Proposition 41 -- the Shelley-Hertzberg Voting Modernization Bond Act -- is on the March 2002 ballot to modernize California's voting system.

If you are reading this, you are a person who takes your right and responsibility to vote seriously.

California Common Cause, the California Public Interest Research Group, and the California Secretary of State join us in urging you to vote "Yes" on Proposition 41 -- the Voting Modernization Bond Act.

The Secretary of State's official analysis says: "Innovations in voting technology provide significant benefits--including ease of use, accessibility, accelerated reporting of results, meeting the needs for multiple ballots and multiple language ballots, improvements in security, and reduced costs."

In its editorial, one major newspaper outlined the issues clearly:

     California now elects its leaders through a hodge-podge of vote-counting systems (including) punch cards that feature the Florida-famous chad.
     It's time to bring this wide range of systems up to date. The punch-card system produces errors that can disqualify an entire ballot. New methods greatly speed up vote counting and guard against fraud.
     Citizens need to know that their votes count, and in a disputed race, the results can be reliably checked.
     [Proposition 41], by Assemblyman Kevin Shelley, a San Francisco Democrat, calls for a $200 million bond...to buy new vote tabulating machinery. Secretary of State Bill Jones, a Republican who oversees voting procedures, favors the bond also. This bipartisan support indicates it's time to update California's ballot booth.

Here are some facts for you to consider:

1) 11.4 million of California's 15.7 million registered voters cast ballots on punch-card systems.

2) The "hanging chad" phenomenon can occur on a system used by 6.5 million voters.

3) Two-thirds of California's voters are using decades old systems that are subject to error and the disqualifications of your ballot.

In the last five months our nation has fought against terrorism. President Bush named the effort "Enduring Freedom."

There is no freedom greater that the right to choose who governs our lives. Protecting that freedom requires investing in the infrastructure of public safety and national security.

It is no less important to invest in the very infrastructure of democracy. We urge you to vote "Yes" on the Shelley-Hertzberg Voting Modernization Bond Act.