Quote of note:
Switching to another system would cost the counties $27 million, and elections officials would have to scramble to get equipment prepared in time for November, said Karen Keene, legislative representative for the California State Association of Counties."Rather than having this blanket decertification, there should be an opportunity to come up with a more moderate approach," Keene said. "It seems like there's potential here for middle ground."
A proposal to ban all electronic voting machines in the November election was approved by a Senate committee Wednesday, less than a week after Secretary of State Kevin Shelley's decision to decertify the machines unless they meet certain conditions.
"The key to democracy is that everyone's vote counts and is counted. The electronic voting machines used in the March primary failed to meet that fundamental test," said one of the bill's authors, Sen. Ross Johnson, R-Irvine.
The bill would not allow the use of any form of electronic voting, including touch-screen machines, in the Nov. 2 general election. It would apply only to that election.
The Senate Committee on Elections and Reapportionment passed the bill with a 3-1 vote.