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Md. Democrats Want Outside Voting Machine Audit |
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Nelson Hernandez and Lori Montgomery, Washington Post October 21, 2003 Democratic legislative leaders called yesterday for independent auditors to study problems with Maryland's voting machines, saying they do not trust Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. to resolve the matter on his own. In a letter to the director of the Maryland Department of Legislative Services, Sen. Paula C. Hollinger (D-Baltimore County) and Del. Sheila Ellis Hixson (D-Montgomery) asked that the agency examine a report issued in September by Science Application International Corp. on security weaknesses in a new computerized voting system the state is prepared to purchase for $55.6 million. The SAIC report on the system, developed by Diebold Elections Systems Inc., found serious flaws that could allow tampering with election results. The study was a response to a July report by Johns Hopkins University computer scientist Aviel Rubin and colleagues who said the voting system was vulnerable to manipulation. The report led Diebold to tighten the security of its software, but Democrats questioned the impartiality of SAIC, the research company chosen by the Ehrlich administration. The San Diego-based firm has had a standing contract with the state government since 2002 for information technology consulting. "We first want to know what's going on," said Hollinger, who chairs the Senate committee that oversees electoral issues. "The legislature has not been involved at all. Whether there's a problem or not, the only way to determine it is we do it independently. "Elections are for everybody, 'D's and 'R's and 'I's and everybody else on the ballot. In the next election, everybody ought to feel it's not influenced by partisanship." To that end, Hollinger and Hixson asked the legislative agency to examine the process used to select the firm to conduct the review of the Diebold system and the Johns Hopkins report and to report on "the professional credentials and organizational composition of SAIC to ensure that the SAIC analysis was objective, balanced, impartial, and free of outside influence or other conflicts." Company officials referred all questions to Ehrlich's office, where a spokesman said the governor welcomes the new report. "We're confident in the SAIC review's findings," Henry Fawell said. In recent weeks, some Democrats have expressed concerns that the problems with the voting machines would be used to drive out State Board of Elections Administrator Linda H. Lamone, a Democrat appointed by Ehrlich's predecessor, Parris N. Glendening (D), and replace her with a Republican. Lamone was at a conference yesterday and could not be reached. Karl S. Aro, executive director of the Department of Legislative Services, said that his agency would respond to the request, but he noted that the deadline set for his report -- Jan. 12, near the start of the legislative session -- might be too close. "We will look at it," Aro said. "We'll see exactly what they're asking us to do." |
