CVG_TEST

“... our very existence as a democracy is dependent on our having voting systems that are secure, accurate, reliable, and accessible, and one more thing, they must be transparent and verifiable.” - - California SOS Debra Bowen.

"As Colorado's chief elections officer, I have made it my administration's top priority to restore public confidence in our electoral process." - - Colorado SOS Mike Coffman.

Oversight - Colorado

NEW Post recertification process.

Clerks and vendors will conduct a private meeting in Douglas County at 4:00 PM on December 17th. Colorado Voter Trustees Kolwicz and Branscomb have requested time on the agenda.

NEW Group appeals to JBC to hear needs of "the other election officials".

Demember 10, 2007

Click to read communications between JBC Chair and canvass board representatives.

NEW Colorado voting sytem certification recommendation due December 17, 2007.

December 7, 2007

Secretary of State has informed the Legislature and Clerks that the certification of voting sytems will be complete on December 17, 2007.

Colorado Voter Group has requested an opportunity to be heard.
Click to read a press release.

NEW Certification draft to remain secret. Public debate silenced.

The voting system certification report will not be available on December 17, but will be available within 30 days after the announcement and will be available to the public.

NEW Emergency voting system rule bypasses certification and the court.

Rule 13.3.4, adopted December 6th, allows election officials to get around voting system certification laws and the Court ordered recertification underway.

On and after December 13, 2007 ... the governing body or designated election official of a political subdivision may purchase any voting system that was previously certified under the 2002 Voting Systems Guidelines.

Voting equipment plan for 2008 elections.

State voting group urges paper ballots.

November 20, 2007

Read how a leader of the secretive Colorado County Clerks Association, Arapahoe County Clerk Nancy Doty challenges the 2008 election framework.

November 20, 2007
Click to read Colorado Voter Group answers county clerk's challenge to 2008 election framework.

November 19, 2007
Colorado Voter Group wants polling place elections with a few adjustments.
Colorado Voter Group today released its proposed framework for Colorado's 2008 elections. The framework builds on current polling place elections with a few additions designed to protect the election from known problems. The framework rejects the use of all-mail ballot elections and the use of invisible electronic ballots. Click to read Press Release.

November 15, 2007
SOS Coffman testified before the Legislative Joint Budget Committee. Click to read SOS Answers.

Keep up to date by reading the November 2008 section of this website.
Colorado SOS Mike Coffman has filed paperwork with the FEC to run in the 2008 election for US Congress.
Independent oversight.

The Colorado Voter Group advocates for trustworthy election systems.

Current transparency and accountability projects:

    1. SCORE II Project
    2.  Election System Security
    3. Election System Certification

Click to read oversight progress.

Voter Registration
SCORE II Project

OVERSIGHT
NEW material - Dec 7th
SCORE II is more than a voter registration database project. For a summary of the oversight activities click SCORE Oversight.

SCORE will be put into production on December 10, 2007
Without respopnding to public concerns, the department of state is reported to be planning to release the voter registration and elecition administration to production on Devember 10th. Click to read report.

SOS confirms that SCORE has been depoyed without any public oversight. Complaint that SOS is interferring with Canvass Board is ignored.

EDS acquires Saber – the folks developing Colorado’s voter database. Rising concern about the privacy of government databases.

PRESS

Colorado Secretary of State refuses to comply with open records law.
September 17, 2007
The department has not responded to Friday’s proposed compromise.

Group files Open Records Request for SCORE Project Records
September 11, 2007
Group seeks records about new voter registration project.

Election System Security

OVERSIGHT
The Colorado Voter Group is conducting an open records process, attempting to analyzie the scope of Colorado's election security plans and procedures. Click to learn about Colorado's election security.

Election System Certification

OVERSIGHT
NEW material Dec 7th
Court ordered certification
The Colorado Department of State is under a court ordered re-certification of all of its election systems.

New scheme - eliminate certification
November 13, 2007
Some clerks and legislators are scheming to eliminate state certification of voting equipment.

Department publishes Test Master List and Vendor Correspondence re: defects.
October 16, 2007
Tests do not address critical issues identified by Colorado voter Group. Vendor correspondence reveals "not-ready-for-prime-time" products.

Massive void in SOS documents.
The SOS has faught Colorado Voter Group attempts to access information that would enable the public to make an independent assessment of the certification competency.  The group is currently working to access these records using Colorado's Open Records laws. Click to see progress on oversight of voting system certificaiton.

PRESS

SOS cuts off communication with county clerks
October 5, 2007
The Colorado Statesman reports that the Secretary of State's office has cut off direct communication with county clerks about the recertification process underway. Click to read the full story.

Clerks facing blackout on election information
October 16, 2007
Colorado SOS won't talk with County Clerks. Click to read the full story.

Colorado Election rule criticized.

Proposed rules would bring more confusion, less transparency, less public confidence. Read problems with rule.

Welcome

Trust but verify!

Growing public distrust of elections has reached a potentially dangerous level -- inviting public disobedience.

The people's gripe? Colorado's election system cannot be trusted because it lacks transparency and accountability, and it cannot be verified.

Colorado Voter Group's independently-recruited team of specialists provide truly independent oversight of Colorado's election system.

News

Colorado computer voting machines are not certified. Click to read how Colorado election officials are:

• Encouraging election fraud by the use of mail ballots.

• Counting our votes in a backroom using computers they don't understand; whose performance and accuracy can't be certified; and that have consistently failed in past elections.

• Spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on private vendors and election officials who have repeatedly been discredited and convicted of high crimes and misdemeanors.
State to fix computers
October 12, 2007
Colorado Governor announces new centralized information technology approach to stop the bleeding.

Governor sets up panel of technology experts.

Flawed system for registering cars cost $11 million
August 14, 2007
State might scrap DMV computers. Colorado suffers from incompetent system requirements specfication and delivery. Will voter registration project be next -- again?

Paper ballot system wins high marks
New Mexico and Colorado voters studied. (1) Report. (2) Survey.

California takes leadership role.
California decertifies DREs
Secretary Bowen announced her decisions regarding which voting systems will be permitted to be used in the 2008 elections and beyond.

Voting equipment fails California tests.
California Secretary of State, Debra Bowen announced results of voting equipment testing. Diebold, HART, and Sequoia failed to meet minimum certification standards.

Post-Election Audit
California Post-Election Audit Standards Working Group releases report.

Colorado Voter Group

The Colorado Voter Group is a private entity working to improve Colorado's election system.