obama

An electronic voting machine in Pennsylvania was briefly taken offline today -- and apparently reconfigured and placed back in service -- after a YouTube video showed evidence of voting irregularities.

The video, which received a flurry of attention after being posted at Reddit.com, appeared to show an attempted vote for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama being reflected as a vote for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.

Republicans have also warned of voting machine glitches going in the other direction. In a letter (PDF) to state voting officials last week, the GOP's top lawyer said the party has received … Read more

Google's latest doodle may not be as interactive as some in the past, but it's pretty appropriate for the day.

The doodle follows an Election Day theme, directing people where to vote when they click on the Google search page image.

The first link listed is a box for users to enter their addresses for where they're registered to vote. Clicking "get my info" sends voters to Google's politics & elections page, with details about the user's polling place and ballot summary, as well as links to "insights," YouTube Live, and other election-related information. … Read more

Anyone who's even remotely interested in this year's contest between President Barack Obama and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has no doubt seen countless polls, many of which have shown the incumbent in the lead, while many others have given the nod to the challenger.

In recent weeks, many headlines have declared the election a tossup. A common narrative being spread in newspapers, on blogs, on social media, and on TV nationwide, is that no one will have any idea who will be elected president until all the counting is done because the race is simply too close … Read more

Technology topics can mark a rare bipartisan area of political agreement: Both Mitt Romney and Barack Obama say they would make cybersecurity a priority, and both like to talk up government funding of basic research.

If you look a bit more closely, however, differences emerge. They're perhaps most marked over federal regulation, where the two major parties have long-standing disagreements, but also exist on topics like WikiLeaks, copyright legislation, and whether to levy a new tax on broadband providers.

Keep reading for CNET's 2012 Tech Voters' Guide, in which we highlight where the four candidates -- we've … Read more

There's no shortage of places to catch up on the latest Election Day coverage, but Twitter is aiming to make it easier for political junkies to get news by creating a one-stop shop Election 2012 event page.

Curated by Twitter, the page is loaded with tweets from the presidential candidates, political parties, and news sources such as the Electoral College, CNN, and the Washington Post.

"It highlights tweets from candidates and their staffers, media, and other key players so you can hear directly from those close to the action," Rachael Horwitz, Twitter's senior manager of communications, … Read more

Weathered by debates and endless political advertisements? We're in the home stretch of the 2012 U.S. election season now. Whether you've already voted or are still mulling politicians and propositions, there are plenty of apps to tap for an up-to-the minute perspective on the various battles.

Scan our brief list of mobile apps that can help you vote and stay in tune with the rapid-fire developments sure to occur tomorrow. Got a favorite app you're leaning on for election information? Let us know in the comments section. … Read more

Google isn't treating searches related to presidential candidates fairly, a new report charges.

The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that it commissioned a study on the way in which search results related to President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are displayed on Google. The study found that when users search for "Obama" or "Romney," Google displays standard results. Other related searches, however, are treated differently.

For example, the Journal tried to search for topics ranging from Iran to Medicare. Those who had already searched for "Obama" found that their results were customized to … Read more

When you log in to Facebook on Election Day you will likely be greeted by a note reminding you of your civic duty.

The social network is expected to post messages for its voting-age members in the U.S., as it did in 2010 when it sent out a "Today is Election Day" note to the 61 million users who were of voting age. The note included a link to polling places and an "I Voted" button that would let your friends know you went to the polls.

When you decide to broadcast that you voted, … Read more

Facebook has been spending more time touting its privacy controls recently.

But here's the news: they're not good enough for the president.

In an interview with MTV on Friday (hey, we have to get those kids to vote somehow), the president explained that for his daughter Malia, Facebook was not a safe place to hang out.

As Yahoo News reports, the president was asked whether dating, driving, or social networking represented his biggest fear for his 14-year-old daughter.

He replied: