Page 5 - aruba-today-20190709

A5
U.S. NEWS Tuesday 9 July 2019

Iowa, Nevada to launch caucus voting by phone for 2020

By MICHELLE L. PRICE and Epstein, a voting systems
THOMAS BEAUMONT expert with ACM, the larg-
Associated Press est international associa-
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) tion of computer science
— Democrats in the early professionals. “None of
presidential contest states these technologies are re-
of Iowa and Nevada will be ally bullet proof.”
able to cast their votes over The state parties presented
the telephone instead of their plans late last month
showing up at their states’ to the DNC’s Rules and By-
traditional neighborhood laws Committee.
caucus meetings next Feb- Committee members ap-
ruary, according to plans plauded the work and
unveiled by the state par- gave conditional approval
ties. but asked for more informa-
The tele-caucus systems, tion about the security and
the result of a mandate functionality of the systems.
from the Democratic Na- “We are working with every
tional Committee, are state party that is integrat-
aimed at opening the lo- ing these tools so they can
cal-level political gather- make their voting process
ings to more people, espe- secure and successful. We
cially evening shift-workers look forward to working
and people with disabilities, In this March 8, 2019 file photo, an audience member arrives at a rally for 2020 Democratic with Democrats in these
whom critics of the cau- presidential candidate at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa. states to address the com-
cuses have long said are Associated Press mittee’s questions,” DNC
blocked from the process. ing criticism that the cau- licated in part in Nevada, The DNC’s mandate has spokesman David Bergstein
The changes are expected cuses are exclusionary and was a key factor in the push been a challenge for party said in a statement.
to boost voter participa- favor some candidates from groups on the left to operatives who sought to Both state parties plan to
tion across the board, pre- over others. overhaul the nominating maintain security while also require Democratic vot-
senting a new opportunity The Iowa caucuses, a series process heading into 2020. maintaining the spirit of the ers to register online in ad-
for the Democratic Party’s of party-run, local-level or- Nevada, the third state in caucuses, which are chiefly vance of their virtual cau-
2020 candidates to drive ganizing meetings that ad- the Democrats’ nominating local, party-building activi- cus, verifying their identity
up support in the crucial opted a presidential prefer- contest sequence, has only ties aimed at electing dele- with a “multi-factor authen-
early voting states. ence element more than been an early caucus state gates to party conventions. tication.”
“This is a no-excuse option” 50 years ago, have come since 2008, and the process Officials say by avoiding an Voters will receive a PIN
for participation, said Shel- under increasing criticism still remains relatively new internet-based program, that they’ll have to enter
by Wiltz, the Nevada Dem- in the past decade for their to many residents. they are reducing the risk when they call in to partici-
ocrats’ caucus director. fixed evening time and By opting for a dial-in pro- of hacking, a key concern pate.
Party officials don’t have place. Such rules effec- gram, the systems can in an era of renewed con- Iowans who register on
an estimate of how many tively barred participation reach people in Iowa’s cern about election tam- time will have six times to
voters will take advantage in the first-in-the-country and Nevada’s vast rural pering. choose from to participate
of the call-in option. But in nominating contest, for in- stretches where broad- While Nevada Democrats by phone, including the in-
Iowa, some recent polls stance, for parents unable band internet coverage said accessibility, not secu- person caucus night, Feb.
show as many as 20% of to find child care or older may be spotty. Iowa since rity, drove them to opt for 3. Nevadans who register
Democrats will participate voters hesitant to venture 2014 has offered a smaller- a phone-in system, Iowa for the virtual caucus can
virtually. In Nevada, most out in the dead of winter. scale tele-caucus, allow- Democrats said they felt participate on Feb. 16 or
voters tend to cast ballots Hillary Clinton and her sup- ing out-of-state members a lower-tech option was 17. Unlike Iowa, Nevada is
early during regular elec- porters complained that of the military and Iowans safer. also offering three days of
tions, and party officials Iowa’s process “disenfran- living abroad to call in to “With this system, it’s eas- in-person early caucusing
expect many will take ad- chised” those unable to live neighborhood caucus ier than making sure thou- to give people more op-
vantage of the early presi- attend after she finished a meetings and participate sands of computers across tions.
dential vote. disappointing third place in over the phone. the state are not filled with Wiltz said security experts
While rolling out a new vot- the 2008 caucuses. “One, we are a rural state. malware and not being with the DNC will be vetting
ing system holds the prom- In 2016, backers of Sen. Ber- And let’s be honest, outside hacked,” Price said. the systems later this year
ise of more voter participa- nie Sanders cried foul over of Las Vegas and Reno, Yet officials acknowledge to test for vulnerabilities to
tion, it also comes with po- the Iowa results when Clin- Nevada is a rural state. that relying on phone sys- breaches or hacking.
tential risk for confusion or ton won a razor-thin mar- Everyone is connected by tems does raise security “This isn’t something that
technical troubles. But the gin, 49.9% to 49.6%, despite phone,” Iowa Democratic concerns. we’re taking lightly. We un-
party is moving forward to some irregularities in report- Party Chairman Troy Price “Are they unhackable? derstand our responsibility,”
try and address long-stand- ing results. The dispute, rep- said. Certainly not,” said Jeremy Wiltz said.q