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Download an MS Word version of this sample letter here
Richard P. Mills, Commissioner of Education
New York State Education Department
89 Washington Avenue
Albany, NY 12234
Dear Commissioner,
I am baffled and outraged that the Troy City School District intends to use an unapproved voting system in the upcoming School Board election. The electronic voting machine, or DRE, to be used is not only unproven and uncertified in New York, but also is demonstrably flawed. The LibertyVote DRE's security has been breached by computer experts and its paper trail, which I require for confidence and assurance, is inadequate and unusable.
Surely School District elections are not so unimportant that they can be used as a testing ground for unproven equipment? Not only millions of dollars of funding for education are at stake, but property taxes, already overwhelming in many areas, are determined during school elections.
Using inadequately tested, uncertified and insecure voting machines would set a precedent that will affect all New York residents. Results from such elections are certain to be called into question.
Liberty's brochure available on the Troy School District web site is deceptive and an insult to the intelligence of voters. In one section it speaks about firmware and software receiving "rigorous" testing and in another, it claims not to be a computer. There are many other false and misleading claims made in this brochure. I am outraged that a brochure provided to the public announcing dates and locations of the Troy elections contains such dishonest statements.
My greatest concern is that Liberty voting systems are produced, tested and supported by a foreign company, Nedap, which we are entrusting with the integrity of our vote. LibertyVote DREs have not been used before anywhere in the United States. Do we really want a New York State School District election to be the guinea pig for this experiment?
You are charged with the oversight of accurate, honest elections in all New York school districts. Please do not allow such a travesty of democracy to take place anywhere in New York State.
Thank you for considering my comments.
Sincerely,
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