Investigations

Elections and Voting

Chronology

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Ensuring Fairness and Accuracy in Elections Involving Electronic Voting Systems

On
Wednesday, April 18, the Information Policy, Census, and National
Archives Subcommittee held a hearing on ensuring fairness in elections
involving electronic voting machines.

Friday, October 21, 2005

GAO: Continued Federal Efforts Needed to Improve Electronic Voting

A
new GAO report released by Rep. Waxman, Chairman Davis, and eleven
other members of Congress finds security and reliability flaws in the
electronic voting process.

Wednesday, January 12, 2005

GAO Asked to Investigate Election Day Lines

Rep.
Waxman and Rep. Conyers ask GAO to investigate the long lines and
excessive waiting times experienced by voters in the 2004 election.

Tuesday, October 19, 2004

Call for GAO Investigation into Overseas Voting Problems

Reps.
Waxman and Maloney ask GAO to investigate whether the Defense
Department is fulfilling its obligation to ensure that Americans living
abroad, both military and civilian, can vote.

Thursday, October 14, 2004

DOJ Unprepared to Handle Allegations of Voting Irregularities

A
new GAO report released by Reps. Waxman and Conyers finds that the
Justice Department is not prepared to respond to reports of voter
intimidation and disenfranchisement in next month’s elections.

Wednesday, September 22, 2004

DOD Blocking Access to Overseas Voting Assistance Website

Reps.
Waxman, Maloney, and Clay write DOD regarding recent reports that the
Department is blocking access to the Federal Voting Assistance Program
website for many Americans overseas.

Friday, May 14, 2004

Members Submit Bipartisan Request for GAO Investigation of Electronic Voting

Chairman
Davis, Rep. Waxman, and eleven other Members of Congress ask GAO to
study of the security and reliability of electronic voting systems.

Monday, October 01, 2001

GAO Report: 2000 Presidential Election Undercount

At
the request of Rep. Henry A. Waxman, the General Accounting Office
investigated the impact of voting equipment and the demographic
characteristics of voters on the undercount in the 2000 presidential
election. The report found that voters using punch-card machines had
the highest percentage of uncounted ballots and that switching from
punch-card machines to optical scan machines that allow voters to
correct errors could prevent hundreds of thousands of uncounted ballots.

Monday, July 09, 2001

National Voting Study: Poor and Minority Voters Are More Likely to Have Their Votes Discarded

Millions
of ballots were not counted during the 2000 presidential election.
While some voters choose not to vote for any candidate or intentionally
voted for two candidates, the more common reason for votes not being
counted was faulty voting machines. Rep. Waxman was concerned that
votes of poor and minority voters might be disproportionately
discarded. Along with 20 other members of Congress, he asked the
Special Investigations Division to investigate whether voters in
low-income, high-minority districts were more likely to have their
votes discarded than voters in affluent, low-minority districts. He
also asked the Special Investigations Division to investigate the
impact of technology on the undercount. The report examined 40
congressional districts in 20 states. Twenty of these districts had
high poverty rates and a high minority population. Twenty of the
districts were relatively affluent and had a low minority population.
The report found that voters in low-income, high-minority districts
were over three times more likely to have their votes discarded as
voters in affluent, low-minority districts. But the report also found
that improved voting technology can reduce the number of uncounted
ballots cast by voters in districts with high poverty rates and high
minority population by up to 85%, significantly reducing the disparity
between the two groups.

Thursday, April 05, 2001

Investigation Finds Detroit Election Reforms Worked

At
the request of Rep. Waxman, the Special Investigations Division
conducted a case study of efforts to reduce uncounted ballots in
Detroit, the nation's poorest city. The investigation found that
Detroit's reforms worked. By replacing punch-card machines and
conducting voter education, Detroit reduced the percent of uncounted
votes for president by two-thirds between 1996 and 2000. The report was
released during a “Special Investigations Briefing” on April 5, 2001.

Displaying Items 1 to 10 of 10:

To see earlier reports, go to the original source at :http://oversight.house.gov/investigations.asp?ID=117

FACT SHEETS AND REPORTS

Summaries of State Election Procedures

This
2002 report details election procedures in the 50 states and the
District of Columbia and includes information on voting technologies
and recount procedures.