Why would new forms have to go out to absentee voters? Don't absentee
voters in Santa Clara use paper ballots already? Or does Santa Clara send
out punch card ballots to absentees? (I can only imagine how high the
error rate for absentee punch card ballots would be.)
Am I missing something?
Ed Hartnett
Seton Hall
Lynne
<[EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
.COM> cc:
Sent by: Discussion Subject: Re: Paper ballots?
list for con law
professors
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]
v.ucla.edu>
09/16/03 12:50 PM
Please respond to
Discussion list for
con law professors
On the paper ballots vs punchcard ballots question--For those of us who are
absentee voters in the affected counties (ie, the counties that specialize
in hanging chads, and Santa Clara is one of 'em. . .), problems of getting
*new* forms printed and mailed to all absentee voters within next 2 weeks
arise. And wasn't the absentee ballot question an issue in the Florida
litigaton?
sincerely
Lynne
Prof. Lynne Henderson
Boyd School of Law--UNLV
4505 Maryland Pkwy
Box 451003
Las Vegas, NV 89154
702-895-2625
----- Original Message -----
From: "Edward A Hartnett" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Tuesday, September 16, 2003 7:34 AM
Subject: Re: Paper ballots?
> If the error rate for paper ballots and the error rate for optical
scanners
> (or electronic touch panels or mechanical levers) are sufficiently
> different so as to violate equal protection -- and I don't know if they
are
> -- then the state may have to use the same method throughout the state.
> If so, then the whole state can use paper ballots -- just as the whole
> nation of Canada (Sandy notes) does. And as Glenn points out, paper
> ballots provide a paper trail.
>
> As for Frank's broader point: If the error rates from different
> applications of the same method are sufficiently different so as to
violate
> equal protection, is there _any_ constitutional way to count votes? Am I
> right that the point is intended as a reductio ad absurdum of Bush v.
> Gore's equal protection analysis?
>
> Ed Hartnett
> Seton Hall
>
>
>
>
>
> Frank Cross
> <[EMAIL PROTECTED] To:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> .EDU> cc:
> Sent by: Discussion Subject: Paper ballots?
> list for con law
> professors
> <[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> v.ucla.edu>
>
>
> 09/16/03 09:40 AM
> Please respond to
> Discussion list for
> con law professors
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Will paper ballots really fix this problem? They are going to have an
> error rate, all systems do. Any state that uses two systems will have
> differential error rates for different voting systems. Indeed, even if a
> state used a single uniform system,the inevitable differences in its
> application will produce different error rates. Theoretically, I think
> this is an irresolvable mess.
>
> One could establish some de minimis acceptable difference in vote
counting
> systems, but I don't see that rule in Bush v. Gore. I'm not sure it
could
> be pulled from Bush v. Gore, because I don't think there was any evidence
> of greater than a de minimis difference there.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Frank Cross
> Herbert D. Kelleher Centennial Professor of Business Law
> CBA 5.202
> University of Texas at Austin
> Austin, TX 78712
