The Delaware Commissioner of Elections and the Government Information Center (GIC), an agency of the Department of State, have recently launched a new Internet tool aimed at helping voters find their polling places. Using the popular interactive mapping interface Google Maps, voters can now see the location of their polling place and obtain directions to and from that location.

"We need to continually improve and expand the ways in which we present information to the public," said Governor Ruth Ann Minner, who has been a strong proponent of e-government. "Coordination between state agencies is key to our success in that effort, and this initiative is an example of that collaboration."

Residents in the 14th Senate District will be the first to be able to use the new service in preparation for the November 3rd special election. The polling place map is the newest product of a pilot program that GIC recently launched with a number of its agency partners to better utilize the technology available through Google Maps and Google Earth.

"This is just the first step for us," said Commissioner of Elections Elaine Manlove. "Our plan is to have interactive polling place maps available for the entire state in 2008."

In addition to the polling place map, the pilot project has also yielded a comprehensive online map of all of Delaware's public schools and one that displays the locations of the state's historical markers, with links to the text of each marker and a photo of the site. JB