Leon County Diebold Scandal

In December of last year, Leon County elections supervisor Ion Sancho dumped the Diebold system. The system was found to be hackable.

Finnish security expert Harri Hursti, together with Black Box Voting, demonstrated that Diebold made misrepresentations to Secretaries of State across the nation when Diebold claimed votes could not be changed on the “memory card” (the credit-card-sized ballot box used by computerized voting machines.

A test election was run in Leon County on Tuesday with a total of eight ballots. Six ballots voted "no" on a ballot question as to whether Diebold voting machines can be hacked or not. Two ballots, cast by Dr. Herbert Thompson and by Harri Hursti voted "yes" indicating a belief that the Diebold machines could be hacked.

Around this time, Brad Friedman reported that "eight top executive officers" had a Securities Fraud Class Action filed against them by Janice Konkol. Diebold, Inc. CEO Walden O'Dell resigned. "The suit was filed today in U.S. Federal District Court in Ohio and alleges the company 'artificially inflated' stock prices through misleading public information designed to conceal the true nature of Diebold's financial and legal situation," Friedman reports. "The defendants are also alleged to have attempted to disguise well-known and ongoing problems with Diebold's Voting Machine equipment and software." Diebold's profits dipped 47% last year.

Fast forward to recent events.

The Miami Herald wrote a harsh editorial against Florida election officials handling of the Diebold matter.

They dismissed voters' worries that optical-scan machines could be broken into by hackers and concerns about the lack of a paper trail for touch-screen equipment.
Even after a watchdog group successfully hacked into optical-scan equipment in a test authorized by Leon County Elections Supervisor Ion Sancho last November, state officials downplayed the results. Now similar experiments by computer hackers in California, also on Diebold equipment, have confirmed that the machines can be broken into. This apparently was the proof state officials needed to order counter-measures across the state.

We hope that Florida Division of Elections Chief Dawn Roberts understands that this issue is really about building and sustaining voter confidence in elections. Making sure that voting equipment is secure and accurate is merely a means to support that goal.

This didn't stop Florida Sec of State Sue M. Cobb from threatening Sancho with legal action, if he didn't use the Diebold machines.

If timely and appropriate actions are not taken to ensure the procurement and delivery of such system by May 1, 2006, the Department may seek legal action accordingly.

What made Sancho's situation is that three voting machine companies decided not to do business with him. Sancho was face with using Diebold machines or face litigation. His confidence in Diebold scan machines not being hacked was at zero.

"In other words, you could steal the election and no one would ever know," Sancho said.

The controversy has vindicated Sancho. Florida Division of Elections had to admit their were "vulnerabilities." Now let's see if the FDOE follows through. This is an important issue for Florida bloggers. (That means you, Tommy). It pathetic that Brad Friedman has beaten Florida bloggers on this story.

Friedman has a series of Diebold postings worth checking out. The Election Reform Coalition Pinellas is a Bay area organization that tracks voting problems.

One final note: Tommy, if you refuse to blog about serious political issues then ask Kevin Hayden to take you off the Progressives' Peer Directory. That is one of the most prestigious lists for lefty bloggers. Tommy, I like you. I wish you would stop writing for the peanut gallery.

Update: Voting machine problem in Pinellas Park.

And on Election Day Cook charged that the voting machines malfunctioned in several precincts, including his own precinct at Skyview Recreation Center. When Cook tried to vote for himself, the machine defaulted to a vote for Taylor. A precinct worker finally moved Cook to a different booth.

Candidates can't even vote for themselves.

Here is a list of Diebold executives contributing to the Republican Party.

Board of Directors
Louis V. Bockius III (2,4,5)
6/28/00 $15,000.00
REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE - RNC
11/3/00 $10,000.00
REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE - RNC
10/9/97 $1,000.00
VOINOVICH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE
10/9/97 $1,000.00
VOINOVICH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE

Christopher M. Connor
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, The
Sherwin-Williams Company
5/22/00 $1,000.00
VOINOVICH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE
3/30/00 $1,000.00
DEWINE FOR US SENATE


Gale S. Fitzgerald (2, 6)
President and Chief Executive Officer , QP Group, Inc.
7/12/00 $500.00
NEW YORK REPUBLICAN FEDERAL CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE
10/12/98 $200.00
FRIENDS OF JOHN LAFALCE
10/18/99 $1,000.00
BUSH FOR PRESIDENT INC


Donald R. Gant (1,3,5)
Senior Director, The Goldman Sachs Group, L.P.


L. Lindsey Halstead (2,3,6)
Retired Chairman of the Board, Ford of Europe
12/22/98 $500.00
RNC REPUBLICAN NATIONAL STATE ELECTIONS COMMITTEE
1/23/97 $500.00
REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE - RNC
5/27/97 $200.00
REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE - RNC
10/31/97 $500.00
REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE - RNC
12/28/99 $500.00
REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE - RNC
3/7/01 $300.00
REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE
6/12/01 $200.00
REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE
11/27/01 $200.00
REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE
1/24/02 $500.00
REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE


Phillip B. Lassiter (1,3,6)
Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, Ambac Financial Group, Inc.
4/16/98 $250.00
NATIONAL REPUBLICAN CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEE
CONTRIBUTIONS
9/21/98 $250.00
NATIONAL REPUBLICAN CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEE
CONTRIBUTIONS

John N. Lauer (1,4,5)
Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, Oglebay Norton Co.
10/10/00 $1,000.00
DEWINE FOR US SENATE
8/23/00 $250.00
REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE - RNC
3/17/97 $1,000.00
VOINOVICH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE

Walden W. O'Dell
Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer, Diebold
2/14/01 $2,015.00
RNC REPUBLICAN NATIONAL STATE ELECTIONS COMMITTEE
12/17/97 $1,000.00
VOINOVICH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE
1/30/01 $3,950.00
RNC REPUBLICAN NATIONAL STATE ELECTIONS COMMITTEE
8/16/01 $500.00
VOINOVICH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE
12/17/97 $1,000.00
VOINOVICH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE
6/30/00 $1,000.00
DEWINE FOR US SENATE


Eric J. Roorda
Former Chairman, Procomp Amazonia Industria Eletronica, S.A.
W.R. Timken Jr. (2,3,4)
Chairman , The Timken Company
6/23/00 $50,000.00
RNC REPUBLICAN NATIONAL STATE ELECTIONS COMMITTEE
6/8/01 $100,000.00
2001 PRESIDENT'S DINNER - NON-FEDERAL TRUST
3/14/01 $10,000.00
RNC REPUBLICAN NATIONAL STATE ELECTIONS COMMITTEE
8/19/99 $15,000.00
RNC REPUBLICAN NATIONAL STATE ELECTIONS COMMITTEE
11/3/00 $15,000.00
RNC REPUBLICAN NATIONAL STATE ELECTIONS COMMITTEE
2/22/02 $1,000.00
RELY ON YOUR BELIEFS FUND
6/12/02 $1,000.00
OHIO'S REPUBLICAN SALUTE

Corporate Officers

Walden W. O'Dell
Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer, Diebold (See above)

Wesley B. Vance
Chief Operating Officer
8/16/01 $500.00
VOINOVICH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE

Michael J. Hillock
President, Diebold International
11/18/97 $500.00
FAIRCLOTH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE 1998

David Bucci
Senior Vice President, Customer Solutions Group
11/18/97 $500.00
FAIRCLOTH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE 1998

James L.M. Chen
Vice President and Managing Director, Asia-Pacific

Warren W. Dettinger
Vice President, General Counsel and Assistant
Secretary
11/18/97 $300.00
FAIRCLOTH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE 1998
1/30/97 $250.00
DEWINE FOR U S SENATE (2000)

Donald E. Eagon, Jr.
Vice President, Global Communications & Investor
Relations
11/18/97 $300.00
FAIRCLOTH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE 1998

Charee Francis-Vogelsang
Vice President and Secretary

Larry D. Ingram
Vice President, Procurement and Services
1/30/97 $250.00
DEWINE FOR U S SENATE (2000)
11/18/97 $300.00
FAIRCLOTH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE 1998

Dennis M. Moriarty
Vice President, Customer Business Solutions
11/18/97 $300.00
FAIRCLOTH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE 1998

Anthony J. Rusciano
Vice President, National Accounts
11/18/97 $300.00
FAIRCLOTH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE 1998
--- Hey Tony! Listing yourself as “retired” and using
your vacation home address to avoid campaign donation
limits is a tad naughty don’t you think?

Charles B. Scheurer
Vice President, Corporate Human Resources
11/18/97 $300.00
FAIRCLOTH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE 1998

Ernesto R. Unanue
Vice President and Managing Director, Latin America

Robert J. Warren
Vice President and Treasurer
11/18/97 $300.00
FAIRCLOTH FOR SENATE COMMITTEE 1998

Diebold donated $100,000 in soft money Republicans in 2000. They donated another $100,965 in soft money in 2002. During that period, Diebold made no soft money contributions to Democrats.