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International Association for Information and Data Quality |
For Immediate Release
Lutz, Florida, October 30th 2008: Is our democratic process under threat? Many watchdog groups such as the Brennan Center for Justice have documented repeated problems with electoral processes in the US, from hanging chads and butterfly ballots in 2000, to counting errors with electronic voting machines and provisional ballots in 2004, and to voter registration databases in 2008.
But do these serious problems have a common source? The IAIDQ says that the underlying issue is the lack of focus on the quality of voter information and data in all election processes, from voter registration to vote counting and recounts.
“Who knows who will win the election? Regardless of how close the outcome, some voters will be disenfranchised because of poor data quality,” says Christian Walenta, President IAIDQ. “Voter intention is corrupted by counting errors, poor ballot design and poor voter registration information.”
Eligibility to vote is based on registration information provided by the voter. Failures in the quality of that information can deprive voters of a voice or worse, overturn voter preference.
Dr. Thomas Redman, author of the recently-published book Data Driven: Profiting from Your Most Important Business Asset (Harvard Business Press) and co-founder of the IAIDQ, commented, “Democracies depend on trust and nothing is more critical for that trust than fair, honest elections,” says Dr. Redman. “It all has to come together on Election Day. Our financial markets also depend on trust — and look what’s happened as trust has evaporated.”
What can voters do? After the election they should press their federal and state representatives to apply proven practices for managing information and data quality to the election process.
For November 4th, Larry P. English, co-founder of the IAIDQ and author of Improving Data Warehouse and Business Information Quality (Wiley & Sons), has this advice for voters: “Ask for a paper ballot if they’re available in your precinct. Electronic voting machines are not secure, nor can they be used to conduct a recount. If no durable paper ballot is available, be sure you understand how to use the voting equipment. Ask what errors can disqualify your vote and how to avoid them.”
The 2008 election may be highlighting the dangers of poor data quality to our democratic process. But in a digital age our whole economy and way of life rely on information. Poor data quality poses a real threat to the way we live.
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For further information:
| Contact Name | Email Address | Phone | Timezone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Christian Walenta | christian.walenta@iaidq.org | US EST | |
| Daragh O Brien | daragh.obrien@iaidq.org | +353 1 443 3607 | GMT |
(Additional information for editors)
About the International Association for Information & Data Quality
The International Association for Information & Data Quality (IAIDQ, www.iaidq.org) is a professional association for those interested in improving business effectiveness through quality data and information. Chartered in January 2004, IAIDQ is a not-for profit, vendor-neutral professional society of people passionate about improving information and data quality. The IAIDQ is advancing the quality of information and data around the world by building a community, supporting learning and sharing knowledge for the benefit of all information consumers. For more information, please visit iaidq.org.
About Christian Walenta
Christian Walenta is the President of the IAIDQ and has served in a number of voluntary leadership roles in the Association since its foundation in 2004.
About Daragh O Brien
Daragh O Brien is the Director of Publicity & Recruitment for the IAIDQ. He is a Fellow of the Irish Computer Society and in 2007 was awarded an 'Obsessive Blogger Award' by the Irish blogging community for his writing on electoral register issues in the Irish Republic on his personal blog obriend.info.
He moderates the IQTrainwrecks.com website for the IAIDQ. He has served as a volunteer director of the IAIDQ since 2006 and has lead the IAIDQ's Irish Community of Practice since 2005.
About Larry P. English
Larry P. English is President of INFORMATION IMPACT International. He is on the Board of Directors of US Count Votes and National Election Data Archive. He analyzed the failed Election processes in the year 2000 Presidential Election, published in DM Review during 2001. A PDF of “Information Quality Mandate for Election Reform” can be downloaded from http://infoimpact.com/DMR_10.01IQLessonsFromElection2000-w-Links.pdf. English participated in Election Reform work following the broken Presidential Election problems in 2004. He chaired the Election Assessment Hearing in June, 2005 that provided input to the Carter-Baker commission on election reform.
About Dr Thomas C. Redman
Dr Thomas C. Redman is President of Navesink Consulting Group, based in Little Silver, N.J. He has been a pioneer in extending quality principles to include data and information. He is the author of Data Quality: the Field Guide, Data Quality for the Information Age, and Data Quality: Management and Technology.
He has recently published his latest book Data Driven: Profiting from Your Most Important Business Asset, published by the Harvard Business Press.
IQTrainwrecks.com
IQTrainwrecks.com is a website run by the IAIDQ to capture stories of poor quality data and information and its impacts on people, businesses and the economy. Site content is provided by IAIDQ members with, where ever possible, links back to the original sources of a story. To find the Information/Data Quality perspective on a news story, check out IQTrainwrecks.com.