All Posts By

Bev Harris

ADVOCACYELECTIONS INDUSTRYPURCHASINGRESEARCHROLE MODELS

2013-04-23: (CA) Testimony by Tom Courbat opposing Internet voting bill

Here is an example of carefully researched, professional, and articulate advocacy: Testimony by Tom Courbat before the California Assembly Elections Committee opposing AB 19, an Internet voting bill. My name is Tom Courbat. I am the former Finance Director for Riverside County, California and am a 100% disabled Army veteran. I have been monitoring elections for seven (7) years and was…
Bev Harris
December 1, 2015
Uncategorized

Election Protection Tools: Voter Lists – Mobile app

WHEN: Several months before the election;  HOW: To improve the list of who can vote, create and publicize a mobile phone app to let everyone easily check the accuracy of voter registration information. This election protection tool was used successfully in Pakistan, by activating an SMS mobile phone text-messaging system available to everyone with access to a mobile phone. It helped correct voter list…
Bev Harris
June 29, 2015
ACTIONSADVOCACY

2014/03/11 (CA) How to increase voter list accuracy and transparency in California

Black Box Voting remarks submitted for California 3/11/14 meeting on Senate Select Committee on Science, Innovation and Public Policy To: Senator Padilla From: Black Box Voting Submitted March 11, 2014 I am the director of Black Box Voting, a national, nonprofit, nonpartisan election transparency organization. I respectfully submit the following remarks for the meeting of the Senate Select Committee on…
Bev Harris
March 19, 2014
Uncategorized

City of Cumming, Georgia joins municipality-based attack on Freedom of Information rights

In April, 2012 the city of Cumming, Georgia blocked a citizen journalist from videotaping open meetings; in Dec. 2013, nearly two years later, the matter was still under mediation. Open meetings around the USA are frequently not only videotaped, but aired on public access TV. Videotaping is a crucial part of freedom of information because it captures an objective, durable…
Bev Harris
March 2, 2014
ELECTIONS INDUSTRYPURCHASING

2005-10-14: (GA) Software Slows Vote Counting

(Original article 10/14/2005) According to a report by the Associated Press which raises more questions than it answers, new software was incorporated into Georgia's Diebold touch-screen voting system in Spring 2005, slowing down the count for as much as 24 hours. The AP reports: Ballot-counting in next month's Georgia elections may be slowed by security software, some local officials say.…
Bev Harris
February 28, 2014
Uncategorized

Pakistan: Simple innovations improve voter list accuracy, turnout, and reduce fraud

An award-winning voting rights innovation improved voter lists in Pakistan, where an SMS mobile phone text-messaging system got voters to interact with voter lists to correct errors and see where to vote. Out of 85 million registered voters, the SMS system got 55 million hits; voter turnout increased, and marginalized groups like persons with disabilities measurably increased election engagement. In…
Bev Harris
January 20, 2014
Uncategorized

(US-WV) How 3 changes will affect election transparency

Buried in an article about filing deadlines we find three hints for what's to come in 2014 for West Virginia: 1) Taking a step back from transparent vote counts, removing paper ballot options;2) Increasing use of combined vote centers, which reduce ballot privacy;3) Increasing use of electronic poll books in place of physical poll books. "Paper ballots will no longer…
Bev Harris
January 14, 2014
ACTIONSADVOCACYOBSERVATION

2014/01/11 (AK) Concerns about potential procedural changes for Anchorage elections

Letter of concern pertaining to three potential procedural changes pending for Anchorage, the electoral region which dominates the state of Alaska, and controls most of Alaska's vote-counting equipment. (Result: Right to observe and use mobile devices was preserved after proposed rollback of rights.) Black Box Voting is a nonprofit, nonpartisan public education and research organization for election transparency. From: Bev…
Bev Harris
January 11, 2014
Uncategorized

(US-UT) Voter Lists: Legislation proposes to ban public transparency for voter lists

An important news item by in the Salt Lake Tribune reports on Utah State Sen. Karen Mayne's attempt to stop publication of voter information. The reporter should have covered both sides of the issue, because the proposed legislation removes a crucial transparency component for Utah elections. The article, titled "Bill aims to stop publication of voter information", reports that: -…
Bev Harris
January 11, 2014