voting machines could bring election day glitches - touch screen pop machine

(CNN)--
Florida's pending elections have angered voters and helped usher in a sweeping change in voting technology. eight years later, many election observers remain concerned about the accuracy of the electronic voting system that most Americans will use in November 4. Touch-
Screen machines occasionally fail or register votes for unexpected candidates. Optical-
The scanning system may have problems reading paper votes that are too long or marked with the wrong ink.
At least one study has shown that electronic voting machines can easily be hacked.
About 9 million voters, including many on the battlefield in Ohio and Florida, will use devices that have changed since the March, adding to concerns about mistakes next Tuesday.
"You are almost certain that there will be violations in some parts of the country," the representative said . ". Rush Holt, D-New Jersey.
"The problem now is that about three voters across the country will use electronic machines that cannot be verified.
Therefore, if there is uncertainty, there is no way to solve it.
"These issues have surfaced with 31 states voting ahead of time.
Voters in West Virginia, Colorado, Tennessee and Texas have reported in recent weeks that,
Screen machines at least initially registered their votes for the wrong candidate or party.
Watch videos about voting
This even happened in Sunday's episode of The Simpsons, which had been leaked on The Internet, homer's electronic vote for Barack Obama was recorded by an evil machine and swallowed up.
Vote with our interactive vote, "there will be places where the voting machine will fail.
This happens every election, "said Susan greenhal, a voter Action spokesman, a non-partisan organization dedicated to good faith in the election.
"We hope there is no problem with accuracy.
"In this presidential election, 55% of American voters voted through the optical system.
Scanning system increased from 49% two years agoOne-
A third American voted through an electronic touch screen.
New York State is still voting mainly through mechanical lever machines. -
The artifacts of the 1960 s-
While several small counties in Maine and Vermont still use the old-
Paper votes counted by hand.
Learn more about voting issues and those notorious punch cardscard systems?
They are still used in several counties in Idaho, the last state in the United States to do so.
Some observers believe that this patchwork quilt of electronics, machinery and paper expands from state to state ---
Even county to county-
Making it more difficult to regulate the voting system.
According to a joint report released this month by three non-profit Democratic groups, including Common Cause, 22 states use electronic voting machines without generating voters
Verifiable Paper Records
"It's a mess," greenhard told CNN . "
This is the most important fundamental feature of our country.
This is our democracy. . .
Our votes need to be recorded and counted in a way that we can trust.
Hollt, a New Jersey congressman, failed to pass legislation to establish national standards for verifiable elections.
A recent House bill that will reimburse states and counties for paper-backed votes has also been rejected. iReport.
Com: tell us that after the disputed 2000 presidential election, election officials across the country rushed to accept new voting techniques
Thousands of people have voted wrong, thanks to the voting system.
Congress passed a bill to help America vote in 2002 (HAVA)
Change punch-
Card system with updated, upgraded device.
The bill also set up a bipartisan body, the Electoral Assistance Committee, to oversee and certify the voting system.
With plenty of federal money, many states and counties have bought shiny touches-
Screen, or directly-
Electronic Recording (DRE)machines.
Their simple interface is similar to an ATM, where voters can vote by pressing the color area on the display.
University of Missouri's study of the results of the 2004 poll found that the updated touch-
The error rate of the Screen Machine is 1% compared to 1.
Punching fee 7%card ballots.
But the Electoral Assistance Commission has not yet certified the machines.
The electoral supervision team complained that many machines do not have a paper record of the ballot papers, so it is difficult to verify the disputed results.
"The lessons that some people have learned from Florida in 2000 are not necessarily the right lessons," said Pamela Smith, chairman of the Verified Voting Foundation, a nonprofit that advocates reliable elections.
"There is a feeling that the paper must be bad because people have problems with hanging stickers.
"But you need a hard copy record so you can go back and confirm the results," Smith added . ".
"The real problem is that the public has legitimate confidence in the results.
"Most of the concerns about electronic voting are focused on touch --Screen Machine.
Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner sued the maker of touch.
In August, half of the 88 counties in Ohio used screen equipment, and the survey showed that when memory cards were uploaded to computer servers, the machines "abandoned" votes in recent elections.
Critics also say the machines are easily manipulated.
Andrew Apel, professor at the Information Technology Center at Princeton University, released a report earlier this month, saying that touch
Screen machines used in 18 of 21 counties in New Jersey can be hacked within 7 minutes.
Appel says someone can replace the memory chip of the voting machine with a chip containing fraudulent computer programs that adjust the results.
Sequoia Voting Systems, the company's maker, has raised objections to the results of the poll.
New Jersey Secretary of State Nina Mitchell Wells says Appel and his team have obtained the source code for these machines.
Wells said in a prepared statement that New Jersey election officials "expressed full confidence in the state's voting process and the safety of voting machines ".
"Ken Fields, spokesman for ES & S
The main supplier of another electronic voting system in the United States insists that his company's touch
There are enough safeguards for screen machines.
The ES & S machine runs on a closed computer network and contains three separate storage chips that can be crossed
He said he quoted each other in order to confirm the results of the vote.
"I assure you that this technology has been rigorously tested and must be proven to be accurate and safe," he said . ".
"We can't speak for anyone.
However, the experience we have seen is that the equipment works according to the design and works normally.
"Most electronic voting machines are equipped with equipment for the production of paper records if the audit is required, and David Bain, executive director of the electoral technology commission, said that the Commission is a voting Industry Association --system vendors.
"Vote-
"Flip" when touching"
Screen Machine--
When a vote on one candidate is recorded as a vote on another candidate ---
Beirne said it could be explained with voter error or election staff not properly calibrated the machine.
By 2006, some jurisdictions across the country suspended their DRE equipment in order to support the optical systemscan machines.
Voters mark paper votes with pens or pencils, just as students fill out standardized tests, and then enter those tests into scanners that record the results.
Many observers believe that optical scanners-
Especially those who count votes in the electoral district, not in the central office. -
Is the most reliable way to vote.
According to a study by the University of Missouri, the error rate of these systems in 2004 was 0. 7 percent.
If the voter makes an error in filling out the ballot paper, the optical scanner will spit out the ballot paper, giving the voter the opportunity to correct the error before leaving the polling station, appur said.
"This is not a silver bullet.
No technology is perfect, Appel told CNN.
"But at least optical scanning votes have better resistance [inaccuracies].
"So how do voters on Tuesday absolutely ensure that their votes are accurately recorded by 100%?
Most election observers say they can't do it.
But election supervision and voting
System industry officials agree on one thing: the person who touched the vote
The Screen Machine should take the time to read the instructions for the use of the votes carefully and not be afraid to ask for help.
"If the equipment is not involved in the way you think it should be, don't click the 'Vote, 'button," said Rosemary roderritz, chairman of the Federal Electoral Assistance Commission . ".
"Call the election officer for help.
Solve the problem immediately and on the spot.
If you click the cast vote button, there is no way back.
CNN correspondent Miles O'Brien and CNN producer Martha Walton contributed to the report.