Here's an idea. If we could convince some huge percentage of our voters to vote absentee, could we bring down blackbox voting?
Let's chat below.
Ideally, the cost of processing absentee ballots would convince local governments to insist on paper trail machines. Do I correctly recall one of the lame excuses for not doing so in the first place was the expense of adding printers to each polling station? Let's take that excuse away. Let's make it so painful to use Diebold that something finally gives.
While usually absentee ballots are ignored if the election results from the machines are otherwise determinative of the result (true?), I also seem to recall reading that they must be processed if they reach a certain percentage. [I know, sorry sorry, I am a dreadfully lazy diarist, not to look this stuff up--let alone, figure out the whole linking business.]
Second best, if we really can turn out our voters on paper ballots, that might be enough to counteract the (i) unfortunate albeit inadvertent errors to which computer ballots seem prone especially with liberal votes/(ii) dirty tricks and voter suppression efforts/(iii) outright fraud [pick your conspiracy theory of choice].
The downsides:
First, if we do push a significant percentage of our voters to absentee ballots, that will skew the exit poll results. But exit polls are already under such determined assault in this country, it is doubtful they will even be allowed in the next national election, let alone given any credence.
Second, of course, it would be an enormous effort and expense. But hey, we should be in everyone's living room anyway, right? In the swing states, at least? And it need only be in the counties without paper trail machines--maybe if we make this threat loud and credible enough, it will prevent more counties from going the Diebold way in the first place.
Now, if we're going to try this, let's please please please start with Arnold's special election in California this fall.
Whaddya think? Could it work? And where should we start?