COLUMBUS, Ohio—The state’s chief elections official will have to wait two weeks to find out if she will get $1.7 million to run tests on Ohio’s new electronic voting machine system, a legislative panel ruled Monday.
Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner told the state Controlling Board that the delay likely will make it tougher for her office to complete the testing by January, the deadline she set for issuing the results to county boards of elections. Next year’s primary is early—March 4—because of the presidential election.
The delay may increase the price of the unbid contract her office negotiated with Denver-based SysTest Labs. The Controlling Board, controlled by Republicans, must sign off on most unbid contracts. Brunner is a Democrat.
The board, made up of six lawmakers and a president who represents Gov. Ted Strickland, voted 4-3 to postpone releasing the money. The board’s four Republicans voted to table the matter; its two Democrats and President Joe Secrest voted against postponement.
Sen. Steve Stivers, a Columbus Republican and board member, told Brunner that he had too many questions about the contract to vote for approval at Monday’s meeting.
Stivers said he wanted to look more closely at the contract and get questions answered about a similar test in California, where machines were decertified until they met new security standards.
No security issues surfaced in Ohio in last year’s elections, the first conducted with electronic machines in most counties. However, Brunner said she wanted to ensure the machines were secure before next year’s elections, when Ohio again is expected to play a critical role in electing the president. In 2004, the state handed President Bush the electoral votes he needed for a second term.
Although voting machine hacking and other forms of fraud were never proven, doubts linger about the 2004 election. Brunner said she didn’t want any questions in 2008 about the machines’ security.
Brunner said under Ohio law, the secretary of state is responsible for making certain that voting machines are secure. New computer programming for the machines requires that they be tested.
“We are simply carrying out what we’re required to do,” Brunner said.
If the tests reveal flaws within the system, they may require a legislative remedy and lawmakers, who return briefly this week from their summer break, may not be available later in the year, Brunner said.
Also on Monday, House Speaker Jon Husted, a Dayton-area Republican, sent Brunner a letter asking her to postpone the request.
“At the present time, too many outstanding questions remain regarding the scope of this request and the intent of the study—issues I believe can be properly addressed by allowing time for a more thoughtful and deliberative review,” Husted wrote.
Brunner, who submitted the tests request to the Controlling Board on Aug. 29, complained that Republicans waited until the last minute to ask questions.
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