The Critical Need For
"CITIZEN ELECTION AUDITS" 

HOW DO CITIZEN AUDITS WORK? As with voting, there are variations in the way audits are performed.  Some activists ask voters to sign their audit forms, whereas other activists ask voters to sign a rooster, leaving the form anonymous.  In general, here is how a Citizen Audit works.  

BEFORE voters vote, Citizen Audit forms and information can be distributed by citizen groups and/or candidates' campaign volunteers in the following ways: online, door-to-door literature drops, mail-outs (although some candidates have complained that the Post Office did not deliver their literature), newspaper ads, and at the polls on Election Day.  Forms should also be available at campaign headquarters and other locations.  Take into consideration absentee and early voting when determining when to begin distribution.  

ONLY AFTER voters vote, should the online and signed forms be collected at the polls by volunteers, at the candidates' campaign headquarters, or through the mail, if necessary.  Audit forms should include at least the voter's name, address, and for whom they voted.  Forms can also include a complaint section.  The precincts to be covered by an audit should be as much of a surprise as possible in order to have the best chance to detect fraud.  You don't need 100% participation.  You can use the results to conduct a comparative analysis with official results.  Keep in mind, this effort is a work-in-progress as we learn from our experiences.  For more information on sample affidavits and information, check out the websites listed below.

Lynn Landes (TheLandesReport.com) first introduced the idea of a Citizen Audit in her January 2005 article, Plan B: Organize Parallel Elections & Signed Ballots. "Something similar to a Citizen Audit was put into practice after a 2004 election in North Carolina.  The Republican candidate for North Carolina Agriculture Commissioner, Steven Troxler, gathered more than 1400 affidavits from voters in precincts where voting machines malfunctioned and lost votes.  On the basis of those affidavits his Democratic opponent conceded."

Clint Curtis (ClintCurtis.com) from Florida’s 24th Congressional District, was the first democratic candidate to conduct a Citizen Audit.  He discovered that the official election results of November 2006 differed from his audit in every precinct canvassed an average of 16%!  Clint is requesting the U.S. Congress to investigate. "External verification allows the people to ensure the accuracy of their democracy."
says Curtis.

Ellen H. Brodsky (BrowardElectionReform.org) a former election clerk whistleblower and current Exec. Dir. Broward Election Reform Coalition, was the first to do so in Florida.  “Sarasota was a typical Broward election waiting to happen as we discovered through our Parallel Election. Between 12-14% of all electronic ballots in Coconut Creek did not include the popular Commissioner Race. Our PE Ballot “no votes” statistically matched the Precinct Under votes, proving beyond a doubt that the “under votes” were a result of faulty programming, ballot definition, error, or a crappy voting system. Not the voter deciding not to vote!”

Judy Alter (ProtectCaliforniaBallots.org) Director of Protect California Ballots, has conducted more Citizen Audits than anyone else.  “After consulting with Ellen Brodsky, I began conducting Parallel Elections in San Diego, July 2005. That first time involved 6 poll sites with 13 precincts and 23 volunteers from 7 counties in CA.  We called for a recount as a result of the differences between our results and the official ones but the results were inconclusive. Since that time we have conducted “Citizens’ Written Exit Polls” in four more elections.  In Nov. 2006 at 12 Los Angeles poll sites-24 precincts, 92 volunteers got over 2500 voters, 44% of the total, to participate.  At one site, 77% of the voters participated. Again we paid for a recount because our results showed significant differences from the official results.”  

Jo Anne Karasek (www.ProtectOhioVotes.org) is the State Coordinator and drafter of the Ohio Hand Counted Paper Ballot Constitutional Initiative. "I was the first in Ohio to lead a parallel election [Citizen Count], in 2005. I had realized that verified parallel ballots could be used as strong evidence of "past recollection recorded" in contests of elections in Ohio when the reported vote count was materially incorrect. In the parallel election I led, the precinct we monitored, very unexpectedly, had the highest vote in the county for the candidate who questionably lost in the Special U.S Representative election."