Good evening everyone. Thank you for holding and participating in this public hearing.

I want to stress the need for a voting system that provides a paper trail that can be used to verify the outcome of an election.

I speak as someone who has lived in countries which used voting systems that were considered corrupt and untrustworthy by their citizens. In one case -- Mali -- the government was overthrown in 1968 and again in 1991. In the other -- Swaziland -- the government has only been able to maintain order by constructing a police state.

We live in a country, and a county, that consistently produce voter turnout percentages that are disappointing and even embarrassing. Confidence in the reliability of election results may not improve turnout by itself, but a loss of confidence will certainly make it worse.

The goal of helping more people to vote is worthwhile, but the need to give those voters confidence in the way their votes are counted is imperative.

Please give us a voting system that provides a paper trail.

Thank you.