[DIEBOLD LOGO] DIEBOLD, INCORPORATED EXHIBIT 99.1
5995 Mayfair Road
P.O. Box 3077
North Canton, OH 44720
Media contact: Investor contact:
Diebold Election Systems John Kristoff
David Bear +1 330 490 5900
+1 317 997 9300 kristoj@diebold.com
dbear@pstrategies.com
Diebold, Incorporated
Mike Jacobsen
+1 330 490 3796
jacobsm1@diebold.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
April 30, 2004
DIEBOLD ELECTION SYSTEMS MOVING FORWARD AFTER CALIFORNIA SECRETARY OF STATE
ACTION
McKINNEY, Texas -- Diebold Election Systems (DES) reaffirms its commitment
to support its customer counties in the state of California in their efforts to
conduct a safe, secure and accurate election, in response to the Secretary of
State's action to revoke the conditional certification on the AccuVote-TSX. That
action allows all DES AccuVote-TS units, and other manufacturers' touchscreen
voting machines, upon recertification, to be used in California by voters in the
November election.
"We are committed to supporting our 19 California customer counties,
including the four affected TSX counties, in their efforts to run an efficient
election in November," said Mark G. Radke, director of marketing for Diebold
Election Systems, Inc. "We have confidence in our technology and its benefits,
and we look forward to helping administer successful elections in California and
elsewhere in the country in November."
Also, as outlined in the company's response to the recommendation of the
Voting Systems and Procedures Panel (VSPP), submitted April 26, Diebold Election
Systems has been open and forthcoming in its dealings with the Office of the
Secretary of State, as well as with local California elections officials, and
disputes the Secretary of State's accusations. "We plan to continue working in
California in a significant capacity in the future," Radke said. Diebold
Election Systems' full response to the VSPP can be found at
http://www.diebold.com/dieboldes/vsppresponse.pdf.
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PAGE TWO / DIEBOLD ELECTION SYSTEMS MOVING FORWARD AFTER CALIFORNIA SECRETARY OF
STATE ACTION
The action by the Secretary of State, as it relates to the TSX, is limited
only to firmware and hardware deployed during the March 2004 primary elections
in Kern, San Diego, San Joaquin and Solano counties. Also, this action has no
effect on the certification status of DES hardware, software and firmware in
other states or jurisdictions throughout the country.
DES anticipates that its TSX system, which was submitted to the
independent testing authorities nine months ago and successfully completed
federal testing on April 21, 2004, will be the first touchscreen voting system
to be qualified under the new 2002 federal standards. The new TSX system has,
among other improvements, incorporated enhanced security measures. Once
federally qualified, DES plans to work with the state to provide this enhanced
system to the voters of California.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENT
In the company's written or oral statements, the use of the words
"believes," "anticipates," "expects" and similar expressions is intended to
identify forward-looking statements that have been made and may in the future be
made by or on behalf of the company, including statements concerning future
operating performance, the company's share of new and existing markets, and the
company's short- and long-term revenue and earnings growth rates. Although the
company believes that its outlook is based upon reasonable assumptions regarding
the economy, its knowledge of its business, and on key performance indicators,
which impact the company, there can be no assurance that the company's goals
will be realized. The company is not obligated to report changes to its outlook.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking
statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. The company's uncertainties
could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in
forward-looking statements. These include, but are not limited to:
- competitive pressures, including pricing pressures and technological
developments;
- changes in the company's relationships with customers, suppliers,
distributors and/or partners in its business ventures;
- changes in political, economic or other factors such as currency
exchange rates, inflation rates, recessionary or expansive trends,
taxes and regulations and laws affecting the worldwide business in
each of the company's operations, including Brazil, where a
significant portion of the company's revenue is derived;
- acceptance of the company's product and technology introductions in
the marketplace;
- unanticipated litigation, claims or assessments;
- ability to reduce costs and expenses and improve internal operating
efficiencies;
- variations in consumer demand for financial self-service
technologies, products and services;
- challenges raised about reliability and security of the company's
election systems products, including the risk that such products
will not be certified for use or will be decertified;
- changes in laws regarding the company's election systems products
and services; and
(more)
PAGE THREE / DIEBOLD ELECTION SYSTEMS MOVING FORWARD AFTER CALIFORNIA SECRETARY
OF STATE ACTION
- potential security violations to the company's information
technology systems.
Diebold Election Systems, Inc. is a wholly owned operating subsidiary of
Diebold, Incorporated, a global leader in providing integrated self-service
delivery systems and services. Headquartered in McKinney, Texas, Diebold
Election Systems provides high-quality voting technology to jurisdictions of all
sizes, along with comprehensive service and support capability, and is committed
to elections accuracy, security and integrity. For more information on Diebold
Election Systems, visit the company's Web site at www.dieboldes.com, or call
1-800-433-VOTE.
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PR/3073