If voters note any mistakes on the printed ballot, however, they must discard it in a special slot on the machine. If the scan is successful (it had to be done twice during the demonstration), the machine keeps the ballot in an internal bin. When voters are satisfied their choices have been correctly entered, they must pass the ballot through a scanner. Privacy sheaths will also be provided to cover printed ballots. Instead, privacy screens will be erected to shield the monitor from view. No curtains will be employed, unlike the current lever machines. Once complete, the machine takes up to two minutes to print the completed ballot for voters to review. Set up to respond to finger or breath commands, the Imagecast can silently or verbally guide voters through their choices. The disbelief that permeated the room after that announcement dissipated once Green demonstrated a typical assisted voting session.
However, the largest concern lies with handicapped voters, whom Green said will have to spend between 40 and 50 minutes to complete a full ballot at a minimum.
Those without such an affinity will likely struggle indeed, some of the senior citizens who comprise the majority of elections inspectors have already told officials they won’t continue due to the complexity of not only operating but teaching others to operate the machines. Those with an aptitude for electronics will probably feel right at home and breeze through the on-screen or audio prompts. They will debut in the general election this November, though only people who need or request to use them will have access to the Imagecasts.īy next year, however, Sullivan County’s 43,000 registered voters will have to use them, as they’ll replace the “old-fashioned” lever-operated machines. (The feds, however, are not paying for costs to transport the machines to polling sites or the electricity required to operate them.)
Though the cost was funded by the federal government, Sullivan County was required by the state to purchase one $11,500 machine for each of its 48 polling locations, plus two spares and one demonstration model. Indeed, that’s the idea behind these machines to offer equal, nondiscriminatory access to polling equipment, regardless of a person’s particular disability.īut in the process, said officials, New York State is actually making it tougher for people to vote. Gaebel and Democratic Deputy Elections Commissioner Faith Kaplan recently introduced the machine to local officials, with Management Information Systems chief Lorne Green showcasing the mechanisms that will allow the physically handicapped to vote without assistance. The new electronic voting system has been mandated by the state for all counties.Ĭalled the Sequoia Imagecast, it’s basically a computer in a large lockbox, complete with viewing screen, keypad, printer and scanner. That sentiment was directed toward handicapped voters in the county, but it may soon apply to anyone who finds themselves wrestling with the county’s 51 new electronic voting machines. “If you really care about your vote, request an absentee ballot, because this is crazy,” he told a recent gathering of the Sullivan County Council of Governments. MONTICELLO Sullivan County’s Board of Elections is getting ready for one big headache.Īnd voters countywide may also get stuck in what Republican Elections Commissioner Rodney Gaebel termed a “nightmare.” Mandating voting machines fraught with problems From the left are Mamakating Supervisor Bob Fiore, Fremont Supervisor Jim Greier, Fallsburg Supervisor Steve Levine, Legislator Ron Hiatt, Republican Elections Commissioner Rodney Gaebel and Management and Budget Commish Josh Potosek.
SULLIVAN COUNTY MANAGEMENT Information Systems Chief Information Officer Lorne Green, right, demonstrates the Sequoia Imagecast electronic voting machine to local officials at the Government Center. Bookmarking an archived link is therefore the surest way to retain access to a particular article. PLEASE NOTE: If you bookmark a particular link from the current news, sports or obituaries offered on our Website, be aware that the URL address will change once it is archived.
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