Touchscreen ballots don't have to be recounted, official claims
By Brendan Farrington, Associated Press
TALLAHASSEE, Fla — .The Department of State has notified elections supervisors that touchscreen ballots don't have to be included during manual recounts because there is no question about how voters intended to vote.

While touchscreen ballot images can be printed, there is no need and elections supervisors aren't authorized to do so, Division of Elections Director Ed Kast wrote in a letter to Pasco County Supervisor of Elections Kurt Browning.

Florida law requires a manual recount of overvotes where too many candidates were chosen, and undervotes where no candidate was chosen in elections where the margin of victory is one-quarter of one percent of the vote.

But because the law states that the purpose of a recount is to determine whether there was a "clear indication on the ballot that the voter has made a definite choice," there is no need to review touchscreen ballots, Ed Kast, director of the Division of Elections.

It is impossible to vote for too many candidates on a touchscreen ballot, and Kast said a "review of undervotes cannot result in a determination of voter intent as required by" Florida law.

Browning asked for the opinion after a Broward County Republican Ellyn Bogdanoff won a seat in the state House by 12 votes, a margin that triggered an automatic recount.

He said the election raised the question of whether paper images needed to be produced for the 134 undervotes in that race. He also said he supports Kast's opinion.

"There are no ballots to count, there are no ballots to recount," Browning said.

The opinion was issued the day after a Palm Beach County judge threw out a lawsuit filed by Democratic U.S. Rep. Robert Wexler that sought to require electronic voting machines produce a paper record of ballots cast. Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Graham has filed legislation that would require a paper record of touchscreen ballots.

And the Florida Democratic Party called for paper records for electronic ballots during their convention last November. (Related story: More e-voting systems to be used this fall)

Secretary of State Glenda Hood said there are no certified methods of printing records of touchscreen votes, but she stressed that the machines are reliable and accurate and can't be tampered.

"We're working very hard to educate the voters, to build the comfort level and to get rid of some of the myths out there," Hood said. "I think these things are raised for political purposes and distractions. Any effort to undermine that public confidence is a tactic that is wrong and I believe it weakens our democracy by causing voters to doubt if their vote has been counted."

Hood said she would not object to paper records being created if a machine were developed, tested and was able to pass the state certification process, but she said it's highly unlikely that would happen before the November presidential election.

"Technology is going to continue to develop and if we can find ways to improve Florida's elections and process with new equipment, then we're going to do that," she said.