The Trials and Tribulations of Electronic Voting

How did the United States come to rely so heavily on electronic voting technology, and why has this reliance led to problems? Elections in the United States are so complex that the push to use high-tech voting systems began in the 19th century. The problems we face today stem from voting systems that are beyond the understanding of system administrators and a regulatory framework that makes unrealistic assumptions about what can be done.

There will be ample time for questions and discussion. Prof. Jones's talk is co-sponsored by the Institute for Civic Discourse and Democracy, K-State Department of Computing and Information Sciences, K-State Libraries, and League of Women Voters of Manhattan/Riley County.

Douglas Jones is an internationally recognized expert in voting systems and election security. He received his PhD from the University of Illinois in 1980 and has served on the computer science faculty at the University of Iowa since then.

Professor Jones served on the Iowa Board of Examiners for Voting Machines and Electronic Voting Systems from 1994 to 2004, and chaired the board for 3 years. This Board examines all voting systems offered for sale in the state of Iowa to determine if they meet the requirements of Iowa law. Professor Jones testified before the United States Commission on Civil Rights hearings in Tallahassee after the election of 2000. He has testified before the House Science Committee, the Federal Election Commission and several courts.

He has consulted with numerous international, national, state and local agencies about matters of election administration, and he has written widely on these matters. Doug Jones is one of the ten principle investigators in A Center for Correct, Usable, Reliable, Auditable, and Transparent Elections (ACCURATE), a multi-institutional center awarded a 5-year research grant by the National Science Foundation starting in October 2005.