Election Systems & Software

Election Systems & Software (ES&S) is an American company that provides voting services.

ES&S is a subsidiary of McCarthy Group Inc., which is jointly held by the holding firm and the Omaha World-Herald Company, the publisher of Nebraska's largest newspaper.^[1] As of 2007 it was the largest manufacturer of voting machines in the United States, claiming customers in 1,700 localities. As of 2007 it had approximately 350 employees; 2005 revenues were $117 million. ^[2]

History

Election Systems & Software was founded in 1979^[2] as American Information Systems Inc. (AIS), it merged with Business Records Corp. the following year and changed its name to ES&S. It was one of the top four providers of voting companies used in the November 2004 election; the other three were Diebold Election Systems (now Premier Election Solutions), Sequoia Voting Systems and Hart InterCivic.

Senator Chuck Hagel

Senator Chuck Hagel was an investor in the McCarthy Group Inc. and served as chairman of its AIS subsidiary from the early ‘90s until March 1995. AIS was responsible for counting 85% of the votes in his home state of Nebraska during the 1996 and 2002 elections. He did not disclose his position in the company in his mandated disclosures, until its name-change to Election Systems & Software (ES&S) in 1997.^[1]

2006 elections

After the November 2006 elections, Indiana launched an inquiry into poor service by the company, settling when it agreed to pay $750,000. West Virginia filed a formal complaint against the company with federal officials. Arkansas put together a panel to investigate. The company denied any major trouble with its machines, attributing problems to errors made by poll workers. ^[2]

Withdrawal of Inkavote

On August 3, 2007, California Secretary of state Debra Bowen withdrew approval of the ES&S InkaVote Plus optical scan voting system after a "top-to-bottom review" of the voting machines certified for use in California in March 2007.^[3]

Reported problems during the 2008 election

Early voters in the 2008 Presidential election have reported instances of malfunctioning machines. People complained that they voted for one candidate, only to have their selection switch to another.^[4] The clerk of Oakland County, Michigan reported inconsistent results with some machines during testing in October.^[5]

Acquisition of Premier Election Solutions

ES&S acquires Premier Election Solutions on September 3, 2009 "The acquisition combines the strengths of both organizations and will result in better products and services for all customers and voters alike." ^[6]

See also

• Electronic voting
• Voting machine

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Bolton, Alexander (2003-01-29). "Hagel’s ethics filings pose disclosure issue". The Hill. http://www.itu.dk/people/carsten/projects/e-voting/materials/hagel.pdf. Retrieved 2009-06-27. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} Anita Kumar, "Top vote-machine maker also tops complaint list: Vendor discounts woes, blames poll workers", St. Petersburg Times, May 27, 2005
3. ^ "Rescission and Withdrawal of Approval of the Election Systems and Software InkaVote Plus Precinct Ballot Counting System, Version 2.1, as Approved on April 21, 2006". California Secretary of State. 2007-08-03. http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/voting_systems/ess_rescission_withdrawal.pdf. Retrieved 2007-08-15. 
4. ^ "Early Voting Sees Reports of Voter Intimidation, Machine Malfunctions". Democracy Now!. 2008-10-22. http://i3.democracynow.org/2008/10/22/votes. Retrieved 2008-10-23. 
5. ^ "Letter from Ruth Johnson to Election Assistance Commission". Wired.com. http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/files/m100_issue_letter_10.24.08.pdf. Retrieved 2008-11-04. 
6. ^ "ES&S buys competitor". Omaha.com. http://www.omaha.com/article/20090903/MONEY/909039985. Retrieved 2009-03-09. 

External links

• ES&S Website
• List of malfunctions and miscounts by ES&S voting machines