Secretary of the Commonwealth Retains Certification of Danaher Voting System in Berks County
            
Press Release   07 November 2005 

           System Suitable for Use in Tomorrow's Municipal Election

    HARRISBURG, Pa., Nov. 7 /PRNewswire/ Voters in Berks County will be
able to go to the polls with confidence on Tuesday after the voting machines
used there passed a state re-examination and retained their certification.
    "It is the job of the Department of State to make sure there is a system
in place allowing Pennsylvanians their voting rights," Secretary of the
Commonwealth Pedro A. Cortes said.  "Based upon our findings, I want to assure
Berks County voters that the Danaher Electronic Voting System has met all the
requirements of Pennsylvania law and can be used with confidence and
integrity."
    One version of the Danaher Electronic Voting System is used in Berks and
Dauphin Counties, while a different Danaher system is used in Philadelphia
County.
    The department, at the request of registered voters from Berks,
Philadelphia and Westmoreland Counties, conducted the re-examination.
According to state law, if at least 10 electors petition the Department of
State to conduct a re-examination of a voting system that is currently
certified for use in the commonwealth, such a review will be ordered.
    As a result of the re-examination, and upon the recommendations of Dr.
Glenn Newkirk, an expert consultant retained by the Department of State,
Secretary Cortes concluded that the Danaher system met all of the
qualifications for electronic voting systems provided in the State Election
Code.
    This will be the last election in Pennsylvania in which this specific
system will be used.  However, the department has conducted a subsequent
examination of upgrades to the Danaher Electronic Voting system and will soon
furnish a report to determine the system's certification status for use in the
commonwealth beyond Jan. 1, 2006.
    All counties must procure a voting system that is compliant with the
federal Help America Vote Act of 2002 and the state Election Code by the
beginning of next year.  Danaher is awaiting its federal certification status
from the federal Election Assistance Commission and had to undergo another
state examination because of the changes made to its product.
    For more information about voting systems in Pennsylvania or to review the
reexamination results of the Danaher Electronic Voting System, please visit
the Department of State's Web site, http://www.dos.state.pa.us.