November 7, 2006. A man walks into a polling station and says he wants to vote. A poll worker checks the new $30 million list of registered voters. The man is not on the list. The poll worker sends him to the registration table. He fills out the paperwork and votes.

Questions:

What if the man was only 17, or not a U.S. citizen, or otherwise ineligible to vote? The new $30 million dollar state list (or "system") won't stop him from voting.

What if this was the second or third polling station this man registered at and voted at on Election Day, in a voter fraud scheme? Answer - he easily voted two or three times. The poll workers aren't suspicious because a lot of people are not on the list. The man had a fake ID.

Conversely, what if this man is an eligible voter but he has to pick up his kids in 30 minutes and the same-day registration line is long and moving slowly. More than 100 new voters are registering this day. He decides to leave and not vote. Or, what if he does wait in line only to find out later that he's at the wrong polling station.

Given more time and more money, Accenture will eventually finish a statewide list (or "system") of registered voters that can be used by local poll workers on Election Day. It will almost certainly be riddled with errors and duplications for 4-6 years at least, but it will be used.

The final question is, SO WHAT?

In a state with election-day registration, even a perfect list of pre-registered voters wouldn't prevent ineligible persons from voting; wouldn't stop fraud; and wouldn't expedite voting or make it easier for people to vote. Why is the state spending $30 million to create a list that doesn't improve election security or help run elections more efficiently?

Around 70% of all the new voter registrations that are completed in 2006 will be filled out and filed on Election Day. Hundreds of thousands of them.

A list of only pre-registered voters does next to nothing. A truly useful "system" should include data on all "eligible" voters - everyone 18 and older - plus notations for people who do not appear eligible (because they have died, moved, been convicted of a felony, etc.). These people can then be challenged knowledgeably by poll workers on Election Day. The database could even include thumbnail photos from DOT of almost everyone.