The Baltimore Sun reports that leaders of the General Assembly plan to introduce a constitutional amendment to allow early voting in Maryland early in the upcoming legislative session:
Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller said Assembly leaders presented plans to Gov.-elect Martin O'Malley on Monday and decided that one of the first bills to move forward during the 90-day session would be the constitutional amendment permitting five days of early voting.While early voting seems to be on a fast track, the question of what to do with the state's voting machines remains unclear:
Such an amendment is necessary after the state's highest court said in a decision released this month that the Maryland Constitution clearly requires that elections be held on one day and votes be cast in home precincts. The ruling, however, does not apply to absentee voting.
"The court was overly zealous in its opinion," Miller said. "They read things into the constitution that were not there. We're going to amend the constitution and ask voters to give themselves the same rights that have been given to voters in 30 other states."
A constitutional amendment requires the approval of three-fifths of both legislative chambers and is not subject to a gubernatorial veto. The change would then be put on the 2008 ballot for voters to decide.
This year, the Democrat-controlled General Assembly overrode vetoes by Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. of two early-voting bills with more than three-fifths support in both houses. The legislature's efforts were stymied when three Ehrlich allies sued and the courts ruled in their favor.
The question of what technology the state deploys to count ballots, however, is going to require more study, Miller said.If Congress passes a requirement for a paper trail, it might force Maryland down a path which many are already urging it to take. Meanwhile, notice that Diebold is urging the state to "upgrade" the machines which it just purchased. Is this company's product the new Microsoft Windows of election machines?
O'Malley has formed a working group to devise options for the state. Former Secretary of State John T. Willis is leading the effort, which is expected to issue its findings in late January, Abbruzzese said.
Some have suggested election officials ask voting machine manufacturer Diebold Election Systems Inc. to attach a printer to the state's machines, which would create a paper record of votes and enable an independent recount. Diebold, however, does not have a product ready -- only a printer prototype, company spokesman Mark Radke said.
"It has not gone any further because a printer requirement has not become law in Maryland," he said. "We would be glad to work with the state to develop that printer."
Miller suggested that the election officials could negotiate with Diebold to replace the state's machines with a newer model already equipped with a printer. He would like the state to be able to purchase new equipment at a discount, he said.
State budget officials estimate that when Diebold's contract with the state expires, the state will have paid the Texas-based company $106 million.
Radke also suggested upgrading to the newer model, pointing out that it is used in other states.
Concerns about the built-in printers, however, abound, including recent evidence from Cuyahoga County, Ohio, that they jam, creating an unreliable back-up for close contests. The paper print-outs also slow the voting process, meaning the state would have to purchase more machines to avoid long lines.
Doing nothing, however, could result in the state running afoul of pending congressional and federal agency mandates. Two Democrats, U.S. Rep. Rush D. Holt of New Jersey and U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, plan to introduce legislation in the next Congress requiring such paper trails.
The House bill would include $150 million to help states and municipalities, including Maryland, to upgrade their equipment, said Matt Dennis, a spokesman for Holt. A decision on funding in the Senate bill has not been made, said Howard Gantman, incoming staff director for the Senate Rules Committee.
Del. Elizabeth Bobo, a Howard County Democrat, said that a return to paper ballots that are tallied by optical scanners would be the cheapest way to meet potential mandates. A Bobo bill to use optical-scan equipment unanimously passed the House of Delegates this year, but died in the Senate.
