Preble Co. picks voting system
Elections: New machines won't be used until 2005

By Wire and staff reports 

EATON, Ohio Ohio Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell has told some county elections officials they have until Tuesday to new voting machines or he will do it for them.

So Preble County picked a vendor Wednesday.

"We had a board meeting scheduled to certify the election," Marilyn Jackson of the Preble County Board of Elections said, "so we went ahead and ed the system.

"We were already pretty sure which system we wanted."

Preble County will be going with Election Systems & Software, the same company that provided new voting machines for Wayne County across the state line in Indiana.

The ES&S system is certified for elections in Ohio, Jackson said. Wayne County has faced some concerns getting the current software version certified for Indiana elections.

"I saw this system in operation in Florida last year," Jackson said. "I arranged to spend two days seeing how it operated during an election."

Preble County voters won't see the new electronic machines this year.

"We won't implement them until 2005," Jackson said. "With the big turnout we expect, this would be the wrong year to try something new."

The delay "will give us more time to train."

Blackwell's ultimatum raised the ire of some state lawmakers who have been conducting hearings on the security of electronic voting. Federal law requires the switch from outdated punch-card machines.

Montgomery County Board of Elections Director Christopher Heizer said his board has been awaiting results of the ballot-security committee's review before ing voting equipment. The board expected a final staff recommendation Thursday and could vote by next week.

"We're waiting to make sure all the security risks that have been found by the secretary of state have been fixed and certified," he said.

Blackwell also sent notices to Clinton, Hamilton and Highland counties.

Rep. Peter Ujvagi, a Toledo Democrat, said the Legislature should hold a special session this month to block Blackwell if he insists on forging ahead.

It was lawmakers who granted the secretary of state authority to issue opinions and rulings to county boards of elections that carry the weight of law, Blackwell spokesman Carlo LoParo said Thursday.

"The secretary is operating under his statutory authority as the state's chief elections officer," he said.

Blackwell has asked the legislative Controlling Board to approve the purchase of more than $122 million in voting equipment at its April 5 meeting. The panel is holding up the request while they conduct the hearings.