County offers options to learn the new voting system
By Philip Schmit

On June 6, Ventura County voters will cast their vote in the gubernatorial primary election using new voting equipment and a new paper ballot.

To make the transition to the new equipment as smooth as possible, the Ventura County elections office has undertaken a comprehensive and aggressive voter outreach campaign that allows voters the opportunity to practice voting on the new system at various locations throughout the county.

At each system demonstration, the staff encounters many of the same questions and concerns, primarily concerning the manufacturer of the voting equipment and related security issues.

Since the early 1970s, Ventura County has been voting on paper ballots printed by Sequoia Voting Systems and voting on machines manufactured by Sequoia Voting Systems. This is not changing.

What is changing is the way a voter marks his or her ballot, whether it be at the polling place or at home with an absentee ballot. Instead of using a punch-card ballot system, voters in Ventura County will now use either a blue or black pen or a pencil to simply draw a line completing the arrow that points to their choice on the ballot.

After each contest is voted on both sides of the ballot, the voter inserts the ballot into the optical scan reader, which tabulates the votes.

The optical scan ballot reader doubles as a ballot box, storing all voted ballots in the locked container after each ballot is read.

The process of marking the ballot and inserting it into the ballot box is simple and allows for peace of mind, knowing that once a paper ballot is inserted into the optical scan reader it is stored in the locked ballot box.

The paper ballot can then be used to verify the accuracy of the ballot tabulators or to verify the results of an election if a recount is necessary.

In compliance with the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) requirements of 2002, there will also be a Direct Recording Electronic (DRE) machine in every polling place to allow voters who are visually impaired to cast their vote in private.

The DRE voting machine will provide an audio recording of the ballot, which a voter listens to using provided headphones and then makes his or her choice using a Braille touchpad.

The DRE machine will also be configured to allow visual touchscreen voting for voters who are unable to physically mark the paper ballot. The DRE system prints and stores a paper record of each electronic ballot cast, providing a paper audit trail in order to verify the accuracy of the system and to provide a means of being able to perform a recount, if necessary.

All this is significant because for the first time in the history of Ventura County elections, a visually impaired voter using this system will be able to cast his or her vote in private.

Staff from the county elections office will be giving demonstrations and allowing voters the opportunity to cast a sample vote on the new system.Voters are urged to see the advertisement with the demonstration schedule in publications throughout the county, or visit the website at www.recorder. countyofventura.org/schedule. pdf.

Voters can also stop by one of the scheduled demonstrations and test the equipment so that the transition to the new voting machines on Election Day will be as smooth as possible. Remember, the last day to register to vote is Mon., May 22.

For more information, call the Ventura County Elections Division at (805) 654-2785.

Schmit is the Ventura County Clerk and Recorder.