Are there any accuracy, security and reliability issues in precinct-based optical scanning voting?
• Possibly the first thing we should do is to properly name the voting system used to count paper ballots. Most people tend to forget that an optical scan system is also an electronic system. The term “optical scan voting system” seems to ignore that electronics actually drive the more critical resolving and counting function of the system. Instead of calling it a “Precinct-Based Optical Scan (PBOS)” system, a more descriptive name will be “Precinct-Based Direct Recording Optical Scanning Electronic (DROSE) System”. • The name is more proper because it provides the final tallies as deciphered from the paper ballots being scanned. Almost all of the commonly used precinct-based optical scan systems do not show or tell the voters how their submitted ballots are being counted visually or orally. The 2005 standard only requires the system to alert voters of whether the systems have detected any over-voted or under-voted contests but not how the ballots are being counted. • While the origina
