Posted by
A View from the Beach on Friday, September 01, 2006 9:58:17 AM
Why does it seem those charged with
the responsibility to manage our elections cannot devise a simple system to
record the voters’ wishes while maintaining a result that can be readily
tracked? We can move billions of dollars through a global financial system
without the hand wringing that something as simple as tracking a vote causes in
this country.
When I transact business through my
bank’s ATM (Automatic Teller Machine), I receive a document detailing the
activity transacted, date, and a unique transaction number. If I were to dispute
the transaction, I have a record that the bank can reconcile with its records to
correct any errors. This system has enabled me to conduct my financial business
across the globe without incident. I can also track this transaction on the
bank’s internet site.
Would such a system that utilizes a
teller-like machine work for elections? A voter could enter their vote, review
a summary of their preferences confirming its accuracy, submit their vote, and
then receive a receipt noting voting results with a unique identifying or
transaction number.
Such a system would overcome many of
the “problems” encountered in past elections. Voters could review their
preferences prior to submitting them to the election. The voting results with
the transaction number would be posted on-line. Anyone could audit the results.
A voter could then enter their transaction number and determine that their vote
was properly recorded.
I am not aware of any current method
of voting where one can prove that their vote was counted. This method would
give greater comfort to those who believe they were
disenfranchised.