Without the ability to (untraceably, unlinkably, of course) verify that this vote is "in the vote total," and that no votes other than those who actually voted, are in the vote total, this is all meaningless.Secretary of State Kevin Shelley is expected to announce today that as of 2006, all electronic voting machines in California must be able to produce a paper printout that voters can check to make sure their votes are properly recorded.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-shelley21nov21,1,847438.story? coll=la-headlines-california
I could rig a simple hack where a voter submits his ballot, which drops into a shredder even as a little printer is printing out his "proof" that he voted and that his vote was "accepted."
It's blather to satisfy the sheeple.
Besides, I expect what will happen is that an electronic voting system will be deployed and will be shut down by someone claiming a patent was issued to them "for the idea of electronic voting."
Until Diebold pays off the Patent Office and the earlier idea is reviewed and found lacking.
Face it, we are about to become an electronic kleptocracy.
(There will also be some good hacks to scare the inner city welfare mutants into thinking the electronic machines will either track their votes, making them more likely to vote for the Establishment, or will steal their souls. I sense great possibilities here for disinformation.)
--Tim May
