bifurcated system also makes the very important audit provisions of HB244/SB713 impotent. There is no independent audit possible of the TS machines; as a result, only the optical scan votes can be audited.

Therefore we urge you to not amend this bill to allow a bifurcated voting system.

Sincerely,

Kevin B. Zeese

U.S. Senate Candidate

Maryland

Marc Elrich

Candidate for Montgomery County Council

Takoma Park City Councilman

Barry Kissin

U.S. Congressional Candidate

6^th District

 Noel Levy