Reprinted with permission of the National Association of Counties, and County News
When Alameda County, Calif., voters go to the polls in June they will be putting pencil to paper to cast their ballots while about 4,000 HAVA-compliant, touch-screen voting systems gather dust.
The California state Legislature's tightening of touch-screen machine requirements rendered the county's systems inadequate, forcing the county to use paper ballots and optical scanners instead of the touch-screen technology. The state mandated that all touch-screen machines have certified printers to provide a paper trail.
According to Elaine Ginnold, Alameda County's registrar of voters, the county had planned to upgrade its current touch-screen machines, which she says were more popular than paper ballots. However, the printers to the county's machines didn't become certified until February, at which point the county had already started a procurement process to acquire different equipment.
"Counties are caught between a rock and a hard place when the state Legislature passes laws that affect counties where the technical capabilities don't exist," she said. "All of the people who wanted that paper audit trail hate it because it wasn't what they expected. Rather than giving the appearance of more security, it didn't do a thing to assuage their fears.
"Counties do not have the resources to pay for all of these mandates. Counties need money and time."
The county, which is home to 1.4 million people, is currently printing ballots and informing voters on what to expect when they go to the polls. Ginnold said the county is trying to educate voters on how to fill out ballots correctly.
She hopes to have the ballots counted as soon as possible, but says that it could take until noon of the day after the election. The county has told the news media not to wait up for polls.
Ginnold said that she will try to prevent using paper ballots in November.
"I do not want to do this again in November," she said, adding, "It's not a big deal for the primary," when voter turnout is lower. "It would be a very big deal if we had to do it in November. We hope to select a vendor sometime in May."
Other California counties are taking the old-fashioned paper ballot approach to voter technology, including Merced and Los Angeles counties.
Merced County Clerk M. Stephen Jones said his county decided to use paper ballots after it became apparent that an approved printer wouldn't be available for their equipment. As a result, the county traded in its touch-screens for Automark and M100 machines.
In the future, Jones said that the county could switch back to touch-screens once the climate at the state level stabilizes and the county finds suitable machines.
Jones agrees with Ginnold about the fact that touch-screen technology is much more popular with voters. He said that his department has conducted three non-scientific surveys about the technology that indicated tremendous support for the touch-screens.
In Los Angeles County, supervisors recently voted to upgrade the county's paper-ballot-based system rather than spend money on a more expensive electronic system.
"The principal reason [for the decision] is the ever-changing laws and standards," said Conny McCormack, Los Angeles County's registrar and recorder. "It seems premature for a county of our size to invest money in touch-screen technology."
Citing Alameda County's problems, McCormack said the county is seeking a more phased-in approach. The county is upgrading its paper-based ballot system to the tune of $24.6 million, avoiding the $100-million price tag of touch-screen voting machines.
McCormack said that the county would certainly not upgrade to touch-screen systems before the 2008 presidential election. The county will take a wait-and-see approach as the climate surrounding voting technology stabilizes.
"Who's got a crystal ball? No one does in this situation," she said.
