New Mexico Moves; Iowa Inactive
UPDATE 2/16/06:The bill passed both houses of the legislature.
New Mexico may be about to dump its computerized voting machines and go to all paper ballots. Today the NM state senate passed a bill requiring the change, despite the incredible claim of one opponent:
Opponents also disputed the notion that paper ballots would instill more public confidence in elections.
“They scare the heck out of voters,'’ said Sen. William Payne, R-Albuquerque.
Paper ballots scare voters??????
According to the Albuquerque Journal, “Some counties would have to jettison voting systems that are less than a year old.”
It is a partisan issue in New Mexico, unlike most other legislatures that have acted.
Democratic Gov. Bill Richardson is pushing for the change, saying paper ballots would restore public confidence in the electoral process. The bill was approved 23-18, with Democrats backing it and Republicans opposed.
Meanwhile, the Iowa legislature is missing its own deadlines.