FRAUD IN VENEZUELA

Looks like Little Hugo learned well from Big Fidel:

At first people scratched their heads in disbelief, including many Chávez supporters, but accepted these figures after César Gaviria, secretary general of the Organization of American States, and former President Jimmy Carter said their own quick counts coincided with the electoral council's figures. Two days after the referendum, however, evidence is growing that the software of the touch-screen voting machines had been tampered with. The opposition has requested that the votes be recounted manually and that the boxes holding the voting papers, currently stored in army garrisons, be put under the custody of international observers.

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Evidence of foul play has surfaced. In the town of Valle de la Pascua, where papers were counted at the initiative of those manning the voting center, the Yes vote had been cut by more than 75 percent, and the entire voting material was seized by the national guard shortly after the difference was established.

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Three machines in a voting center in the state of Bolivar that has generally voted against Chávez all showed the same 133 votes for the Yes option, and higher numbers for the No option. Two other machines registered 126 Yes votes and much higher votes for the No. The opposition alleges that these machines, which can both send and receive information, were reprogrammed to start adjudicating all votes to the No option after a given number of Yes votes has been registered.

Three machines in a voting center in the state of Bolivar that has generally voted against Chávez all showed the same 133 votes for the Yes option, and higher numbers for the No option. Two other machines registered 126 Yes votes and much higher votes for the No. The opposition alleges that these machines, which can both send and receive information, were reprogrammed to start adjudicating all votes to the No option after a given number of Yes votes has been registered

Posted by Val Prieto at August 19, 2004 08:00 AM

Comments

The government was, until it was discovered, part owner of the voting machine company. The voting machine company has a vested interest in a Chavez win.

However...I'm going to wait for CC/OAS audits before I believe any of this. It's scary. --s

Posted by: j.scott barnard at August 19, 2004 09:44 AM

Jimmy Carter says he won. Are you saying you don't believe Jimmy Carter, the great genius?

Posted by: Steve H. at August 19, 2004 10:31 AM

And there's a perfect demonstration as to why I viscerally distrust touch-screen voting machines. It's far too easy to rig elections with them.

Posted by: AWG at August 19, 2004 10:44 AM