Reply #9: IL: Great Editorial on Chicago Electronic Election Screw Ups

[autorank]

Chicago is such a great city, central Illinois must feel like the malnourished step child. So when they get a chance to take the big city down a peg or two, they can’t resist. This is an excellent editorial.



Saturday, March 25, 2006 12:36 AM CST

Chicago had voting problems; what a surprise
http://www.pantagraph.com/articles/2006/03/25/opinion/110106.txt
Pantagraph Editorial Saturday, March 25, 2006 12:36 AM CST

M ore than $4 billion in taxpayer money was spent nationwide to rectify a voting nightmare in the 2000 presidential election.

And here it is 2006 and what do we have - one of the major U.S. cities with problems six years ago still counting ballots on millions of dollars worth of new electronic equipment two days after the primary election ended.

<snip>

"I never saw a problem with punch-card ballots in McLean County," said Peggy Ann Milton, McLean County clerk and the person responsible for elections throughout the county except for the city of Bloomington. "It was usually user error. The problem had nothing to do with equipment."

Chicago is a beautiful example of why Congress shouldn't make such hasty, $4 billion decisions in the future. Lawmakers need to zero in on causes instead of results.