Could it be greed?
A lot has been written about problems with electronic voting machines, whether physical or software-based. While I don't doubt that attempts have been made to alter election results, many of the problems with machines may be attributed solely to greed.
It seems that the most popular voting machines are poorly made, and tend to break down easily. To increase their profits, the companies appear to have cut corners on quality. This is a common trait of greedy companies. Michael Shamos, a computer scientist at Carnegie Mellon University who has examined voting-machine systems for over 25 years, estimates that about 10 percent of the Diebold touch-screen machines fail in an election. Think about that. Would you keep going to a bank if their ATM machines had a 10% failure rate? How about taking that train, or an airplane?
The voting machines failures resulted in long lines and frustration. However, there were not any stolen votes as a result, unless you count someone who had to leave before voting (which has happened). Although machine malfunctions have sometimes been concentrated in areas of low income, which tend to disproportionately affect Democrats.
Simply put, we should be demanding higher quality, especially considering how much money these machines are costing. They have quite a racket going on. Between the costs of the machines, and the software required to run them, and all the accessories needed, they are making a fortune. Then add the extra costs for training, installation, warranties, and the communication network to manage it all... and you have an environment ripe for greed and corruption, regardless of any political ideology.
So what are the costs?
In the last election, Election Systems & Software (ES&S) and Premier Election Solutions (formally Diebold) were responsible for tallying approximately 80% of the votes cast in the United States. Their signature items are the AccuVote for Premier, and the iVotronic for ES&S. (The AccuVote also comes in a sleek and sexy optical scanner model.)
Here’s a taste of the costs per touch-screen or optical scanner package (based on what one random small district paid)...
PREMIER ELECTION SOLUTIONS TOUCH-SCREEN PACKAGE
- Premier, AccuVote TSX v.4.5.2 = $3,195.00
- Premier, AccuVote TS R6 v.4.5.2 = $3,195.00
- Premier, AccuVote OS Central Count v. 2.0.12 = $6,400.00
- Premier, Accuvote OS Precinct Count v. 1.96.4 = $6,400.00
- Premier, AccuVote VC Programmer v.4.1.11 = $7,500 initial
(plus $1,350.00 annually thereafter)
- Premier, Vote Card Encoder v. 1.3.2 = $395.00
- Premier, Key Card Tool Utility v. 1.0.1 = $10,000.00
- Premier, AccuVote-TS VIBS Kit 312-3121 = $320.00
- Voter Cards v. 642-1123 VCG = $3.50
- Supervisor Cards v. 642-1123 SCG = $4.00
- Training (voting unit training only) = $5,000.00
- Acceptance Testing (Required for all hardware purchases) = $3,500.00
- Training – Hourly price for training = $145.00/HR
Delivery, installation, and warranty are extra... plus even more in fees for using the connection/management software GEMS.
ELECTION SYSTEMS & SOFTWARE SCANNER PACKAGE
- ES&S, MODEL 650 v. 1.2.0.0 = $64,500.00
(Includes Scanner Table, start-up Kit, and Dust Cover),
- Ballot Boxes, Model #PS-BB1 = $128.00
- Ballot Joggers, Model #PS-JOGG = $500.00
- Secrecy Sleeves (Cardboard), Model #PS-CBS = $3.00
and the software...
- Unity AutoMARK Information Management Software = $2,500.00
- Unity Election Reporting Manager (ERM), v.6.4.3.0 = $8,000.00
- Unity Election Data Manager (EDM), v.7.2.1.0 = $12,500.00
- Unity Ballot Image Manager (BIM), V.7.2.0.0 = $10,000.00
- Unity Data Acquisition Manager (DAM), V.5.0.3.1 = $2,500.00
- Unity Hardware Programming Manager (HPM), V.5.0.3.0 = $50,000.00
- Unity iVotronic Image Manager, v.1.2.3.0 = $12,500.00
- Training – Hourly rate for training = $165.00/HR
(On-site training subject to 8 hour minimum; includes all expenses, group discounts are available.)
Plus training, and servicing, and accessories, and setting up, and who knows what else!
And now think how many machines there are throughout the country. Greed is a definite possibility. So the cheaper they can make the machines, and more training required to run them, the more money they make. That would explain why the machines are so complicated, why the source code and software is so secretive, and why the machines break down so much.
Here's a great report on the various electronic voting machines.
Here's a map of the states and what voting methods they use.