CODE RED: Computerized Elections and The War on American Democracy: Election 2020 Edition

by Jonathan Simon

CODE RED is about what has happened to American elections, American politics, and America since computers took over the vote counting at the turn of this century.Its subtitle reflects our grave plight and this new, expanded ELECTION 2020 EDITION brings the story up to date, including how we got to the Age of Trump, what COVID means for our hopes to heal our broken democracy, and what we need to do NOW. There are many books explaining how we got the Clinton campaign this, the economy that, the white suburban voters without college the other thing... As varied as they may be, what all these accounts have in common is the assumption that, one way or another, we VOTED our way here. That is, Americans collectively cast the billions of ballots that, over the past half-dozen or so elections, added up to where we are now. As if we all got behind the wheel of the national car and somehow steered it over the cliff. That is not the account offered by CODE RED. CODE RED challenges the fundamental assumption that we voted our way over the cliff. It instead explores the possibility that, since the dawn of the computerized elections era--with votes counted in the partisan, proprietary, pitch-dark of cyberspace--the national car has behaved more like a self-driving car, programmer unknown.It examines those elections and the veer in American politics, culminating in the Age of Trump, that they have produced—reaching conclusions about who or what has been driving the car that are both more chilling (it’s not us) and more encouraging (it’s not us) than anything else you are likely to read. Most important, it’s a book to read if you’re asking how we can re-take the wheel. Because, while it may be of some comfort to realize that we did not vote our way to this terrible place, the correlate is that there is serious and urgent work to be done if we are to be able to vote our way out of it. “CODE RED is unique, easy-to-understand, and vastly important.” - Andrew Kreig, Justice Integrity Project "CODE RED is a modern-day call to action for all Americans concerned about the integrity of our voting process." - Ion Sancho, Leon County (FL) Supervisor of Elections 1989 - 2016 “As a professional statistician, I found CODE RED’s data, analysis, and conclusions compelling.” - Dr. Elizabeth Clarkson; Chief Statistician, National Inst. For Aviation Research "CODE RED is both a prescient history and a clarion call to fix the way we vote before government by the people is a fading memory." - Sue Halpern; Staff Writer, The New Yorker“ Simon’s research is thorough and his case is more than compelling … He has provided an important public service.” - John Zogby, The Zogby Poll Other democracies have moved away from computerized vote tabulation but America continues to entrust its elections to privatized and concealed vote counting despite mounting evidence that its vulnerabilities to manipulation are being exploited, with profound political consequences. CODE RED shows how America came to embrace such a system and why we have been so resistant to any serious reconsideration of its safety. We examine the role of election administrators, politicians, and the media in stifling investigation of suspect American elections and the corruptible system that has produced them. Like the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, CODE RED sets a Doomsday Clock. The good news is that it’s not quite midnight. We can turn this country around--COVID-19 notwithstanding--but only if we first restore public, observable vote counting to our elections. It is a simple thing, but until we do it we will continue putting everything we value at risk.

505 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 22, 2020

About the author

I'm Jonathan Simon, author of CODE RED: Computerized Election Theft And The New American Century, co-founder and currently Executive Director of Election Defense Alliance (www.ElectionDefenseAlliance.org), a nonprofit organization founded in 2006 to restore observable vote counting and electoral integrity as the foundation of American democracy.

I have expertise in polling and statistical analysis derived from my time as a political survey research analyst in Washington, DC. I've also authored, both individually and in collaboration, numerous papers related to various aspects of election integrity. I've been active in election integrity efforts since 2001, appearing in several election integrity-related films, as an interviewee on several dozen live programs, and tweeting @JonathanSimon14.

I'm a graduate of Harvard College ('78), New York University School of Law ('86), and New York Chiropractic College ('90). I am admitted to the Bar of Massachusetts, hold membership in the legal honor society Order of the Coif, and since 1993 have directed an interdisciplinary healthcare facility in Cambridge, Massachusetts.