PA voting machines to be re-examined

In early 2006 several groups petitioned the PA Secretary of the Commonwealth to re-examine our electronic voting machines. In Bucks County members of the Coalition for Voting Integrity asked for re-examination of the Danaher. In Chester County it was the ES&S iVotronic. SoC Pedro Cortés denied the requests.

Voter Action describes what happened next: "In August 2006, a group of Pennsylvania voters filed a lawsuit [Banfield v. Cortés] in Pennsylvania state court challenging the use of electronic voting machines on the grounds that it violated the state election code and the state constitution’s guarantee of the right to vote." Among other things, the suit cited the refusal to re-examine the voting machines.

SoC Cortés objected to the re-examination requests but the PA Commonwealth Court ruled unanimously in favor of the plaintiffs. In July 2011 the current Secretary of the Commonwealth, Carol Aichele, communicated her intention to conduct re-examinations of voting machines requested by three groups in 2006, including the Coalition for Voting Integrity in Bucks and Chester Counties. The petitioners will have the opportunity to observe the re-examinations.

Update: On September 14, 2011, SoC Aichele agreed to honor a request for re-examination of the remaining DREs as well--the Sequoia AVC Advantage, Sequoia Edge, and Hart Intercivic eSlate.