EXCERPT

In all the controversy surrounding the 2000 election, the greatest source of anger and frustration among the public was the revelation that not everyone�s vote was counted. A study produced by MIT and CalTech estimated that between 4 and 6 million voters did not have their vote for president counted in 2000. 1.5 million of those were people who intended to cast a vote for president and had their votes tossed aside because the ballot was read as unmarked, spoiled, or unclear.

The election reform bill the Senate is now finally considering promises to go a long way toward addressing this problem. One of the most important ways it does this is that it requires voting machines to permit the voter to verify his or her vote and change it or correct it before it is cast and counted. Moreover, the bill requires the technology used must be such that if the voter votes for more than 1 candidate for a single office, the voting system notifies the voter and provides the voter with the opportunity to correct the ballot before the ballot is cast and counted.

The full text can be found at: Does Letting the Voter Know of Errors Improve Elections?