Voting 2011
Voting 2011
My voting experience was so humiliating and frustrating using the handicapped accessible voting machine last year, that I seriously debated whether or not I should even show up. I lost sleep over my dilemma.
By morning, I was confident that I, at least, knew what I was doing. I’d studied the guidelines and discussions I’d had with Susan Cohen last year. It was time for a follow-up session to master the art of voting with the Image Cast Ballot Marking Device (accessible voting machine).
I confidently marched in next to my guide dog and my husband. I had printed out the guidelines and had brought a tray with a soft pillow attached to the bottom. Last year, the key pad kept slipping off my lap and this was one of the things I’d noted to be sure to bring. I signed my own name in the correct box to register and asked if my psw (Poll Site Worker) was available to assist me. She and another PSW were at my station, readying the machine for me. They had the monitor turned off. The first “head-set” they handed me turned out to be to large, left and right push buttons to be held in the voter’s hands. I calmly suggested that if I had to hold these up to my ears, I’d have no hands to operate the key pad. The appropriate head-set was located and the guide’s synthesized voice flowed into my ears, enabling my fingers to operate the key pad. First barrier cleared.
The PSW noticed that the ballot in my privacy sleeve was printed on. She took it back to the registration table and got a plain piece of paper. Once my ballot is finalized, the whole ballot would be printed out. Second barrier cleared.
The guide’s voice narrated me patiently through the entire ballot with clear, albeit, hesitancy, until I pressed the “ballot complete”. Third barrier cleared.
The guide’s voice informed me to: Poll Worker Assistance is needed for the printer”. The fourth barrier stopped us in our tracks. They phoned the County Election Office and was told to turn on the monitor. I suggested that that would show my ballot and cancel the privacy issue. There were several buttons (a green and a yellow) in front of me, but the PSWs admitted they didn’t know what they were for or how to get the printer to do it’s thing. Pushing the green button did not make it go.
Another call was put into the County. After the first call, before I began voting, the “voting Machine Guru” got in his car and was on his way to our polling station. It occurred to me that I should make a date with him to meet at 6:00 AM next year to avoid the wait.
After a short discussion, he pulled up the printer top and extracted the crumpled up ballot. There were only a few squiggly lines on it. The PSW deposited it in the “damaged ballot box” and got another piece of paper, inserted it, and hoped. Meanwhile, I’m holding the privacy sleeve up to the slot where the printed ballot should come out. The top of the sleeve was on top of the slot and the bottom of the sleeve was under the bottom edge of the slot. The idea is for the printer to spit the completed ballot into the privacy sleeve privately. We could hear the printer grab the paper and print, but no paper came sneaking into my privacy sleeve. Off came the top of the printer. One edge of the paper had caught in such a way as to print correctly, but scrunch up, instead of coming out. The guru snatched the ballot out of the jam and popped it into my “public receptacle”. Oh well, the fifth barrier was sort of cleared.
I was escorted around to the slot on the other side, where everyone inserts their ballot. My PSW lined me up, told me where to put my hands, and I slid my ballot in. The machine sucked it in and kept it. I promptly had a rush of exhilaration, as all the Polling Station Workers gave a huge sigh of relief. I think we all let go of the breath we didn’t know we were holding. Sixth barrier cleared.
This year’s voting experience was definitely better than last year’s. I’m looking forward to an even better experience in 2012 for the National Presidential Election.