Primary voter turnout has been good – No significant problems reported with electronic voting machines
Judy Patnode was accompanied by her son Nathan at the polls
By John T. Ryan
As about 4:30 p.m. 205 Peru Republicans, Democrats and Conservatives had voted in today’s primary elections. Republican voters have the most important races choosing candidates for Congress and Governor. Douglas Hoffman and Matt Doheny are vying for the Congressional nomination while Carl Paladino and Rick Lazio are competing for the Gubernatorial nomination. The race for Attorney General was the only Democratic race of consequence.
Voters were using the new electronic machines for the first time and very few problems were being reported. Voters enter a privacy booth where they use a black felt-tip pen to darken a block next to their candidate of their choice. Judy Patnode of Peru said, “This is easy. I feel like I’m back in high school.” Patnode compared marking the ballot to taking the SAT exam. Lynn and Ann Wilke also said they had not experienced problems voting. After marking their ballots voters proceed to the electronic machine where they insert their paper ballot into a scanner and within a few seconds the machine reads “Vote accepted.”
Judy Patnode casts her ballot as her son Nathan looks on
The only problems some election officials could foresee could be caused by the small print size on the paper ballots. Voters with eyesight deficiencies might have a problem reading the paper ballot. If they do, the electronic machine is designed to accommodate handicapped voters. (Click here to see larger photos)
Donald McBrayer and Judy Akey explain the machine's operation
Posted: September 14th, 2010 under General News.