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Comment by powvans | Hacker News Reader

I've lived in Georgia most of my life and we've used these voting machines as long as I can remember. I've never felt comfortable voting on these machines. You get the card from the poll worker, you put it into the machine, you make some choices, and then you hand the card to another poll worker on the way out the door.

Nothing about that process gives me confidence that the votes are actually counted after they are cast. I believe they are counted because I still have some confidence in government. Unfortunately confidence in government is eroding and these poor processes are not helping.

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> I believe they are counted because I still have some confidence in government.

Why would you? Don't. The ballot casting system should be inherently safe regardless of trust in any government official. That's how it's done in most democracies.

There's a similar process in California, but you get a receipt. Does georgia offer a voting receipt?

I voted in Missouri using one of these machines. You can print a receipt but you cannot actually have the receipt, you just see it slide behind some clear plastic.

The machines used in Georgia do not print receipts. Full stop.

The California receipt lets you know later that your ballot was counted- very handy when you mail it in or cast a provisional. The ballot itself is paper. Or, at least, that’s how my county does it.

No, there’s no receipt. That’s what’s so confidence eroding out it. All you have to show for your effort is an “I voted” sticker with a peach on it.

Thank god they have the stickers, at least. The foundation of our democracy.

No, GA doesn't provide voting receipts.

Receipts are problematic as they enable compelled voting.

Which is?

Which is where someone pays you to vote a certain way. It follows that they want proof, so the receipt shows proof of your vote.

I think it's also likely to cause harassment outside of polling places with gangs on sidewalks asking to see the proof that people voted for their candidate. You DID get a receipt, didn't you?

Seems like someone could get a mail in ballet and sell it to somebody else?

Yes, this is why I also don't really like mail in voting despite it being so much more convenient.

I've heard lots of stories where the head of the household fills in the mail in ballots for the whole family.

Of course!

Abuse of mail in / absentee ballots are one of the few frauds that actually happen. The elderly and tight-knit religious groups are particularly vulnerable.

I think he is referring to cases in the past where politicians and political parties would pay people to vote and require they bring the slip back to prove they voted for the right guy.

The receipts do not show who you voted for, only the fact that you voted. They can only be used after the election to lookup online whether you voted, but again, it will not show your voting choices.

Apparently the receipt itself doesn't show the votes. There's a way to check that the votes were registered correctly (online and involving a PIN) but it's not as simple as just looking at the receipt.

Obvs vote buying / intimidation could still happen but I'm not sure it would be practical at scale.

The receipt shows you voted, not how you voted. It’s a strip of paper along your ballot; marks go elsewhere.

That sounds completely useless, other than confirming that some action was taken and making you feel good.

I could see the potential usefulness of a receipt that was in a locked drop safe for audit/internal control purposes.

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