Senator Wyden On Why We Need Paper Ballots

Oregon Senator Ron Wyden doesn’t want Russia to steal our next election because of hackable voting booths.

“After the Russians hacked our democracy in 2016, I wrote the five biggest voting machine companies and I asked them what they’re specifically doing to secure these voting machines. And I’m just talking about basic cybersecurity,” he explained. “Instead of answers, I got back a whole lot of nothing. These big companies just think they’re above the law.”

Earlier this year, The New York Times reported that the Election Systems & Software company sold voting technology with remote access software that was pre-installed, which would allow those who had access to connect to election equipment remotely.

“These companies are always saying that they want to be the gatekeepers of our democracy but they are just completely uninterested in actually doing any safeguarding,” said Wyden. “So I’ve introduced a real simple bill. It would make sure that everybody in America could be confident that our electronics are legitimate. The new bill is called the Protecting America Votes & Elections Act (PAVE)."

The bill requires paper ballots and effective audits to be incorporated into the voting process, which would ensure a much safer, less hackable circumstance.