Cochise County supervisors hear presentation raising legal and transparency questions about electronic voting systems

Paul Rice, a Phoenix-based presenter, told the Cochise County Board of Supervisors on Aug. 8 that state and federal procedures governing electronic voting machines raise legal and transparency concerns for Arizona counties.

Rice said his review focused on three questions: whether electronic voting machines are legal under Arizona law, whether county boards are obligated to use them, and whether Arizona law requires county supervisors to certify county election results. "This is not about election fraud. This is about the law, and about the constitution," Rice said.

Rice briefed the board on the federal Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA), the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) process for accrediting voting system test laboratories (VSTLs), and the distinction between VSTL accreditation and certification of specific voting-system software or hardware. He said early EAC guidance and a 2015 VSTL manual required VSTL accreditation periods not to exceed two years; later manual language removed that explicit two-year re-accreditation requirement, and Rice said certificates he has located show inconsistent accreditation periods.

Rice told the board he has made repeated…