1. 2012 Venezuelan Elections

2. Table of Contents
Venezuelan 2012 Presidential Election 2
Project Scope and Figures 3
Technology in the Venezuelan Elections 4
Technical Audits (Venezuela 2012) 6
How do Venezuelans vote in their Presidential Election? 8
What are people saying about the Venezuelan voting system? 9
Noteworthy stories in the Venezuelan media 12
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3. Venezuelan 2012 Presidential Election
On October 7th 2012, Venezuela faced one of the most transcendental electoral
processes in its political history. President Hugo Chávez Frías won the reelection after
facing Miranda State ex Governor Henrique Capriles Radonski, representative of the
coalition of opossition parties, Mesa de la Unidad Democrática (MUD).
For this event which attracted the attention of Venezuelans and foreigners around the
world, Smartmatic deployed its voting technology solution for the tenth time in the
country; including services and equipment for a 100% automated national election. This
event was also remarkable in the technology area: it was the first election in the world
to employ national biometric activation of voters.
Country: Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
Capital: Caracas
Estimated population: 28.800.000
Territorial division: 23 States, 1 Capital District and Federal Dependencies.
Type of State: Decentralized federal state
Project: 2012 Presidential Election (for the 2013-2019 period).
Voter registry: 18.903.143
Polling stations: 13.810
Electoral authority: Venezuelan National Electoral Council (CNE)
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4. Project scope and figures
On October 7th, the people of Venezuela chose their president for the 2013-2019
term. The National Electoral Council (CNE), the highest electoral authority in Venezuela,
announced an historic 80,85% of voter turnout.
The main elements involved in the Presidential Election Project were the following:
Automation of 100% of the polling stations
Deployment of 4 voting machine models: SAES 3300, 4000, 4200 and 4300
Use of the new VP-1500 e-ballot
Use of the Integrated Authentication System (SAI), a biometric device that authen-
ticates the voter and activates the voting session
Configuration and deployment of 59,700 voting machines
Execution of the following processes: engineering test, End-to-End test, voting
drill, and the final voting event.
Smartmatic was in charge of a series of tasks related to the election, some of which
went beyond its technological aspects:
1. Voting automation, tallying, transmission, collection and totaling of votes for
the Presidential 2012 Election
2. Selection, hiring and training of the field staff (Voting Machine Operators,
Support Technicians, Information Station Operators, Contingency Transmission
Center Operators, Totalization Technicians, Inventory Operators, Special Operators
and National Support Center Operators), staff for the National Support Center
(CNS), of the Regional Coordinators and staff for the Pre- and Post-Event Audits
3. Operation of the National Support Center
4. Furnishing and renovations of the Fast Response Centers
5. Operation of the Fast Response Centers
6. Software setup & priming of the voting machines and diagnostics run thereof
7. Supply of materials for the setup & priming of voting machines and of other
required materials/equipment
8. Supply and distribution of batteries as backup power sources
9. Installation of Contingency Transmission Centers
10. Printing of manuals and protocols for field personnel
11. Project management services and application of Smartmatic’s exclusive Project
Methodology
12. Control and follow-up of performance indicators
13. Priming and distribution of over 59,700 voting machines for each of these
events: operator training, voting information sessions, engineering test, voting
drill, and the Presidential Election proper
14. Execution of the engineering test, end-to-end test, voting drill, and the Presi-
dential Election
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5. Scope of the 2012 Presidential Election
CATEGORY NUMBER
Polling Centers 13.810
Regional Electoral Assemblies 24
Hard-to-reach Polling Centers 366
Voting Machines 39.018
CTC Machines 882
Reference Computers 732
Technology in Venezuelan elections
Venezuela is setting the trend in e-voting by becoming the first country in the world to
fully automate a national election. Several tools are being used to this end, including
software for monitoring, the generation of voting instruments and the publication of
results; and hardware such as biometric identification devices for voters, data entry
electronic ballots, and voting machines.
I. Voting machines (SAES-4000 series):
Latest-generation voting machines with a touch screen, extensions for e-ballots and
compatible with the SAI.
100% auditable. The vote is registered several times, redundant storage.
Votes are encrypted with 256-bit symmetrical algorithms
Integrated printer for vote vouchers, precinct counts, and voting logs
“Unblock” button to activate the voting session
Secure unidirectional data transmission through networks (LAN, phone lines,
CDMA and satellite)
Accesibility module for visually impaired voters
External power backup system, functional for up to 8 hours.
Portable protecting case, made from ultra resistant materials.
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6. II. Integrated Authentication System (SAI):
Each voting machine has a biometric authentication device used to activate sessions.
Every voter must be authenticated through his/her fingerprint in order to unlock the
voting machine.
This biometric authentication device has been developed by Smartmatic.
Color screen to display instructions and voter information, including the voter's
photograph
Integrated fingerprint reader to capture the voter´s biometric information
Support area to place the voter´s ID document
Keypad with touch and auditory sensitivity
LED lights to indicate the status of processes
Buzzer to indicate the start and end of processes
III. E-ballot VP-1500:
Bigger ballot size and bigger internal membranes
The voter can press upon the party’s logo, the candidate´s name or picture:
whole areas, not small ovals.
LED indicators for a visual confirmation of the voter´s choice(s)
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7. Technical audits (Venezuela 2012)
In Venezuela, the voting system is audited before, during and after each election. For
the 2012 Presidential Election, the electoral authorities organized several evaluations
of the software and hardware of the voting machines, as well as of the transmission
and totalization of results. All these audits included the technical representatives of
all political parties. This year 17 audits were in force: four new ones, one that was
reformulated and 12 audits similar to those carried out at previous elections.
First Technical Drill (April 28): This first internal test allowed to measure in real time
two proposed voting scenarios in order to evaluate the engineering of the polling
stations using the Integrated Authentication System (SAI), with the aim to define,
and later approve, the procedure to follow, in order to allow a secure and swift voting
experience.
Second Technical Drill (July 14): This test measured the time it took voters to go
through the physical layout of polling stations using the Integrated Authentication
System (SAI), together with the voting machines and the e-ballots.
End-to-End test (July 29): Formal test carried out in order to verify that the electoral
platform and logistical planning in their entirety are in top shape, ready for the
Election.
Audit of the voting registries (August 6 to 10): The voting registries for each polling
station were checked by all political organizations; this was done to insure that the
voter data matched the one provided by the National Electoral Registry.
Audit of the Voting Machines Software Certification (August 20 to 24): During this
source code audit, it was verified that the software installed in the voting machines
is the right one; it was also certified that the software adds, tallies and transmits
the results correctly.
Audit of the assembly of the voting machines (August 31 to September 30):
representatives of all the political parties and CNE technicians’ verified that the voting
machines were configured with the software code certified in the previous audit.
National voting drill (September 2): During this national technical test, the technological
and logistics elements (such as they are on Election Day) are tested. The National
Electoral Council deployed 4,832 voting machines with their electronic ballots and
SAI devices in 1,553 voting centers across the country, so citizens had a chance to
test the electoral platform.
Audit to the Tallying Software Certification (September 10 to 14): In this audit, political
organizations checked the totalization system, its components, source code and
digital signature.
Audit to the Biometric System (September 17): During this audit, it was verified that
there´s no relation between the fingerprint capture process and the sequence in
which votes are registered, enforcing the constitutional mandate for the secrecy of
the vote and the “one man, one vote” principle. This audit also included the modules
that make up the voting system, and the application’s digital signature was generated.
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8. Audit of the voting infrastructure (September 17): This audit checks the technological
platform of the voting machines and their structure. To this end, a voting machine is
disassembled in front of representatives of the political parties so its components can
be observed and it can be checked that they’re all indispensable for the voting to take
place, meaning there are no secondary elements that might perform tasks unrelated
to or not required by the voting process.
Pre-dispatch audit (September 30): Completely reformulated, this new pre-dispatch
audit is a replica of the electoral process. This test was conducted a week before the
elections with 1,400 voters that used a group of voting machines selected at random.
The CNE drove the voters and polling station members to its warehouses in Filas de
Mariches. Representatives of the political parties had a presence in selected polling
stations as witnesses.
Post-voting audit (October 15 and 16): Replay of the closing audit, where the repre-
sentatives of the political parties verify the audited ballot boxes, counting once again
the vouchers contained therein. These results are compared to those produced by the
totalization system and are certified by the political parties.
Other audits and tests:
Audit of the Preeliminary Electoral Registry (July 8)
Audit of the production of poll books (July 24 to 28)
Audit of the data in voting machines (August 27 and 28)
Full Presidential Election Audit, or "Audit for citizen verification" (October 7)
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9. How do Venezuelans vote?
The voting process in its entirety comprises activities of the highest automation level,
including the biometric authentication of the voters, automated voting, tallying, collection
and totalization of results, and the proclamation of the winning candidate.
1. Upon arriving at the
2. Once the voter’s
polling center, the voter
ID numberis entered
must provide his ID card
in the SAI, the biographic
to a polling station member
information of the voter
so his personal data is
appears on screen,
searched in the Integrated
including a picture
Authentication System
identifying him.
(SAI) database.
4. Once the voter´s identity
is verified, he goes to the
3. The SAI device then reads
voting machine.
the voter´s fingerprint,
The machine operator
and it´s checked against
presses the activation
the system’s database.
button and the voting
act proper begins.
5. The elector uses the
e-ballot. He finds the
6. Once the option has
candidate or political
been selected, the voter
party of his choice on it
must verify his choice
and press upon
on the screen of the
the corresponding logo,
voting machine.
picture or any part
of the box.
8. The machine prints
7. The voter must confirm
a voting voucher reflecting
his option by pressing
the voter’s choice. The voter
“Vote” on the screen of
then inserts this voucher
the voting machine,
into the ballot box
casting his vote.
to end the process.
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10. What are people saying about the Venezuelan voting system?
Citizen perception
A survey by pollster Datanálisis (2010 and 2012) reveals that:
Nine out of ten Venezuelan voters (93%), think that voting with Smartmatic´s
voting machines is “easy” or “very easy”.
75% prefers e-voting over manual voting.
71% considers that Venezuela’s voting technology is one of the most advanced
worldwide.
68% of citizens consider that electoral results in Venezuela are reliable.
Relevant quotes
“The Venezuelan voting system is very advanced on account of its automation, which
provides guarantees to all Venezuelans so they will participate continuously in their
democratic processes. The automated process adopted in Venezuela makes a very
strong difference. It’s proving to be highly efficient” | International electoral observer
(Peru), Arístides Valer Lopera. 10.07.2012
“We’ve been observing this electoral process for three days, and it shows significant
advances when it comes to guarantees in the Venezuelan voting system. We’ve seen
in our visits to the voting centers that it’s a perfect system, one of the best in the
world” | Gloria Flores, Member of the Andean Parliament for Colombia 10.07.2012
“The Venezuelan voting system is enviable. Its transparency and clarity cannot be
denied. Little by little the system used in Venezuela will be adopted by other countries
in America” | International electoral observer (Ecuador), María Augusta Calle. 10.07.2012
“What we’ve verified is that Venezuela has one of the strongest voting systems
technologically speaking, one of the most advanced, trustworthy and reliable ones of
Latin America. I believe that electronic voting is much more reliable, swift, user-friendly
and auditable than manual voting” | Carlos Álvarez, Chief of the Unasur Electoral
Observation Mission and former president of Argentina 10.05.2012
"There’s a series of procedures taking place in the machines’ software that would
prevent any Venezuelan from reconstructing a time sequence for voters and votes”
| Enrique Márquez, Leader of Un Nuevo Tiempo political party 10.05.2012
“Believing in these results is not an act of faith; in Venezuela, guarantees are gained
step by step after each phase of the process is audited. Voting fraud is impossible in
Venezuela. Other countries with manual voting systems make estimates and votes are
counted later. We count vote by vote, millions of them, in a very short time” | Tibisay
Lucena, president of the National Electoral Council 10.04.2012
“I’m certain of two things: fraud of any kind is impossible in Venezuela, and second,
no one will repudiate the results of the election. Whoever has the votes wins; this is
known by everybody. The voters know that their votes count, the political parties have
witnesses in the tallying centres, and they keep the voting logs” | Vicente Díaz, rector of
the National Electoral Council 10.05.2012
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11. “What has also become clear is that irregularities in voting have to do more with the
representation of certain factions in the polling stations than with the technology involved.
The fact that there’s no difference between the votes cast and the counts performed
during audits is an indicator that the system guarantees the will of each voter” | Marino
González, Coordinator of the Technical Unit of the Mesa de Unidad Democrática 10.02.2012
“Venezuela’s voting system is the best in the world. We’re sure that on October 7 the
election results will reflect the will of the people” | Luisa Ortega Díaz, Venezuelan Attorney
General. 10.02.2012
“Our vote tallying is really good, since it’s carried out with modern, auditable
technology. We’ve won elections and it hasn’t been the CNE who has taken victories
from us: for instance, we won in the Governors Election” | Ramón Guillermo Aveledo,
Executive Secretary of the MUD. 10.01.2012
“My impressions are that the electoral process is very efficient and that the voting
machines are up to date and reliable to carry out a secure process” | Kathleen Johnson,
member of the National Lawyers Guild (USA) 09.20.2012
“After having monitored 92 elections, I can say that Venezuela has the best voting
system in the world, since it makes verifying the electoral results easier. It allows
electronic voting and offers a physical, printed backup of the votes”. | Jimmy Carter,
former President of the Untied States, leader and founder of the Carter Center. 09.19.2012
“The automated voting system have functioned properly in every election, and no
discrepancies have been found between the voting logs from the polling stations and
the results published by the CNE”. | Vicente Bello, Electoral Technicial of the Comando
Venezuela. 09.06.2012
“Our electoral system is one of the best in the world. We’re guaranteeing that one
voter equals one vote, and I’m sure that there’s no way there’s fraud in Venezuela”
| Hugo Chávez Frías, President of Venezuela and presidential candidate. 09.02.2012
“We have the most reliable, solid, transparent, fully automated, modern system in the
world, with no elements that compromise the secrecy of the voters’ choices” | Jorge
Rodríguez, Chief of the Carabobo campaign command and Mayor of Caracas. 09.02.2012
“The Venezuelan voting system has several control and security mechanisms, but the
most important thing is that it can be verified and audited. The CNE works together
with the political parties so that they participate in the audits; transparency is what
lends trust to the system. It removes the possibility of errors since everything is
automated” | Jennifer McCoy, Director of the Program for the Americas of the Carter Center
08.10.2012
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12. “Venezuela’s automated system has made strides in the struggle against electoral
fraud and guarantees the voters’ rights. We understand, from all the technical
meetings we’ve had, that a good e-voting system has been developed, one that’s
reliable” | Francisco González Cabaña, deputy of the Spanish Workers Socialist Party (Psoe).
08.10.2012
“The Venezuelan people must trust that their decision on October 7 is bullet-proof (…)
We have an electoral system that has been perfecting itself. From a technical
standpoint, it is flawless, and it guarantees transparency and the will of the people”
| Nicolás Maduro, Venezuelan Chancellor. 08.10.2012
“At least in the elections of the past 8 years, and in the upcoming elections, there
hasn’t been nor will be any fraud. The vote has always been secret. There is no
evidence to the contrary” | Mario Torre, director of the voting system auditing group.
07.23.2012
“So far, everything that the group of technicians working with us are saying is that
the automated voting system has been working. We must do a better job informing
the population that using the system is safe” | Teresa Albanés, president of the electoral
commission of the Mesa de la Unidad Democrática (MUD). 07.23.2012
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13. Noteworthy stories in the Venezuelan media
Observers remark reliability of the voting system
Members of the observation missions that participated in the October 7 election
remarked that the day went by with no incidents and agreed on the reliability of the
electoral system. The Doctor in Political Sciences and Sociologist from the Universidad
Complutense of Madrid, Ángeles Diez, described the Venezuelan voting process as
“extraordinary and unique” and added that it has “a level of rigor, of veracity, of data
verification that grants significant trust to the electorate”.
http://www.ultimasnoticias.com.ve/noticias/tuvoto/noticiaselectorales/acompanantes-destacan-fiabi
lidad-de-sistema-electo.aspx
El Nacional
Observation missions remarked reliability of the Venezuelan voting system |
10.08.2012
Spanish lawmaker and expert in international humanitarian law, Enrique Santiago,
remarked that the electoral process took place in calm and praised the system, defining
it as the most advanced in the world. He remarked that “there’s an acknowledgement
that the Venezuelan voting system is one of the most advanced in the world and is
really impossible to manipulate”.
http://www.el-nacional.com/mundo/Misiones-acompanamiento-destacaron-fiabilidad-venezolano_0_
59394084.html
El Comercio (Ecuador)
Venezuelans voted with an automated system| 10.08.2012
Technical representatives of the campaign commands for Hugo Chávez and Henrique
Capriles audited the system in 13 key aspects, such as the voting machine’s software
and the indelible ink in which voters must dip their pinkies after voting, the voter
registry and the fingerprint database. None of them reported significant failures. The
President of the CNE, Tibisay Lucena, reiterated that the Venezuelan voting system is
bullet-proof, since every one of its phases has been tested.
http://www.elcomercio.com/mundo/elecciones-Venezuela-elecciones_Venezuela-Hugo_Chavez-Hen
rique_Capriles_0_787721386.html
El Universal
It’s guaranteed that the vote is secret | 10.06.2012
There is no undetectable fraud in Venezuela. The 13 audits performed on the voting
system that will be used tomorrow guarantee that the candidate with the most votes
will be declared the winner. The audits to the system also reiterated that there are no
“ghost” tallying centers, or that the results can be transmitted outside Venezuela in
order to change the will of the people.
http://www.eluniversal.com/nacional-y-politica/elecciones-2012/121006/garantizan-que-el-voto-es-
secreto
Milenium (México)
Center rules out a possible electoral fraud in Venezuela | 10.05.2012
Experts from the Carter Center in the US, which is monitoring the current Venezuelan
election, ruled out the possibility of fraud and claimed that the fears about the secrecy
of voting are unfounded, as per a report of the Center issued today. The Venezuelan
presidential election of next Sunday has as novelty the introduction of a totally electronic
12

14. and automated system to check the voter’s identity through their fingerprints. “The
software in the voting machines guarantees the secrecy of the vote”, states the
experts’ report.
http://www.milenio.com/cdb/doc/noticias2011/cae0c6b458cbc6e856b2279d53e84217
Portafolio (Colombia)
Unasur: Transparency in Venezuelan elections is guaranteed | 10.05.2012
Carlos Álvarez, former president of Argentina and General Secretary of the Latin
American Integration Association (Aladi), indicated that both the government and the
opposition have placed their trust in the automated voting system, seeing it preserves
the secrecy of the vote, it withholds the identity of voters, the transmission of data
from the machines works and the public security plan set by the army is appropriate.
http://www.portafolio.co/internacional/transparencia-elecciones-venezuela-esta-asegurada
ArgonMéxico
E-voting in Venezuela is easy | 10.05.2012
A study carried out in September by the Venezuelan pollster Datanálisis about the
upcoming elections, reveals that for 9 out of 10 Venezuelans (91.10% of those
surveyed) voting with Smartmatic’s machines, which count with touch screens and
printed voting vouchers, is “easy” or “very easy”.
http://argonmexico.com/politica-al-margen-jaime-arizmendi
Entorno Inteligente
The British trust Venezuela’s voting system | 10.04.2012
Deputies, union leaders and other British personalities expressed their trust in the
Venezuelan voting system. They stated that Venezuela is “a country that has had more
elections that almost any other worldwide, all of them certified by prestigious international
organisms”.
http://www.entornointeligente.com/articulo/1321161/VENEZUELA-Britanicos-confian-en-nuestro-sist
ema-electoral-04102012
El País (España)
“Fraud is impossible” | 10.04.2012
The president of the Venezuelan National Electoral Council states that there are
guarantees for a fair and clean election. Other countries with manual systems make
approximations and the votes are counted afterwards. We count vote by vote, millions
of them, in a very short time and we have two conditions to broadcast the first official
bulletin: that there are no more voters in the lines and that the result is irreversible. Q.
Do you think someone would call fraud? A. Someone can always do so, but fraud is
impossible.
http://internacional.elpais.com/internacional/2012/10/04/actualidad/1349372461_906600.html
El Impulso
The vote: a secret only the voter can reveal | 10.02.2012
Former rector of the National Electoral Council and president of the Actívate Barquisi-
meto Foundation, Sobella Mejías, considers that for the upcoming elections “it’s
beyond proven that the vote is secret and the only way to know someone’s preference
is if he reveals it”. The former member of the electoral power remarked the effective-
ness of the codes safeguarding the data in the voting and fingerprint capture machi-
nes, and how all data is randomly stored so no one can reconstruct a time sequence
and associate votes to voters.
http://elimpulso.com/articulo/el-voto-secreto-que-solo-el-elector-puede-revelar#.UG8aD1GziSp
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15. El Nacional
Voting without myths and without fears by Mario Torre | 09.30.2012
The voucher always shows the candidate that was selected. Therefore, it’s very
important for the voter to verify that the choice displayed on the screen matches his
choice on the ballot, and only then press the “vote” button on the screen. If what is
displayed on the screen doesn’t match what he selected, he can use the ballot again.
http://impresodigital.el-nacional.com/ediciones/guardar/guardar.asp?dia=30&mes=09&anio=201
2&archivo=n1_4n2
Unión Radio
Súmate insists on the secrecy of the vote| 09.27.2012
The coordinator of the social auditing department of the ONG Súmate, Dashiell López,
reiterated that the vote is secret. “We say this with total confidence and security;
advances were made during the technical revisions to the Integrated Authentication
System (SAI), the fingerprint capture machines and the voting machines”, he stated.
http://www.unionradio.net/ActualidadUR/Nota/visornota.aspx?id=123357&tpCont=1&idsec=30
7&idprog=16
Notitarde
Rector Vicente Díaz: "We’ll have flawless elections" | 09.25.2012
The main rector of the National Electoral Council (CNE), Vicente Díaz, stated that on
October 7 “we’ll have flawless elections” and reiterated that the vote is “absolutely secret”.
He also added that the delivery of credentials to polling station members and witnes-
ses is back to normal.
http://www.notitarde.com/Pais/Rector-Vicente-Díaz-Tendremos-unas-elecciones-impecables/2012/
09/24/134470
El Universal
Unasur: Campaign chiefs accept Venezuelan voting system | 09.23.2012
Campaign chiefs for the President and re-election candidate Hugo Chávez and the
candidate of the opposition collective Mesa de la Unidad Democrática (MUD) Henrique
Capriles Radonski, are happy with the electoral system set in place for the October 7
presidential election. “None of the spokespeople doubted the technological strengths
of the system”, stated the report of the Union of South American Nations (Unasur),
the only international organism accredited to witness the election.
http://www.eluniversal.com/nacional-y-politica/120923/unasur-jefes-de-campana-aceptan-sistema-
electoral-venezolano
Noticias24
Jimmy Carter considers that "the Venezuelan voting process is the best in the world”
| 09.19.2012
According to the former US President Jimmy Carter, Venezuela has “the best voting
process in the world”. Taking into account “the 92 elections we’ve monitored, I’d say
that the Venezuelan voting process is the best in the world”, he added. Carter praised
the country for having a voting system that allows for electronic voting and also has
paper ballots, which makes verifying the electoral results easier.
http://www.noticias24.com/venezuela/noticia/126847/jimmy-carter-considera-que-el-proceso-elector
al-en-venezuela-es-el-mejor-en-el-mundo/
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16. El Nacional
Álvarez:
Venezuela´s voting system is one of the most advanced in America | 09.16.2012
“Venezuela has today one of the strognest and most technologically advanced voting
systems in Latin America, which guarantees the transparency, control and surveillance
of the election”, stated the Mission Chief of the observation party for the Venezuelan
presidential election of the South American Community of Nations (Unasur), Carlos
“Chacho” Álvarez.
http://www.el-nacional.com/politica/Alvarez-Sistema-electoral-Venezuela-America_0_46195490.html
Noticia Al Día
CNE:
Tests of the voting platform bring reassurance and security before October 7 |
09.12.2012
“This system works perfectly”, guaranteed the president of the National Electoral
Council (CNE), Tibisay Lucena, speaking of the voting platform that will be employed
in the coming October 7 presidential election.
She mentioned that the voting lists have been checked, as well as the fingerprint
database, the voting machine software and the ID software for the voter information
stations, while the the voting machines are currently being asssembled
http://noticiaaldia.com/2012/09/cne-pruebas-a-plataforma-electoral-confieren-tranquilidad-y-seguridad
-antes-del-7-o/
La Verdad
OEV:
“There is no way someone other than the voter will know his preference”| 09.09.2012
The Observatorio Electoral Venezolano (OEV), an electoral watchdog organization, has
trust in the voting machine software after taking part in the system audit carried out by
the CNE last week. “There´s no way someone other than the voter knows his preference”,
affirmed the organization’s director, Luis Lander.
The audit in which the OEV participated included the voting machines and the new biometric
identification system, which will use the SAI (Identity Authentication System) machines.
“There´s enough guarantees that the vote counts of every polling station will be
properly transmitted and securely totaled up, which guarantees respect to the vote”,
added Lander, who also said the system meets a high standard of technological
sofistication.
http://www.laverdad.com/politica/10781-oev-no-habra-manera-de-que-alguien-distinto-al-elector-
sepa-por-quie-voto.html
AIM (Argentina)
Venezuela tested its voting system | 09.03.2012
Venezuela carried out a drill automated election, just like the one on October 7 will be.
Over 1,550 polling centers verified the time needed to cast a vote.
The president of the National Electoral Council (CNE), TIbisay Lucena, remarked that all
centers opened at the scheduled time and added that the test, from a technical
standpoint, was carried out with “great normality and calm”. She stated that the positive
development of this drill is “good news for October 7” and pointed out that the average
time it takes a voter to cast his choice is 1:30 minutes.
http://www.aimdigital.com.ar/aim/2012/09/03/venezuela-puso-a-prueba-su-sistema-electoral/
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17. Últimas Noticias
UNT: Voting is secret, quick and secure | 09.03.2012
Vicente Bello, delegate for electoral matters of the political party Un Nuevo Tiempo,
performed a balance of the voting drill carried out last Sunday, where the new voting
machines and procedures to be used on October 7 were shown to the public.
Vicente Bello guaranteed that voting is secret, quick and secure, and called electors to
disregard those who are publishing exit poll results, since this drill had a voter turnout
of only 10 to 15%.
http://www.ultimasnoticias.com.ve/noticias/tuvoto/noticiaselectorales/unt--el-voto-es-secreto--ra
pido-y-seguro.aspx
Prensa Latina
Venezuelan voting system is robust | 08.29.2012
The president of the National Electoral Council, Tibisay Lucena, remarked the robustness
of the Venezuelan (voting) system during the opening ceremony of the international
seminary “Innovation and Technological Vanguard: Voting systems”.
She added that the effort to optimize voting processes allowed a transition from the
early technological add-ons of 1998 to the full voting automation of today.
http://www.prensa-latina.cu/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=539793&Itemid=1
El Nacional
CNE started voting machines audit | 08.28.2012
The National Electoral Council started the audit to the voting machines that will be used
during the October 7 presidential elections. This review, which will end Friday, will allow
technicians from the political parties to confirm that the secrecy of voting is guaranteed,
and also know the time it will take voters to cast their choice. The handling of voting files
will also be tested, and it will be confirmed that the information in the machines is only
transmited to the CNE´s totalization room, knowing that the results will not be altered
during the transmission process.
http://impresodigital.elnacional.com/ediciones/guardar/guardar.asp?dia=28&mes=08&anio=2012
&archivo=n1_3n4
Globovisión
Ramón Guillermo Aveledo: SAI: “In technology we must trust” | 08.20.2012
Last Sunday, the Executive Secretary of the Mesa de la Unidad Democrática (MUD)
Guillermo Aveledo appeared on En Privado. “In technology we must trust”, he said
regarding the Integrated Authentication System (SAI), which will be employed by the
National Electoral Council for the upcoming October 7 presidential election.
http://globovision.com/articulo/ramon-guillermo-aveledo-sobre-sai-en-la-tecnologia-hay-que-confiar
Diario La Voz
“Secrecy of voting is bullet-proof” | 08.19.2012
The engineers and members of the Electoral Comission of Comando Venezuela, Miguel
Cañas and Roberto Picón, stated that in the new platform for the Integrated Authentication
System (SAI), which is to be used in the presidential election, the votes and the ID numbers
of voters are stored separately, meaning there is no way to know which candidate was
selected by any given voter.
http://www.diariolavoz.net/2012/08/19/secreto-del-voto-esta-blindado/
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18. Noti Zulia
Six advantages of the Venezuelan automated voting system| 08.18.2012
Samira Saba, Communications Director at Smartmatic, the company that works together
with the National Council for Elections in designing the voting machines and devices to
be used in the October 7 presidential election, explained the advantages of having an
automated voting system.
1) It eliminates voluntary human errors.
2) It removes subjectivity from decision making.
3) There is consistency; no human interpretation during the process.
4) It expedites the processes of voting, tallying and totaling up results.
5) It reduces the exposure of people to risky tasks, generating trust in the procedure.
6) It protects sensitive information; it guarantees the secrecy and security of the vote.
http://www.notizulia.net/nacionales/373-otras-noticias/41513-seis-ventajas-del-voto-automatizado-
en-venezuela.html
Europapress
Jennifer McCoy: The Carter Center praises the Venezuelan voting system for its
“several control mechanisms” | 08.17.2012
The Director of the Program for the Americas of the Carter Center, Jennifer McCoy,
has praised the Venezuelan voting system since it has “several control mechanisms”
and can be easily verified and audited in case a political party or citizen denounces
irregularities.
http://www.europapress.es/latam/venezuela/noticia-venezuela-centro-carter-elogia-sistema-electoral
-venezolano-porque-tiene-muchisimos-mecanismos-control-20120817160550.html
Prensa Latina
Venezuela has a safe and sofisticated voting system | 08.16.2012
Today Venezuela has a safe and sofisticated voting system, stated representatives of the
Carter Center and guests to the seminary “Coverage of Automated Electoral Processes”,
which took place in Maracaibo, Zulia state. In this event, organized by the Program for
strengthening journalism of the Carter Center, several speakers agreed that Venezuela and
Brasil have safe voting automation systems.
http://www.prensa-latina.cu/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=536251&Itemid
El Nacional
SAI and new LED e-ballot worked perfectly | 08.06.2012
The CNE reported that it took voters between 60 and 90 seconds to cast their votes.
During yesterday’s voting drill in preparation for the presidential election, the technological
platform worked perfectly and with minimal incidents. Voter turnout, however, was
modest.
The new LED e-ballots, the Integrated Authentication System and the new voting
horseshoe configuration for the polling stations were tested in 55 polling centers.
http://impresodigital.elnacional.com/ediciones/guardar/guardar.asp?dia=07&mes=08&anio=2012
&archivo=n1_3n1
Noticias24
Tearing down the myths regarding the secrecy of voting: How does the Integrated
Authentication System Work? | 08.02.2012
The members of the Electoral Comission of Comando Venezuela, Mario Torres and Miguel
Cañas, appeared today on Soluciones (Globovision) to explain the operation of the
Integrated Authentication System (SAI), and stated that the voting process will be secure,
reliable and secret.
17

19. The new identification system, which is used to check the voter’s ID, is presented as a
safe authentication mechanism which stores information randomly and breaks the time
sequence of the voter´s arrival, the checking of his the IDs and his voting.
http://www.noticias24.com/venezuela/noticia/119323/desmontando-los-mitos-del-secreto-al-voto
-%C2%BFcomo-funciona-el-sistema-de-autenticacion-integrado/
Venezolana de Televisión
Nicolás Maduro: We must feel proud of the Venezuelan voting system | 07.26.2012
Venezuela’s voting system is bullet-proof, stated Chancellor Nicolás Maduro. “We have
a voting system that has been perfected over time (…) from a technological standpoint,
it is flawless, and it guarantees the expression of the will of the people and transparency
during all voting processes”, he added.
http://www.vtv.gov.ve/index.php/voto2012/85257-nicolas-maduro-tenemos-que-sentirnos-orgullo
s-del-sistema-electoral-venezolano
El Universal
Miguel Cañas and Mario Torre: "Voting in Venezuela has always been and will always
be secret” |07.23.2012
Mario Torre and Miguel Cañas are part of the technical staff that audits Venezuela´s
automated voting system since 2005. Torre, an electrical engineer with an M.D. in
Systems Engineering, states that any attempted fraud on October 7 “could only be
faced by a mobilized populace all over the country defending their electoral will”.
Cañas, also and electrical engineer with a Ph.D. in Computer Science, explains that
the transparency of the voting process “isn’t a merely technical task”, so he restates
the importance of a “paper trail”, necessary for citizens to verify the operation of the
voting system.
http://www.eluniversal.com/nacional-y-politica/120723/el-voto-en-venezuela-siempre-ha-sido-y-se
guira-siendo-secreto
El Universal
There is no undetectable fraud by Eugenio Martínez | 07.19.2012
The secrecy of voting is guaranteed, since the votes are randomly recorded, the
machines record all votes with the same timestamp (thus breaking down any time
sequence), the votes are stored randomly (no correlation with the order of voters) and
then they’re encrypted; when the voting closes, the votes are tallied, a voting log is
printed and only then is the data transmitted. The random storage methods have been
used and verified in previous elections, including those won by the opposition in 2007,
2008 and 2010. This is a very extensive topic for which the space in this column is
insufficient. However, let´s remember that Smartmatic, although born in Venezuela, is
a prestigious multinational company. So why would they risk losing that prestige over
a Venezuelan election? Although some theoreticians of voting fraud refuse to acknowledge
it, Smartmatic´s electoral technology and its voting machines have performed as expected;
the fact that the opposition couldn´t get accredited witnesses in certain polling stations,
the unbalance of the electoral campaign or the government’s social blackmail of the voters
through its social welfare plans, are all separate matters. es.
http://www.eluniversal.com/opinion/120719/no-hay-fraude-no-detectable
18

20. Últimas Noticias
CNE voting system cannot be tampered with | 07.18.2012
This was stated by the Rector of the National Electoral Council (CNE) Socorro Hernández,
who also added that “there is no way that the results of the voting process are tampered
with, all the glitches of the past have been resolved, the system just gets more robust
each time around”. She commented that the nature of Venezuelan political processes
have raised the level of exigence of the voting system, a demand unique in the world.
“We have approximately 17 audits, including a software audit, one of the Electoral
Registry, the voter lists, the assembly of the voting machines, the fingerprint database,
even of the indelible ink for the voters’ fingers, as well as a pre-dispatch audit”, she
added. With these measures, the CNE hopes that all Venezuelan citizens and political
parties verify that the voting process is carried out transparently.
http://www.ultimasnoticias.com.ve/noticias/tuvoto/noticiaselectorales/descartan-que-sistema-
electoral-del-cne-pueda-ser-.aspx
El Impulso
Teresa Albanes rejects criticisms to the Venezuelan voting process| 07.13.2012
The opposition trusts the tehcnical aspect of the October 7 presidential election, while
denouncing a disproportionate use of resources and the media to boost President Hugo
Chavez´s campaign, according to Albanes. “So far, the technicians who have been
reviewing the platform have only said (…) this automated system works”, he added.
Albanes recognized that the MUD, whose candidate is the former governor Hernique
Capriles Radonski, must do a better job informing the population to reassure them that
“the use of this automated (voting) system is safe”.
http://elimpulso.com/articulo/teresa-albanes-rechaza-criticas-a-proceso-electoral-en-venezuela
El Mundo.com.ve
Five myths about e-voting | 07.12.2012
Automation aims to eliminate any possibility of human error, intimidation, sabotage or
fraud. The system allows for multiple audits of the process and gives the common
citizen a chance to be a part of the vote´s chain of custody.
Myth #1: “Currently, only few use e-voting”. FALSE.
Myth #2: “With e-voting it’s impossible to have an independent vote count”. FALSE.
Myth #3: “Manual vote counting is more transparent than an automated vote
counting”. FALSE.
Myth #4: “An automated tallying of the results is less safe than transporting them
‘physically’ to a totalization center”. FALSE.
Myth #5: “Countries with manual voting have results faster than those where
e-voting is used”.FALSE.
http://www.elmundo.com.ve/noticias/actualidad/politica/cinco-mitos-sobre-el-voto-electronico.aspx
Hormiga Analítica
Smartmatic: E-voting guarantees final results in less than 48 hours| 07.04.2012
Final results of the Venezuelan presidential election could be had in less than 48 hours,
according to a press release by Smartmatic, the technology supplier for the National
Electoral Council. This company, which has carried out elections in several countries
including the USA and the Philippines, gives a series of recommendations hoping to
disprove the myths surrounding this electoral process. Smartmatic explains that the
reduction in human error and in the vulnerability of voting have boosted a worldwide
trend in favour of implementing voting technology, one that guarantees transparent,
swift and secure elections for the voters.
http://www.hormigaanalitica.com/informatica/articulo/5358/Smartmatic:-Voto-electronico-garantiza
-resultados-definitivos-en-menos-de-48-horas
19

21. Panorama
"Votes are randomly stored"| 06.26.2012
The Integrated Automated System (SAI) includes the biometric identification of voters
through their fingerprints. According to the CNE, these fingerprint capture machines enforce
the “one voter, one vote” principle. These devices are connected to the voting machines,
but there is no way to establish a sequence between order of the voters and their choices,
as was explained by the CNE Rectors Socorro Hernández and Vicente Díaz, who also
answered frequently asked questions by the voters.
http://www.panorama.com.ve/portal/app/vista/detalle_noticia.php?id=23795
Últimas Noticias
CNE guarantees auditability of the voting system| 06.06.2012
The Venezuelan voting system is automated and auditable in all its stages, according to a
report on the website of the National Electoral Council (www.cne.gob.ve), which also states
that Venezuelans “are using the Smartmatic Auditable Election Systems (SAES) machines,
which are an innovative and a 100% secure alternative for voting automation”.
http://epaper.ultimasnoticias.com.ve/impresodigital/xml_epaper/Ultimas_Noticias/06_06_2012/pla_
74_Caracas/xml_arts/art_4756823.xmlt
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