Voter Group Challenges Diebold Voting Machine Sale

WASHINGTON, D.C. (AP) — A voter advocacy organization asked the U.S. Justice Department Tuesday to undo the sale by Diebold Inc. of its voting machine business, saying the transaction promotes a monopoly.

Voter Action, based in Washington, D.C., said in a letter to the department's antitrust division that the transaction is a grab for market share. The sale creates monopoly power in violation of federal antitrust laws, the group said.

Diebold said in early September it would sell its Allen, Texas-based subsidiary Premier Election Solutions Inc. to its bigger competitor, Election Systems & Software Inc. of Omaha, Neb., for $5 million plus payments representing 70 percent of collections of the unit's accounts receivable as of Aug. 31.

"The ES&S/Premier acquisition is absolutely unique in its potential for disturbing U.S. election processes and results," Voter Action said.

The acquisition of Diebold's business threatens to undermine competition for reliable voting equipment as required by federal and state election reforms following the disputed presidential election of 2000, Voter Action said.

"There is simply no legitimate reason for this acquisition of monopoly power under the antitrust laws," it said.