A new way of voting 
 
 
By: Kyle Martin    The Greenwood Commonwealth    07/20/2005 
    
 Buck Jones, regional manager of Diebold, demonstrates the latest features on its touch screen voting machine. Jones was demonstrating at a seminar for elected officials Tuesday night at the Leflore County Civic Center.   
Leflore County election commissioners are pleased so far with the touch screen voting machines suggested by Secretary of State Eric Clark.

"I think this is a very good system. There's still some questions that have to be answered about the paper trail. But it's past time to get new machines," said Edward Course, chairman of the commission.

Course was among the 50 or so officials from Humphreys, Leflore and Carroll counties who attended a brief seminar at the Leflore County Civic Center presented by Linda Rigsby, an election attorney with Secretary of State Eric Clark's office.

Rigsby explained the 2002 Help America Vote Act, which requires all states to their voting systems by January. Counties have until Aug. 15 to make a decision.

Federal money provides for 95 percent of the cost for each state. Mississippi, which was given $15 million, has contracted with Diebold to provide counties with touch screen voting machines.

The number of machines awarded to each county will be determined by averaging the four highest turnouts in the past five elections and then dividing that number by 200. The machines received from that tally are free.

The price for extra machines ranges from $2,750 to a maximum $3,761, depending on the number of counties that opt in. 

 
If a county chooses to opt out, it is still required to its system with another contractor, and it must absorb the cost itself.

Chancery Clerk Sam Abraham, county administrator, said the county has yet to decide on whether it will opt in with the state's plan.

Deveda Dillon, District 1 election commissioner, said the county has 32 polling places and will require 56 new voting machines.

"Comparatively, I think it's the best system. I feel comfortable with the machines," Dillon said.

Buck Jones, regional manager for Diebold, answered a salvo of questions about the voting machine's security, dependability and integrity.

Jones said there was no merit to claims the voting machines had no paper trail. He demonstrated the paper roll locked in a secure compartment of the touch screen voting machine. Jones also said ballot images of each vote cast can be printed at each county's courthouse.

When asked about the hardiness of a machine that will travel over dusty rural roads, Jones said Diebold also creates ATMs. Those machines are out in all types of weather, he explained. "We incorporate the same features in our voting machines," Jones said.

In the event of a power failure, each machine has a battery that will last five hours. Additional batteries cost $25.

Records of each ballot cast are stored in multiple memory banks, including a removable non-volatile flash memory card.

Because this type of memory does not rely on electricity, the memory will not be affected if there is a power failure or surge. Neither is the memory magnetic, so a strong magnet cannot erase the card, Jones said.

The machines weigh 26 pounds and can be set up in under a minute. A special key card in the possession of the election supervisor will initiate the precinct for voting that day.

The screens are removable from the stands, so that the disabled can hold them in their lap. Voters with poor eyesight can enlarge the text for better reading. Jones said under proper supervision, the screens can also be used for curbside voting.

When the machines tested on blind voters, a majority of them said they could not read Braille. But according to Diebold's research, most of them use a telephone, so the numeric keypad was designed after a telephone pad.

Rigsby assured the officials no voting laws have been changed. Diebold will also provide paper for absentee balloting.

The first election after the January deadline will be for congressional positions. In case of emergency, Jones said, Diebold has pledged to the state to have a replacement unit at any precinct within an hour.

Failure of a machine will not compromise the memory card, which records all the ballots.

Jones said all the information he presented can be verified at Clark's office.