VA, MD: "Goodbye, Electronic Voting"

Now, I'm just sayin'...

Fantastic news. I heard this on the radio, driving in to work. The Washington Post has the story on the front page of the Metro section:

Maryland will scrap its $65 million electronic system and go back to paper ballots in time for the 2010 midterm elections -- and will still be paying for the abandoned system until 2014. In Virginia, localities are moving to paper after the General Assembly voted last year to phase out electronic voting machines as they wear out.

It was just a few years ago that electronic voting machines were heralded as a computerized panacea to the hanging chad, a state-of-the-art system immune to the kinds of hijinks and confusion that some say make paper ballots vulnerable. But now, after concern that the electronic voting machines could crash or be hacked, the two states are swinging away from the systems, saying paper ballots filled out by hand are more reliable, especially in a recount.

Now, of course, every voting place should have one electronic voting station for voters with special needs, but I am very pleased at the move back to paper ballots. They're intuitive; they're reliable; and I can trust my ballot - I'm not left wondering which way a computer program thinks I voted.

Of course, some argue that paper ballots are outdated and that such a move represents a lurch back to the 19th Century.

But the move has perplexed some experts who say that after using the electronic touch screens for several elections now, voters have gotten used to them. People use touch-screen machines for many things, such as ordering at McDonald's and taking money out of the bank, and should, advocates say, be able to vote on them.

And what do you get from McDonald's or Wachovia that you don't get with electronic voting machines? A piece of paper confirming your transaction. You know you ordered a Big Mac, but how do you know that's what's being made for you? There's a paper trail. Also, if you have a problem with your Value Meal price or need to ask a question about a banking fee, you have a restaurant manager or bank teller that can call up your order on a computer and make it right. There's a reason for that: buying a cheeseburger is not as important as voting. As sensitive and critical as voting is in our country, why wouldn't we want a system that values accuracy and integrity over technological glitz?

I'm just sayin'...