Posted by Robert Blackmon · June 05, 2018 2:30 PM
WI Recount Litigation Update: Getting closer to a historic examination of voting machine software
As we reported in a previous update, we are continuing the work of the Wisconsin recount by fighting for a groundbreaking state-wide examination of the voting machine “source code” – a crucial piece of voting machine software that controls the actual counting and tallying of the votes.
Incredibly, the source code for voting software has never before been examined for evidence of tampering or errors that would compromise an election!
Since our last update, the Wisconsin Election Commission issued a decision acknowledging our right to examine the voting machine software.
However, the voting machine corporations – Elections Systems & Software LLC and Dominion Voting Systems Inc. – are trying to undermine the decision by insisting on rules that would gag us from sharing our findings with the public even if we find evidence of error, intentional interference or tampering by anyone – whether foreign powers, hackers, domestic partisans, or the corporations that control the voting software themselves.
It is unacceptable that the trade secrets of voting machine corporations have been considered more important than the integrity of American democracy, and we are challenging them in court to ensure that we can share the information we learn with the public.
The court has just set our initial court dates for July and August, and we expect oral arguments in September and a decision in October. Our computer experts are already preparing to conduct this historic and much-needed examination of voting machine software.
Click here to see the Wisconsin Recount Report.
PA Recount Litigation Update: Big win for election integrity as PA moves to paper ballots
After the recount effort in Pennsylvania was stopped by a combination of politicized court decisions, prohibitively bureaucratic recount laws, and the virtual impossibility of recounting the paperless “black box” voting machines used by over 80% of the state, we brought litigation against the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania challenging not only its recount procedures, but its entire system of election laws as unconstitutional.
Now this legal pressure, combined with the tireless efforts of grassroots election integrity advocates, is yielding amazing results. While the PA General Assembly continues to move slowly in enacting reform, the Commonwealth has taken major steps through administrative changes.
Recently, Pennsylvania’s Secretary of State ordered all counties to replace their aging voting machines by the 2019 elections with voting systems that use paper ballots. This turnaround is remarkable, considering that the state of Pennsylvania has been claiming in its response to our lawsuit that its voting system is fine and nothing needs to change. We must remain engaged to assure that only reliable voting equipment is certified for use in PA as quickly as possible.
Activists are working to ensure that counties purchase only systems that use hand-marked paper ballots, the gold standard for election integrity.
Click here to see the Pennsylvania Recount Report.
We are gratified to note that all three states affected by the recount – Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, representing 22 million eligible voters – have since ordered the replacement of faulty or unverifiable voting machines.
This is a major victory in the fight for election protection and voting justice, and a tribute to all who supported and fought for the recount and for elections we can trust
Thank you for all that you do to build the movement for real democracy!