Debut of `virtual ballot box'
In a hotly debated caucus arrangement, Michigan's Democratic Party is offering residents the option of voting for a presidential nominee via the Internet as well as by mail or in person
By Tim Jones
Tribune national correspondent
Published December 31, 2003
LANSING, Mich. -- As Democratic presidential candidates march toward primary election showdowns in Iowa and New Hampshire next month, Internet voting could begin as soon as next week for Michigan's Feb. 7 Democratic Party Caucus.
An estimated 400,000 Democrats are expected to cast ballots in a nearly 5-week-long, multitiered process that party officials hope will stimulate voter turnout and could, election experts say, establish the foundation for future elections.
In an unusual caucus arrangement, the Michigan Democratic Party is offering voters the option of selecting their favorite candidate by one of three ways--over the Internet, by mail or in person, on Feb.7.
The caucus vote--or votes--comes at a critical time in the Democratic primary process, with Michigan, the first northern industrial state to weigh in on the nine candidates, having more delegates than any of the nine primary and caucus states that will vote before it. Internet voting, used in only one previous primary election, has added to the suspense because seven of the Democratic candidates opposed its use in Michigan.
"Is this novel? Yes. Is it the wave of the future? We'll see," said Mark Brewer, executive chair of the Michigan Democratic Party, which is organizing the caucus vote.
And is it controversial? Definitely.
Internet voting has been promoted as a powerful, New Age tool to reverse the decadeslong erosion in voter participation. The power of the Net has brought people together, and almost instantaneous communications have streamlined the political campaigns.
But even the Internet's supporters have not been able to convincingly quell concerns about protecting the virtual ballot box from hackers and others who might illegally influence or taint votes through coercion, solicitation and vote selling.
The controversy surrounding Internet voting in Michigan has been fueled by charges that many traditional Democratic voters--namely African-Americans and lower-income voters who don't own computers--could see their influence diluted by the party's attempt to attract new voters.
"I don't know if this is going to be a good thing at the end," said Joel Ferguson, a black Democratic National Committee member from Lansing who objected to the Michigan caucus vote plan. "We're letting a group in that hasn't been there before. How do we know if they'll be with us in November?"
Ferguson, who ran Jesse Jackson's 1988 presidential campaign in Michigan, said Internet voting "will be a good idea, but it's not yet."
The controversy has divided the candidates. All of them except former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean and retired Gen. Wesley Clark opposed Internet voting. Critics included those who said Internet ballots would give Dean, who has used the Internet to mobilize his supporters and raise money, an unfair advantage.
45% of Michigan homes wired
About 45 percent of Michigan homes are wired to the Internet, and critics point out that whites and the more affluent are more likely to have computers than blacks and Hispanics. That, they said, gives them disproportionate influence in the delegate-selection process.
The DNC's Rules and Bylaws Committee last month rejected a challenge to the Michigan plan, voting 23-2 to let the multitiered vote proceed.
Brewer rejected charges that the Internet will tilt the balance in the caucus vote. No one will be disenfranchised, he said, because there are other ways to vote for people without Internet access.
"If it were the Internet only, that would be a different question," Brewer said.
Arizona Democrats used the Internet in that state's 2000 primary. Voter participation soared, and about 40 percent of the 86,000 ballots cast were generated online. While the Arizona experience gave Internet voting credibility, advocates are proceeding with caution.
The Defense Department and counties in 10 states have begun the process for Internet voting in the 2004 election. The so-called Secure Electronic Registration and Voting Experiment, or SERVE, is intended to enable U.S. citizens based overseas, military personnel and their dependents to register to vote and cast ballots via the Internet.
While election experts applaud those efforts, they note that computer systems still are too vulnerable to viruses, worms and the assaults of hackers who continue to find ways to infiltrate even the most intricate and supposedly defended systems.
"Until Bill Gates can get his system secure, I'm not sure we in government can do it," said Michigan Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land, the state's chief elections officer. "As far as voting online, I really see it quite far off into the future. It's all going to depend on whether they can get the security issues settled."
`We'll be watching,' GOP says
Land, a Republican, called the Democratic caucus plan "interesting and exciting. I'd like to see how the voters like this. We'll be watching," she said.
Voters can apply for caucus ballots starting Thursday and can vote as soon as they receive them. Each ballot for mail and Internet voting will have a special access code, which is designed to prevent multiple voting. The Democratic Party has set up about 1,500 computer terminals statewide, and there will be more than 400 caucus sites for in-person voting Feb. 7.
Brewer said he expects 60 to 65 percent of the votes to be cast by mail and the Internet. In the 2000 Michigan Democratic Caucus, about 80 percent of the votes came in by mail.
Daren Berringer, who runs the Dean campaign in Michigan, said he expects 40 percent of the vote to come in via the Internet and 40 percent by mail.
"It's tough to gauge this because it's never been done before," he said. "This is a totally new type of election in Michigan."
Copyright © 2003, Chicago Tribune
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