Bruce Schneier may have the answer I've been looking for re: improving the balloting process:

The ideal voting system would minimize the number of translation steps, and make those remaining as simple as possible. My suggestion is an ATM-style computer voting machine, but one that also prints out a paper ballot. The voter checks the paper ballot for accuracy, and then drops it into a sealed ballot box. The paper ballots are the "official" votes and can be used for recounts, and the computer provides a quick initial tally.

Bruce says to look here for the definitive intel on electronic voting.