Clark needs to deliver on promise

Opinion     Hattiesburg American   23 August 2005
 
The most accurate elections in the history of Mississippi.

That's what Secretary of State Eric Clark promised Friday will be the result of the decision by a vast majority of Mississippi counties to use new electronic, touch-screen voting machines.

Now that the issue has been resolved - Friday was the deadline for counties to decide whether to participate in the federally funded program - it's time for Clark to deliver on his promise.

The public will be watching to see if the new machines - manufactured by Diebold Election Systems Inc. - are as accurate as Clark says they are.

The secretary of state's decision to purchase the Diebold machines has been fraught with controversy from the beginning.

Some county election officials raised concerns about the need for a paper record of ballots cast by voters.

To alleviate this concern - a legitimate one - Clark guaranteed that each machine will be equipped with a printer to generate a paper record.

Other critics have pointed to concerns about Diebold's track record, including a decision in 2004 by the California secretary of state to decertify all touch-screen systems.

However, despite these and other objections, Clark has maintained an unshakable confidence in the integrity of Diebold's machines.

Seventy-six of Mississippi's 82 counties have put their faith in Clark by agreeing to participate in the state's purchase of Diebold's touch-screen voting machines.

There's a lot riding on the decision.

Not only is the integrity of our election system at stake.

So is Clark's reputation.