CVI Press Release, January 9, 2006

The Coalition for Voting Integrity is pleased to announce good news for the citizens of Pennsylvania: Along with all Pa. counties, the Bucks County Commissioners now have a Voter-Verifiable Paper Ballot (VVPB) machine to choose from. On January 6, the State of Pennsylvania officially certified its first electronic machine with paper ballot capabilities: the precinct-based optical scanner.

CVI has stressed the monumental importance of having a voting process that allows our vote to be accurately counted, recorded securely, and have the ability to be recounted or audited. The precinct-based optical scanner, in our judgment, meets these criteria. It is also very easy to understand and use: as with standardized tests, the voter blackens in a circle and the vote is counted in the scanner at the precinct. No wireless or telephone transmission of the vote to a central processing center is needed. The actual ballot itself is retained for recounts or audits. The optical scanners are also economical, both to buy and maintain. They are a reliable, mature technology used successfully in US elections for many years.

However, optical scanners along with other electronic voting machines have problems as explained by our Federal non-partisan Government Accountability Office (GAO), which recently confirmed that "significant concerns about the security and reliability of electronic voting systems" have been raised. Nearly every aspect of any electronic machine, including touchscreens and optical scanners, is prone to major problems.

Thus, the Coalition for Voting Integrity supports voter-verified paper ballots and voting machines to support them. We must be able to prove our vote. CVI is not alone in supporting VVPBs. Our own State Senator Conti has introduced SB977, requiring a voter-verifiable paper ballot; Congressman Fitzpatrick supports the similar HR550; a number of Bucks municipalities are signing resolutions in support; and seven of our former commissioners recently announced their strong support. Now voters should expect that the current County Commissioners throughout Pa. choose a machine with VVPB capabilities, now that the option is at last available.

We ask everyone in every County throughout Pa. to call your County Commissioners and demand that your electronic voting machine have this crucial voter-verified paper ballot . The vote belongs to us. We want proof that our vote has been counted!