electronic proxy voting (FWD)

[DEMOREP1 at aol.com]

Subj:   electronic proxy voting
Date:  Thu, Nov 5, 1998 11:00 AM EDT
From:  lorrie at research.att.com
X-From: lorrie at research.att.com (Lorrie Faith Cranor)
Sender: owner-e-lection at research.att.com
To: e-lection at research.att.com

The 4 November 1998 New Jersey Star-Ledger has an article by 
Dan Weissman with the headline "Paper proxies losing ground:
Shareholders like phone, e-mail voting." 

The article reports that Internet and telephone proxy voting in
shareholder elections is becoming more popular.  And it reports
a curious quirk in New Jersey Law:

"...New Jersey prohibits e-mail or telephone balloting -- but apparently
not Internet Web site tallies, according to Campbell [Soup Co.]'s
legal take on the issue -- for companies incorporated in New Jersey,
even as the practice gains wider acceptance."

The article says that Republican state senator C. Louis Bassano has
introduced legislation that would allow telephone proxy voting.
The bill is supported by the state Chamber of Commerce and the
New Jersey Industry and Business Association. The article quotes
the president of the Consumers League of New Jersey as having
some concerns about electronic proxies.

The article also quotes (among others):

- Ronald H. Gruner, president of Direct Report Corp., a company that 
  tabulates electronic votes: "All states are changing their laws 
  to allow electronic proxy voting."

- Charles Keryc, vice president of First Jersey Trust Co.: telephone 
  voting saves about 22 cents per proxy vote as compared to postal 
  mail voting.

- a shareholder praising phone voting: "I can do it while watching 
  'Jeopardy,' football, 'Crossfire' or baseball."

Does anybody know anything about this quirk in NJ law or what provisions
in other state laws have to be changed in order to allow Internet
or phone proxy voting?


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