Here in the nation's capital, we're still sifting through the mess of an election in Maryland. The latest outrage: the state's election head, Linda Lamone, is hiring the Election Center, the defender of the voting mess status quo, to "audit" the recent primary elections and what went wrong. Can't wait for that report!

As I was writing I got a call from a friend and colleague in Oklahoma, expressing outrage the state of our democracy and telling me his early morning idea for our next presidential elections:

Make it simple. Voting for president will be on paper - a ballot with the candidates' names (and those pesky electors) - in those states that remain wedded to paperless electronic voting machines. My friend's a scientist, and no Luddite, so he's not against technology, but he's got the healthy skepticism of most scientists about technology. Just an idea. (Oklahoma, by the way, is OK in this regard since they have a paper trail.)

My own view is that we need to put more resources and focus into the place most people know about elections - the polling place. Pollworkers, most well-intentioned, many excellent, are a key part of the system. When they fail, either because of poor training, ignorance, maliciousness, or simply being tired, then all the laws and procedures put in place will fail too. Here's a sample of what can happen -- in the WaPo about Maryland.