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Working Groups Overview

Working Groups Overview

 Election Defense Alliance (EDA) Working Groups are comprised of individuals and representatives of local grassroots groups form around the nation, who work together on specific subject content or campaign tactics, refining knowledge and developing skills and expertise.

Strategies and methods developed in the Working Groups can be exported back for use at the regional level, as direct field experience from the local counties comes back to inform the Working Groups. This is a two-way, local-to-national collaborative process to bring about election integrity nationwide.

Each Working Group selects its own Coordinator who participates in EDA’s governing body, the Coordinating Council.

To join an EDA Working Group:
First, open an EDA website account, then complete this registration survey to join the Working Group that best matches your interests.

Registration and Voting Systems
This group specializes in learning about the different E-voting vendors and their voting machines and related products, including voter registration database software and service; non-computerized voter assistance technology and hand-counted paper ballot voting systems; and the state and federal election laws and voting system certification standards that are supposed to regulate their use. Correlating what is known about the hacking vulnerabilities of the voting systems, security measures that should be applied, and better alternatives to electronic vote counting, the Registration and Voting Systems Working Group collaborate with regional election integrity groups in advising and influencing election administrators and elected county officials to avoid costly investments in insecure voting systems and institute election methods that afford accuracy and full public accountability.

Election Monitoring
The Election Monitoring Group studies all aspects of the electoral process with emphasis on opportunities for public observation, then organizes and trains volunteers at the precinct level to monitor and record all phases of voter registration, elections and recounts -- before, during and after -- covering every form of voting on every voting and counting occasion.

Election Data Analysis
The Data Analysis Working Group develops methodologies for collecting, sharing, and analyzing historical election data, opinion polls, exit polls and other relevant metrics, and applies multiple, automated analytic routines to rapidly isolate and examine anomalous patterns that suggest error or fraud in the officially reported election results.

Investigations
Drawing on methods such as those modeled by Blackboxvoting.org, and by John Brakey of AUDITAZ.org, the Investigations group develops expert familiarity with the hardware, software, and use procedures for electronic voting machines of all vendors, as well as the regulatory standards and procedures that apply to them. The Investigations Working Group also acquires skill in researching business records, contracts, personnel and practices, and political and financial relationships of the voting machine industry.

Legal
The Legal Working Group researches all applicable law governing voting machines and elections, and pursues legal actions to enforce compliance with state election laws. The Legal group also trains and deploys legal monitoring teams to respond to election violations as they occur.

Legislation
In those states where there is potential for passage of electoral reform legislation, the Legislation Working Group works to effect the best election reform possible to prevent or detect electoral fraud -- from total hand-counted paper ballots systems, to banning DRE voting machines and privatized, nondisclosed source code, to instituting reliable manual auditing and recount procedures.

Media and Publicity
This group cultivates extensive contacts in conventional and alternative media and is prepared to issue well-crafted press releases in quick response to news placement opportunities, consistently and frequently. They develop expertise and effective innovations in the use of websites, weblogs, e-mail newsletters, instant messaging, alternative print publications and independent film, video, and radio.

Communications
The Communications group is responsible for researching the best quality information on all aspects of the EDA's election integrity campaign, and adapting and conveying this information in various communications media for a variety of audiences and purposes, including (for example) introductory fact sheets on electronic voting for the general public, training materials for election integrity activists, publicity collateral, press releases, briefings for elections officials and legislators, and technical presentations in support of legal initiatives.

Communications Subgroups include: Website, E-mail Network, Research, Writing, Graphics, and Audio/Visual.

Public Education
The Public Education Working Group utilizes all available communication media, in combination with effective instructional approaches, to prepare, distribute, and effectively present messages educating citizens about the crisis in American elections, and motivating them to become part of the solution.

Volunteer Recruitment and Training
The Volunteer Recruitment and Training Working Group helps find the best match for EDA volunteers, and also works to coordinate and promote local and state recruitment and training activities by collecting best-practice methods from regional affiliates, developing informational and recruitment materials, and sharing ideas, materials, and methods.

Organizational Liaison
Every civic interest group has a shared interest in fair elections and honest vote counts. The Organizational Liaison group's charge is to expand the election integrity movement by engaging other organizations of every variety in the common project of restoring electoral democracy and legitimate, representative government. This group pursues alliances with civic, social, cultural, political, labor, and religious groups at local, regional, and national levels.

Fundraising
The Fundraising Working Group works to expand the base of individual donors whose contributions have enabled EDA's initiatives to date, while seeking to augment that support with major foundation grants and major individual gifts.

Events Production
The Events Production Working Group has two specialized sub-groups:
Audience Events, and Demonstration Events, charged with managing all aspects of EDA public events productions, developing the contacts, procedures and skills to manage everything from planning, permits, and publicity through the practical, physical arrangements for producing audience events as well as managing large assemblies of people in directed, coordinated action.

To join an EDA Working Group:
First, open an EDA website account, then complete this registration survey to join the Working Group that best matches your interests.

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