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Field Organizers: What messages and tactics worked? What didn't?
Bloggers: How did your relationship with traditional media shift?
Fundraisers: Did the makeup of donors (big/sm/online/off) evolve?
Techies: What lessons does the hard data offer?

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How do we know who REALLY won?

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Rebecca Wilson

rebecca@saveourvotes.org

It doesn't matter how many people we mobilize and get to the polls if the election results themselves aren't trustworthy. The poster child for the 2006 elections is Sarasota County, FL, where the Republican congressional candidate "won" by 400 votes, but 18,000 mostly Democratic voters were unable to record any vote at all for that race on the electronic touch-screen voting machines.

See this interactive map from the local newspaper there showing the discrepancy rates broken down by precicnct. Click on a precinct to get info on that precinct: http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?CATEGORY=Election03

What can we do before, during, and after elections to ensure that election results are an accurate reflection of voter intent?

Before the election

Elections are conducted by states, and ultimately administered by county & local governments. Network with voting reform activists at the state and county as well as national level to pass election laws that protect the democratic process.

VoteTrustUSA: HYPERLINK "http://votetrustusa.org" http://votetrustusa.org

Verified Voting: HYPERLINK "http://www.verifiedvoting.org" http://www.verifiedvoting.org

CommonCause: http://www.commoncause.org

VotersUnite/ Daily Voting News: HYPERLINK "http://www.votersunite.org" http://www.votersunite.org

During the election

Monitor what's happening at the polls & in pre-election set-up. Help to recruit and train pollworkers who are familiar with computer technology and knowledgeable about election laws. Document problems and collect evidence that may be able to be used in court.

Pollworkers for Democracy: http://pollworkersfordemocracy.org

Verified Voting 's Election Transparency Project: http://www.verifiedvotingfoundation.org/modinput4.php?modin=110

Election Protection Coalition: http://www.ep365.org/site/c.fnKGIMNtEoG/b.2052583/k.2FF7/Election_Protection_365__Home.htm

Video the Vote: http://www.videothevote.org

BlackBoxVoting Citizen Toolkit: http://www.blackboxvoting.org/toolkit.html

After the election

Encourage candidates not to concede too quickly. Insist that all votes be counted and all anomalies be fully investigated. Litigate as necessary— court challenges are a great way to bring election problems to light and keep them in the news so needed reforms can be passed.

VoterAction: http://www.voteraction.org