Bill Sykes' Newsletter
from America.
(October 2002)
An ex-Brit gives his views-(without fear
or favor)---of the American Scene
Another Florida voting debacle.
 The
latest technological touch-screen voting machines were introduced
in the recent Florida election, which was being contested
by Janet Reno (The former United States Attorney General),
and attorney Bill McBride to see who would challenge Jeb
Bush, the current Florida Governor, in the November election.
Florida counties used on average 15 machines per precinct.
Apparently to turn the machines on required an activator
key---the problem being that it took 15 minutes for the
software to activate itself after the key had been inserted
to turn the machine on.
The manufacturer had provided each precinct with one key,
on the basis that poll workers would arrive early enough
to turn each machine on before the voters showed up at each
polling place at 07:00 hours.
There is no prize for guessing what happened.
Poll workers didn’t arrive on time and some irate
voters had to wait for up to two hours to register their
vote.
In one county, poll workers didn’t know that ”they”
were supposed to turn on the machines and stood around waiting
for the County officials who never came.
 Governor
Jeb Bush had to extend the hours of voting in the counties
of Miami-Dade and Broward, both of which were involved,
(along with Palm Beach), in the Presidential election vote
count irregularities.
It would appear that in certain counties it was a SNAFU
situation.
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