Ask for/use absentee ballots
Not a new idea, but given the events in New Hamshire, it's time to bring this up again. Ask for an absentee ballot or ask for a paper ballot if you can. Check out the election rules in your county/state...for sure. I think this is really important in voting districts where a machine is used with no paper trail. And the absentee ballots can possibly help in those districts with a possible flawed chain-of-custody of the paper ballots (re: trashed ballots in Ohio in 2004, etc.)
See: http://itpolicy.princeton.edu/voting/
Pretty scary!
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Comment from Princeton study - again, maybe not new to many
September 20th, 2006 at 11:30 am
When I voted last week in Maryland, I was confronted by one of these machines. When I asked the election official at the polling place if it was possible to do a paper verified hand-recount, I was told that there was a printout, but it was sealed within the machine. I asked if it was possible for me to verify that my vote was recorded appropriately (or even recorded at all), I was told that it was not possible.
Why do we need instant feedback and results on election day? Why not use printed paper ballots on which we use an ink pen to mark our choice and publicly monitored hand counting — even if it takes a few days to get results?
Any “voting machine” that uses closed technology with no way to indendendently verify machine settings or compare results with the voter’s intention is a fraud. The voter is unable to verify that the machine actually recorded their ballot as they voted, or even if their vote was recorded at all!"