NewsMax.com
Friday, Jan. 12, 2001

According to the Associated Press:

The American Civil Liberties Union went to federal court Thursday to banish the voting system producing "chads" that is used in 89 Illinois counties, including Cook County, which contains Chicago.

This follows on the heels of similar action in Florida and Georgia, where civil rights groups argue the error-prone punch-card system disenfranchises thousands of black voters.

Some 70,000 Chicago ballots were thrown out and not counted in the Nov. 7 presidential election because no vote for president had been punched or there were votes for more than one candidate.

Harvey Grossman, state ACLU legal director, said the error rate was highest in predominantly minority precincts.

Fewer ballots were disqualified in counties with an optical scanner system, which is what the ACLU wants to replace punch cards.

Used now in only 13 Illinois counties, the scanner system warns voters who make a mistake, allowing them to revise their votes before their ballot is recorded.

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Presidential Race 2000

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