Exactly one month ago, I addressed the House on this same issue.  At that time, I spoke of my work as Rhode Island’s Secretary of State to modernize our state’s antiquated voting equipment.  During my tenure, Rhode Island upgraded its voting machines from the worst in the nation to among the best, improved the accessibility and accuracy of our elections, and achieved a significant increase in voter participation.  Furthermore, all of these reforms were cost-effective.  Models exist for accurate and cost-effective election reform that states can replicate to ensure true democracy.  In fact, my former staff has been working with election officials in Florida and New York, as well as researchers at MIT, to discuss how they can emulate our success.

Many of our nation’s election administrators are working tirelessly to improve their voting systems, and I applaud their efforts to ensure that no voter is disenfranchised and that all ballots are accurately counted.  However, I know from personal experience that upgrading an entire state’s election system is no small feat.  It requires a great deal of planning, investment of time and resources, and the coordination of efforts with different levels of government.  Fortunately, twenty-one House Members have introduced legislation to help improve our nation’s overall voting system.  The sponsors of these bills hold a variety of ideological views.  However, we all share one common goal: to ensure that our nation’s election system does not undermine citizens’ confidence in the democratic process, and that every vote counts.

For this reason, Mr. Speaker, I am introducing this sense of Congress resolution encouraging Congress to make this vision a reality by the 2002 election.  Though we may disagree about some of the details, my colleagues and I are willing to put aside our differences and work for the betterment of our nation.  We must act now to ensure that the United States has an accurate and open election system.  We must act now to ensure that elderly and disabled voters can cast their votes independently.  We must act now to ensure that we count every one of our nation’s military voters.  We can attain all of these goals, but we must begin our efforts immediately to reach them by 2002.

“One person, one vote” is the fundamental principle upon which American democracy stands.  Please join me in cosponsoring this resolution, in learning about the various voting technologies at the secretaries of state demonstration I am sponsoring next week, and in taking an open-minded, bipartisan approach to resolving this national problem.  Nothing could be more important to Congress than guaranteeing every American free and fair access to our democratic process.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.