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1. Name: Stephen D. Ansolabehere, Ph.D.  
2. Title: Elting R. Morison Professor, Department of Political Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

3. Voting Machines
Position:
Con to the question "Do electronic voting machines improve the voting process?"
4. Reasoning:

"Systems using direct recording electronic devices (DREs) had significantly higher average rates of spoiled, uncounted, and unmarked ballots than any of the other systems." ("An Assessment of the Reliability of Existing Voting Equipment," Caltech/MIT Voting Project Report, March, 2001)

5. Credibility
Ranking:
 Experts
Election officials, people with post-graduate degrees in a computer science, J.D.s, Members of Congress, or elected officials with significant involvement in, or related to, electronic voting machine issues

6. Involvement:
  • Elting R. Morison Professor and Associate Head, Department of Political Science, MIT
  • 2001-2002 - Voting Technology Task Force Leader, Election Reform Initiative of The Constitution Project
  • 2000-2004 - Co-Director, Caltech/MIT Voting Technology Project
7. Education:
  • Ph.D., Political Science, Harvard University, 1989
  • B.A., Political Science, University of Minnesota, 1984
  • B.S., Economics, University of Minnesota, 1984
8. Relevant Affiliations/Honors:
  • Member, Board of the National Election Studies
  • Editorial Board, Legislative Studies Quarterly, Election Law Journal, Harvard International Journal of Press/Politics, and Business and Politics
  • 2000-2002 - Carnegie Scholar
  • 1996 - Goldsmith Book Prize for Going Negative

9. Contact Info:
Phone: (617) 253-5236 Fax: None listed
E-Mail: sda@mit.edu
Web Sitehttp://web.mit.edu/polisci/faculty/S.Ansolabehere.html

10. Other: Author of over 60 publications, including:
  • "An Assessment of the Reliability of Existing Voting Equipment," a report of the Caltech/MIT Voting Project, March, 2001
  • "Voting Machines, Race, and Equal Protection," Election Law Journal, 2001
  • Going Negative: How Political Advertising Divides and Shrinks the American Electorate, S. Ansolabehere and S. Iyengar, 1996
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