Wisconsin Voter list contract with Accenture protested

• 74 percent of Accenture's total political contributions in 2004 - $534,067 of $726,105 - went to Republicans
• Company was Hired to put together Flawed Felon Voter List in Florida
  

The state Elections Board has signed a contract with a subsidiary of a Bermuda-based conglomerate for the creation of a statewide voter registration system, but critics want the agency to cancel its $12 million pact with Accenture, LLPA rally to protest the contract and other state privatization efforts is scheduled for noon Tuesday outside the Elections Board offices at 17 W. Main St. "Our first goal is to cancel the contract," said Barbara Smith, a state employee and member of the Wisconsin Professional Employees Council. "We also want to keep private companies out of elections," added Smith, a volunteer with No Stolen Elections. Smith, who claims state employees could do the work at a fraction of the cost, said private companies should not be involved in elections.  "These contractors aren't accountable," she said. The Help America Vote Act of 2002 requires all states to, among other things, create a statewide voter registration list by Jan. 1, 2006. If the state fails to meet the deadline, it could lose $50 million in federal dollars already allocated to the state, according to the state Elections Board. In July, Florida canceled its contract with Accenture, which had been hired to remove felons from the state's voter registration rolls. The U.S. Civil Rights Commission is now investigating whether the company incorrectly kept Hispanic felons on the rolls while purging other felons. [more]