Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder-Elections

September 12, 2008

Attention Election Observers -
Critical Logic & Accuracy Testing Begins Sept. 16 for Presidential Election
Process Ensures Accuracy of Counting Software

Redwood City, CA –On Sept. 16, the San Mateo County Elections Office will begin the Logic & Accuracy (L & A) testing of the eSlate Voting System in preparation for the Nov. 4 Presidential General Election. Testing will be conducted at the Elections Office at 40 Tower Road, San Mateo. Testing will take as long as 12 days to complete. L & A testing is required by law to confirm that the hardware and software that will be used in the upcoming election is working properly. Any member of the public is welcome to observe the L & A process.

“We strive to conduct transparent elections by allowing the public to observe the processes and procedures as they occur with staff on hand to explain what’s going on and why. We believe this is the best way to instill public confidence. We want people to understand the process and to trust that all votes will be counted accurately,” said Warren Slocum, Chief Elections Officer for San Mateo County.

The Elections Office encourages the participation of observers in the L & A process. We will have dedicated staff to answer questions that observers may have as they watch the process. “An informed observer is much more able to understand what they are seeing,” explained Slocum. A comprehensive Election Observer’s Guide is also published to educate observers as to the steps involved in various election processes. It’s available to anyone interested in reading about our processes and is posted on the Elections website, at: www.shapethefuture.org/poll_workers/documents/Election-Officer-Handbook-v3.pdf.
“The more transparency we can give our processes, the more confidence people will have in their democracy,” Slocum continued.

The Elections Office extends invitations directly to the representatives of the political party central committees in San Mateo County in accordance with state law. “However, anyone can be an observer; the process of observing the election is open to the public,” explained Slocum.

The L & A testing of the accuracy of all components of the electronic voting system will be done concurrently. That means that the eSlates used by voters at the polls and at the two Voting Centers (40 Tower Road, San Mateo and 555 County Center, 1st Floor, Redwood City) and will take place at the same time that the testing of the Ballot Now equipment that reads and records all votes cast on paper ballots.

So how does this testing process work? During the testing of the electronic voting process, testers cast ballots that mirror the current election from a pre‐determined “matrix”. When they finish voting the entire matrices, the tabulations must be a perfect match in order for the equipment to pass the L & A test.

During the testing of the paper ballot voting process, the Ballot Now scanning equipment is tested to make sure that an accurate tabulation occurs. The testing matrices for voting a paper ballot are identical to the testing matrices for voting an electronic ballot. Only the conduct of the testing changes.

“All voting equipment processes must be thoroughly tested and work perfectly,” explained Slocum, “before any of the equipment is deployed for use on Oct. 6 at the early voting centers or on Election Day.

Before any testing begins, the development of testing matrices for early voting, voting by mail, and Election Day voting are created. These testing matrices cover every conceivable type of votes that are likely to be cast.

How is the test matrices created? For the Nov. 4 Presidential General Election, there will be 65 different ballot styles (195 individual ballot styles in 3 different languages). The Elections staff will mark “test” ballots with predetermined votes from the matrix so that every candidate and contest is voted for at least once in varying vote combinations on the test ballots during the testing process. Test ballots also contain write‐in votes, undervotes and overvotes to ensure that they will accurately reflect all potential voter choices.

The L & A testing process will require 20 election workers exclusively dedicated to the testing process. Interested observers are encouraged to call the Elections Manager, David Tom at
(650) 312‐5222. Observers will be issued identification badges, asked to confirm their attendance in advance and reminded to respect the efforts of the testing team while they make their observations. Dedicated staff will be on hand to explain what observers are watching and to answer questions.

Information about the upcoming Nov. 4 Presidential General Election is available online at the San Mateo County Elections Division web site at www.shapethefuture.org or by calling 650‐312‐5222.

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