"Maybe people elsewhere trust machines more than they trust humans, but that would be totally out of the question here," said Secretary of State Bill Gardner, one of the longest-serving elections officials in the country. "I'm aghast that other places are considering touch-screen computers." (2004)

"People in other states talk about the unbelievable burden of recounts," said Anthony Stevens, New Hampshire's assistant secretary of state. "They don't realize the cost of restoring legitimacy is far greater than the cost of maintaining it."

"New Hampshire may not be perfect," [Stanford University computer scientist David] Dill said. "But if every state were as good as New Hampshire, we'd be pretty confident in our elections, and the computer scientists might not be so up in arms."

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New Hampshire citizens vote with voter-marked ballots which are counted by optical scan machines or by hand. Tune in to Voice of the Voters this Wednesday, May 16 at 8PM ET to find out what the rest of the country can learn from New Hampshire when it comes to accurate elections, bi-partisan cooperation and grassroots involvement in the political process.

Special guest, Secretary Bill Gardner, is nicknamed "the Dean" in honor of both the esteem in which he is held by his colleagues across the country as well as the length of his service as Secretary of State. Hear Mr. Gardner and his Assistant Secretary of State, Anthony Stevens, answer the following questions:

How does the New Hampshire presidential primary, the first in the nation, reflect the principles of democracy?

What does democracy really mean? And what are the elements that create, maintain and sustain democracy and grassroots involvement in politics?

Are we in danger of losing our democracy? If so, why and what must be done to save it?

How would New Hampshire be affected by the passage of H.R. 811, Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act of 2007?

What was New Hampshire's experience with Danaher voting machines?

New Hampshire was asked to be a pilot program for the "REAL ID" Act? What happened with that? Experience learn result?

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