- Was Prop 8 Stolen?
- People lie to pollsters all the time. Why should this poll be believed?
- You say the results of the poll don't match the official results. Why is it the poll, and not the official results, that should be believed?
- How is this poll different from the typical exit poll?
- Could Prop 8 be overturned because of this study or the investigation you're asking the Secretary of State to conduct?
- Didn't Secretary of State Debra Bowen take care of the problems with electronic voting?
- We use computers for so many more complicated things than voting. What's the big deal with having computers count our votes?
- What can I do about this outrageoussituation?
Was Prop 8 Stolen?
We don't know. Our study shows that there is serious reason to question the results of the election at least in L.A. County. If there were widespread inaccuracies similar to those found in the study, it is very possible the outcome of the Prop 8 election was reversed.
People lie to pollsters all the time. Why shouldthis poll be believed?
Voters polled in this exit poll were not asked to tellanybody how they voted. Voters marked their responses on an anonymous form anddropped it into a secure collection box. And the results of the poll on issuesother than Proposition 8 indicate that the polling methodology was accurate.All of this is described in detail in the study.
You say the results of the poll don'tmatch the official results. Why is it the poll, and not the official results,that should be believed?
We're not asking that the poll results be taken as proof,but as evidence of a potentially serious problem. Polling is an inexact science.That's why our conclusion is that the physical evidence -- the ballots and otherelection records -- must be examined. As long as our votes are counted insidea black box by unreliable, corruptible, software-driven computers that are vulnerableto malfunction and malfeasance, and as long as we cannot count the votes by handto validate them on election night before they leave public view, we will notknow if the official results are correct. Polls such as our election verificationexit poll (EVEP) are one of few tools available to provide a check on the computercounts. The EVEP methodology was formulated by Professor Steve Freeman of theUniversity of Pennsylvania and founder of ElectionIntegrity.org;Dr. Ken Warren, President of TheWarren Poll; and Dr. Jonathan Simon, co-founder of ElectionDefense Alliance (EDA).
How is this poll different from the typicalexit poll?
The type of exit poll you more often hear about is designed topredict winners. Polling sites are selected that are representative of the populationof a particular region. It is not necessary to poll too many voters becauseresponses are then weighted according to twhat segment of the population thatvoter represents. The EVEP methodology is not designed to predict winners asall, but to evaluate the accuracy of the official vote count. As many votersas possible are polled as they exit from voting. There's no need to select representativeprecincts because the polling results are compared to the vote totals for thesame precincts.
Could Prop 8 be overturned because ofthis study or the investigation you're asking the Secretaryof State to conduct?
It is our understand that this is not a possibleoutcome.
Didn't Secretary of State Debra Bowen take careof the problems with electronic voting?
Secretary of State Bowen led a Topto Bottom Review of California's voting systems. All of the systems in usewere found to contain serious flaws. Most were decertified for use in Californiaand then recertified for use with specified 'mitigations' designed to minimizethe dangers resulting from using the flawed technology. However, the proceduresmandatedby the mitigations have been violated repeatedly in counties throughout the statewithout penalty.
We use computers for so many more complicatedthings than voting. What's the big deal with havingcomputers count our votes?
Have you ever had a computer crash or feeeze? Haveyouever lost data? Computers are very appropriate for many partsof our lives, yet computer scientists have demonstrated in study after studythat computers are not appropriate technology for elections.
atchthis video clipto see how electronic votingmachines can be rigged to produce incorrect results.
From our colleagues at VotersUnite.org:
Flawed and failing computerized vote-counters have been reported in hundreds of news stories, experienced by thousands of voters, caused millions of dollars in official investigations and studies ... and yet the equipment is still in use in virtually every jurisdiction in the United States. Flawed and failing computers count the votes that determine who will make our laws, enforce our laws, establish foreign policy, declare wars, set the tax rates, and decide how to spend those taxes.
Flawed and failing computerized vote-counters cost billions of taxpayer dollars, cause our election structure to become dangerously dependent on private companies, and require a 'testing and certification process' that is itself as flawed and failing as the vote-counting computers. No hypothetical danger, computerized vote-counting is a busy intersection without a stop sign, and the crashes have already been legion. Direct link to VotersUnite.org's problem log.
What can I do about this outrageoussituation?
See the home pageof this site for actions you can take now.
