CQ TODAY PRINT EDITION – POLITICS
July 15, 2008 – 8:29 p.m.

House Defeats Funds for Paper Ballots

By Molly K. Hooper, CQ Staff

The House defeated a bill Tuesday to authorize up to $75 million to pay for backup paper ballots in the November elections.

The bill (HR 5803), sponsored by Zoe Lofgren , D‑Calif., was brought up under suspension of the rules, which requires a two-thirds vote for passage. The vote of 248-170 fell short of that.

The measure was an attempt to reimburse states and localities that opt to purchase pre-printed paper ballots to have at the ready should electronic voting machines fail on Election Day.

President Bush opposed the bill, calling it expensive and unnecessary.

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Jonathon Moseley July 16, 2008 10:05 PM
Let us not forget: It was the liberals screaming after the 2000 election who asked us to move away from paper ballots to electronic voting machines. The liberals demanded that it was racist and unfair to force old-fashioned, out-of-date paper ballots on poor cities and counties (even though controlled by Democrats). We were told taht everyone should have modern, new electronic voting machines. Now, of course, the very same liberals are complaining about their own plans.