Unilect
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Unilect (also stylized as UniLect) is a punch card voting machine manufacturer[1] based in Dublin, California.[2] Its main product is the Patriot touchscreen voting machine,[2] which was introduced in 1992.[3]
Unilect was founded in 1989 by Jack Gerbel,[4] who previously founded Computer Election Systems,[5] and is the president as of 2006.[6] During the 2000s, its machines were sold in Michigan, North Carolina, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Florida,[2] and Virginia.[3] The company had about 20 employees as of 2004.[3]
In 2003, six election vendors formed the Election Technology Council for documenting ethics and security best practices: the Information Technology Association of America, Diebold, Hart InterCivic, Election Systems & Software, Sequoia Voting Systems, and Unilect.[7]
During the 2004 United States elections, in Carteret County, North Carolina, 4,530 votes were irreversibly lost. Local election officials said that Unilect told them each voting machine had a limit of 10,500 votes, but the actual limit was 3,005 votes. Gerbel said that the machines gave a warning message that storage space was running out. Critics responded that the machines should have automatically stopped counting new ballots at this point.[8] The chair of Carteret County's election board said that election officials did not see a warning message.[9] The North Carolina agriculture commissioner election results had a margin lower than the number of lost votes, so it was not certified in time unlike the other races.[3] In December 2004, a new election was ordered by the North Carolina Board of Elections for North Carolina agriculture commissioner.[10] In July 2005, the North Carolina State Legislature voted to stop using Unilect and to mandate paper ballots for all electronic voting systems.[6]
Pennsylvania state officials decertified Unilect in April 2005 due to its machines freezing, not capturing screen touches, and under-counting votes during the 2004 election.[11] In April 2006, Unilect offered to buy back old Patriot machines for $5,000 from Mercer County, Pennsylvania, originally sold for about $900,000 in 2001. County Commissioner Olivia M. Lazor described this offer as "an insult".[12] In May 2006, the county sued Unilect to recover the cost, alleging breach of contract.[13]
External links
References
- ↑ van Natta Jr., Don; Canedy, Dana (2000-11-09). "THE 2000 ELECTIONS: THE PALM BEACH BALLOT; Florida Democrats Say Ballot's Design Hurt Gore". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2025-09-28. Retrieved 2025-10-14.
- 1 2 3 Tobin, Thomas C. (2001-02-25). "Future of voting is here _ in tiny Burke County". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on 2025-10-12. Retrieved 2025-10-14.
- 1 2 3 4 Morrill, David (2004-11-24). "Unilect vote device causes uproar". East Bay Times. Archived from the original on 2024-08-06. Retrieved 2025-10-14.
- ↑ Tobin, Thomas C. (2001-08-06). "Technical reality of election reform hits hard". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on 2025-10-12. Retrieved 2025-10-14.
- ↑ Dugger, Ronnie (1988-10-30). "Counting Votes". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Archived from the original on 2023-06-03. Retrieved 2025-10-14.
- 1 2 Seemes, Ben (2006-06-10). "UniLect hopes machines bounce back from 2004 election fiasco". East Bay Times. Archived from the original on 2024-08-07. Retrieved 2025-10-14.
- ↑ Gross, Grant (2003-12-10). "Electronic voting vendors band together". Computerworld. Archived from the original on 2025-10-13. Retrieved 2025-10-14.
- ↑ Zetter, Kim (2004-11-04). "Computer Loses 4,500 Votes". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Archived from the original on 2025-03-07. Retrieved 2025-10-14.
- ↑ Schreiner, Mark (2004-11-16). "N.C. electronic voting tallies up widespread confusion". Wilmington Star-News. Archived from the original on 2025-10-12. Retrieved 2025-10-14.
- ↑ "Dublin machine botches election". East Bay Times. 2004-12-31. Archived from the original on 2024-08-06. Retrieved 2025-10-14.
- ↑ "State gives reprieve to voting machine maker". Pocono Record. 2005-04-16. Archived from the original on 2025-10-13. Retrieved 2025-10-14.
- ↑ Greenburg, Jeff (2006-04-14). "UniLect's $5,000 offer for old voting machines an 'insult'". The Herald. Archived from the original on 2025-10-12. Retrieved 2025-10-14.
- ↑ Greenburg, Jeff (2006-05-19). "County sues voting-machine maker Unilect". The Herald. Archived from the original on 2025-10-12. Retrieved 2025-10-14.