New Voting Systems Could Cause Problems in Swing States
Analysts are concerned about some of the new systems being implemented in key
states
By Amanda Ruggeri
Posted October 22, 2008
After its election's razor-thin margin necessitated the first recount, Palm
Beach County took two weeks to account for nearly 3,500 ballots thought
missing. When they were found, on shelves with the other ballots, many could
not be interpreted. Voters seemed to find the ballot's brand-new format, in
which arrows had to be connected, completely unintelligible. Some had checked
or circled their answers; others wrote jokes in the margins; one covered the
paper with lipstick kisses.
The first day of early voting in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
The 2000 mess? No. This Floridian fiasco occurred during the state's Aug. 26,
2008, primary election. And a third round of recounts closed only six weeks
before a general election in which, once again, Florida is expected to be a key
battleground state. Heading toward November 4, swing states are feeling the
pressure. Local officials say they have learned from past mistakes and that
they are doing all they can to avoid glitches. Yet analysts are concerned,
sometimes about the very improvements being implemented, such as new
technologies and voting by mail. States to watch include Ohio, Colorado, and,
of course, Florida.
High expectations. In counties including problematic Palm Beach, election
officials are working seven days a week to prepare. "We don't see anyone
twiddling their thumbs," says Doug Chapin, an election expert at the Pew Center
on the States. With historic turnout of as many as 130 million voters
nationwide, Chapin says the question becomes whether the system can handle the
large number of voters.
One step many counties have made to improve the process has been to replace
their voting systems. For the 2008 race, about half of all precincts will use
machines that differ from those used in 2004. Combine that with a boom in new
voter registrations in the swing states, and the number of voters unfamiliar
with their precinct's equipment will be at an all-time high. Most of the
changes are away from the touch-screen systems that caused controversy in 2004.
Paper ballots, read with optical scans, ease recounts and are thought to be
simpler for voters to understand. As a result, 55 percent of Americans will
vote on paper this year, compared with 49 percent in 2006. Touch-screen machine
use drops to 33 percent from 38 percent in 2006. This marks the first decline
analysts have seen in the use of electronic equipment during elections.
In the meantime, more than half the states will test computerized statewide
voter databases in a presidential election for the first time. Mandated by the
2002 Help America Vote Act, the systems are meant to provide a uniform way for
poll workers to check voters' registration status. But implementation was
plagued by setbacks and glitches. Colorado completed its database just this
year. Such last-minute changeovers may confuse rather than clarify the process.
"Even if we could pick a best technology, which I'm not sure we can right now,
if you didn't have time to get used to it, you're opening yourself up to
problems on Election Day," Chapin says.
A shortage of machines or ballots is another worry. State laws on machine
allocation are often vague, or in the case of Missouri and Pennsylvania,
nonexistent, found a recent report by Common Cause and the Century Foundation.
This year, most counties are ordering far more ballots than previously to
prepare for the expected turnout. At the same time, county officials have
pushed for early and absentee voting. This might help ease long lines, since as
many as 1 in 3 ballots nationwide could be cast before Election Day, experts
say. But absentee ballots could come with a price, because experts say they are
more vulnerable than some officials are letting on. If an absentee voter does
not fill out the ballot properly, the vote may be nullified. Mail-in ballots
also take longer to process, which will cause delays if voters wait until the
last minute.
Even if voters and officials alike are diligent, however, many worry about the
sheer size of the election. For its 600,000 expected voters, Palm Beach County
will need to track 1.2 million pages of ballots. "When you have that much paper
and that many human beings all converging on one day, it is a recipe for
problems. I'm not going to say disaster, but problems," says County
Commissioner Mary McCarty.
Swing states are on high alert, but elsewhere elections also breed high anxiety
because voters have no tolerance for errors on Election Day. Edward Foley, an
election law professor at Ohio State University, says that expectation puts the
system under "almost impossible anxiety."
That pressure is something that election officials are well aware of. "Are we
feeling pressure? Of course," says Stephanie O'Malley, Denver Elections
Division clerk and recorder. "But we're also feeling the desire to get this
right on behalf of our voters." And getting it right on Election Day could be
the difference between a close finish and a monthlong debacle.
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