Colorado Voter Group

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

 

"The people of Colorado can be assured that the 2008 elections will be accessible, accurate, secure and transparent," Sen. Ken Gordon.

Oversight - Colorado

NEW

Proposed voting system standards for certification criticized.

Colorado Voter Group requests SOS to:

 

- Redefine the rule-drafting process

- Require measurement and enforcement

- Replace program manager

- Terminate outside contract

- Cancel proposed draft rule 45

- Develop a plan for above

 

Major criticisms are presented along with supporting documentation.  Click to read the letter.

 

Aspen voter files suit to access public records.

Marilyn Marks, has filed suit against the City of Aspen to enforce Colorado Open Records Act complaince.  See story in Aspen Times.

 

Aspen fights Open Records release.

Aspen officials are refusing to comply with an open records request.  A new web blog has been created to track this issue.  Click Aspen Election Review.

 

Voter registration system project has failed again.

Non-transparent evaluation of the SCORE project reveals deficiencies.  New development work required - $3.5 million dollars worth.  more ...

 

SB189 Paper ballot bill killed by clerks.
Senator Morse says yes, all other appropriations committee members say no!  more ...

 

Election related legislation underway. more ...

 

Public comment - conditions for use.

Suggestions and criticisms of the SOS's "conditions for use" of non-transparent, non-verifiable voting systems. 

  

SOS adopts statewide mail ballot "rule" without hearing.

No public hearing was held regarding a new quasi-rule.  Procedures are entirely inadequate.

 

Secretary of State ignores public concerns.  Conditionally certifies more voting equipment. 

Despite public testimony, SOS Mike Coffman has overridden his own hand-picked test board, and the public, and certified more faulty voting equipment for use in the 2008 elections. more ..

 

Attorney General Not Authorized

"The Attorney General does not have statutory authority to enforce the state's Sunshine Law." says Colorado Attorney General.

Election Framework

Colorado Voter Group election framework calls for paper ballots voted in precincts.  more ...

U.S. Senator Ken Salazar calls for paper ballots voted in precincts.  more ...

Governor Bill Ritter and Legislative leaders call for paper ballots voted in precincts.  more ...

Voting System Problems
 
Colorado's voting system certification test team recommends that none of the voting equipment submitted for a court ordered recertification be certified.
 
Secretary of State Mike Coffman has overridden these recommendations and approved for use some of the equipment with conditions.
 
More than half of Colorado's voting equipment was not submitted for recertification, and its status is unclear.
 

 

Keep up to date by reading the November 2008 section of this website.

   

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

SCORE II is more than a voter registration database project.  For a summary of the oversight activities click SCORE Oversight.

 

SCORE system is failing to report voter's correct party affiliation for precinct caucuses.

 

SCORE goes to production in March.

Without responding to public concerns, the department of state is 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.

 

HP acquires EDS.

 

PRESS

 

Colorado Secretary of State refuses to comply with open records law.

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

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.

Some clerks and legislators are scheming to eliminate state certification of voting equipment.

 

Department publishes Test Master List and Vendor Correspondence re: defects.

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

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 recruited team of specialists provide truly independent oversight of Colorado's election system.

 

News

State voting group urges paper ballots in polling locations. 
Colorado Voter Group released its roadmap for the 2008 elections.  Click to read the plan, and the press release.
 
 
 
SOS Coffman calls for paper ballots in polling locations.
 

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."

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.

Clerks and vendors conducted a private meeting in Douglas County at 5:00 PM on December 17th.  Colorado Voter Trustees Kolwicz and Branscomb were not permitted to observe.

 

Ohio finds critical security failures in voting systems.

December 14, 2007

Inadequate security “Critical security failures” which could impact the integrity of elections found in Ohio's three voting systems - Election Systems & Software (ES&S), Hart Intercivic and Premier Election Solutions (formerly Diebold).  Failures in both voting and board of elections environments.

 

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.