Re: OSDV Foundation and Overseas Vote Foundation to Develop XML Data Model for Online Exchange of Voter Registration Data

[Joseph Lorenzo Hall <joehall@gmail.com>]

Hi, I know John Sebes pretty well. Although I'm not involved with the
project, I know these guys and am a fan of what they do. I can make
introductions as needed. best, Joe

On Saturday, July 18, 2009, John Borras <john@pensive.eu> wrote:
> Joe
>
> Are you on the inside of this project or do we need to find some other
> friend to promote our cause?
>
> John
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Joseph Lorenzo Hall [mailto:joehall@gmail.com]
> Sent: 17 July 2009 20:56
> To: eml
> Subject: [election-services] OSDV Foundation and Overseas Vote
> Foundation to Develop XML Data Model for Online Exchange of Voter
> Registration Data
>
> FYI
>
> ----
>
> https://www.overseasvotefoundation.org/files/OVF-OSDV_%2817July09%29.pdf
>
> OSDV Foundation and Overseas Vote Foundation to Develop XML Data Model
> for Online Exchange of Voter Registration Data
> Alliance to Provide States a Method to Streamline Voter Registration
> Processing
>
> Minneapolis, MN - July 17, 2009 - In an agreement announced today at
> the National
> Civic Summit in Minneapolis, the Open Source Digital Voting (OSDV)
> Foundation's
> TrustTheVote Project and Overseas Vote Foundation (OVF) will
> co-develop a new XML
> data model for the electronic exchange of voter registration data.
> The data exchange
> protocol will significantly streamline, accelerate and improve states'
> processing of voter
> registration forms.  This online data transfer model will make it
> possible for States to
> electronically accept registration form data and then rapidly verify
> the applicant's record
> with the physical signed copy as received.
>
> "A known challenge facing states today is the last minute volume of
> voter registration
> forms that arrive just days before the registration deadline,"
> explained John Sebes, CTO
> of the OSDV Foundation's TrustTheVote Project.  "Despite the rise in
> third party registrar
> services that make registration forms available online, the completed
> forms must be sent
> in as hard copy in order to meet the signature requirement. This
> causes a significant
> bottleneck in processing the actual form data due to the manual
> re-keying of the printed
> data.  All this can be avoided by use of our new proposed standard
> data format."
>
> "This is a natural and greatly needed development to what we already
> do for many
> states," said Susan Dzieduszycka-Suinat, President and CEO, OVF. "This
> particular
> effort to improve the cycle-time for registration will help both
> election officials and
> voters."
>
> The TrustTheVote Project's open source digital voter registration
> system is being built
> for states' free adoption and will have the capacity to accept voter
> registration data
> online.  Using a scanner, incoming signed registration forms can be
> immediately
> reconciled with online data using an XML-based voter registration data
> model without
> needing to re-key the printed data.  The XML model also allows states
> to establish
> standards for the structure, organization and exchange of this data.
>
> "Working with the TrustTheVote Project allows us to combine their
> technical expertise
> and our experience in handling voter registration processes from the
> unique perspective
> of overseas voting to produce an open source solution which reflects
> the missions of
> both of our Foundations," added Dzieduszycka-Suinat. Both OSDV and OVF
> intend to
> examine other efforts already underway in the definition of voter and
> election data such
> as the Elections Markup Language (EML) work of the OASIS Elections &
> Voter Services
> Group, and other academic projects.
>
> The OSDV Foundation's TrustTheVote Project work relies on a
> stakeholder community
> of state election officials and other voting systems experts to guide
> the design and
> development of open source elections technology, freely available to
> any state or local
> election jurisdiction.  By collaborating with this community, called
> the "TTV Design
> Congress," OVF and OSDV can produce a data model that will best
> reflect the needs of
> the states.  The open source XML voter registration data exchange model
> will be
> available by the end of 2009 with iterative preliminary draft reviews
> available prior to its
> release.
>
>
>
> ##########
>
> About the TrustTheVote Project and the OSDV Foundation:
>
> The Open Source Digital Voting (OSDV) Foundation is a 501(c)(3)
> non-profit public
> benefits organization dedicated to sustaining development efforts to
> create freely
> available, open source technology for use in managing elections and
> conducting voting
> in the U.S.  The Foundation's flagship effort is the TrustTheVote
> Project - a di---------------------------------------------------------------------
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-- 
Joseph Lorenzo Hall
ACCURATE Postdoctoral Research Associate
UC Berkeley School of Information
Princeton Center for Information Technology Policy
http://josephhall.org/