Voting 2010

Patriotic Cornucopia: Voting 2010
I have voted in the November elections since I was of legal age to do so. For the past quarter of a century, I have not had the privilege of the “secret ballot”. I am totally blind.
Usually, my husband will come in the booth with me and, presumably, mark the ballot as I direct him to do. While I do trust him, it is a far cry from a secret ballot. I was excited to find accessible voting machines were being investigated.
There have been a lot of questions about new voting equipment required to meet the regulations under the Help America Vote Act (HAVA). The New York State Legislature has passed (2006) legislation that provides the framework for what type of voting equipment we will be using.
On January 5, 2006, I attended a demonstration of several machines in Minot Hall on the campus of the Henrietta Dome Fair and Expo Center, Monroe County. I found Liberty Vote” manufactured by Liberty Election Systems, Albany, NY ( to be the easiest for me to use, keeping in mind that I am just blind, not otherwise impaired.
Two years ago, I wasn’t even told that the handicap accessible voting machine was available until I thought of asking about it after my husband had talked me through the lever machine.
A year ago, I asked about the accessible voting machine and was told it would take too long to train me to use it. I suspect that meant no one was willing to make the time to explain it to me or they didn’t understand it yet either.
This year, I contacted my counselor at the Commission for the Blind and Visually Handicapped (CBVH) and asked how blind folks were supposed to vote on the now mandated paper/pen ballot. I received: “Guide for Blind or Visually Impaired Voters using the ImageCast Ballot Marking Device”; Compiled by Susan Cohen of Voting Access Solutions, with the assistance of Lisa Hoffman and Dominion Voting. I read the guidelines and quick reference list several times and confidently followed my guide dog into our polling place at the fire hall.
After signing my own name on the registration book, I requested the handicap accessible voting machine. The poll site worker (PSW) explained how it would take about 20-minutes to fill-out the ballot (The Dominion Guidelines said it might take an hour). Was I sure I wanted to take the time to do that. I said yes.
I sat in the designated chair as an approximately 6”x6” box was put in my lap. I requested the monitor be turned off, so I’d have privacy as I voted. The PSW did not know how to do this, so a plastic cover was placed over the monitor; nor did the PSW know how to get the audio started. After 20-minutes or more and several phone calls into the County Election Board, the monitor was turned off and I heard audio instructions. I knew to firmly push the center donut of the arrow keys or select key and wait for the delayed voice to say its piece. I was voting by secret ballot after 25-years !
It took about 40-minutes to actually go through the complete ballot and then, I proudly pushed “print”.
The machine said I needed to ask assistance from the PSW, so I did. One PSW pulled the allegedly printed ballot out from my hand and quickly inserted it into the privacy sleeve (folder) that had been placed on top of the console. I thought the machine meant something didn’t go correctly, but the other PSW said I’d need assistance to get over to where the machine would suck in my ballot to officially scan and tally my votes.
The PSW picked up my folder, so I rose out of my chair, smashing my nose and upper lip into the console. It added injury to insult.
Several PSWs attempted to assist me in guiding the sleeve and ballot into the slot, but they over corrected each other and I asked them to let go; let me do it myself. The machine promptly sucked in my ballot and just as promptly spit it back out. We attempted to do this several times, several ways. During another phone call to the County, my husband and the PSW looked at my printed ballot only to discover that the “page two, Proposition” did not print out. So much for a secret ballot. Time lapsed: one hour 35-minutes. By this time, I was completely mortified, with a fat lip to boot.
Apparently, the County then advised us to chuck the wasted ballot into the locked and secure “damaged ballot” bag and start again with a fresh paper ballot. I opted to not use the handicap accessible machine again.
Before we could pick up a new ballot, my husband had to sign an oath that he’d faithfully fill-in my ballot as I direct him. Hello, excuse me. Not once during the previous quarter of a century that he has assisted me in voting, has he ever had to sign an oath of faithfulness; well, not unless you count our marriage vows over 40 years ago!.
He filled-in the paper ballot with the special pen, inserted the ballot, and we were out of there. Time elapsed: 5 minutes.
By the time we returned to our car, I was sobbing. I’ve never had a more traumatic voting situation except when I tried to vote alone.
Several years ago, our polling site was changed to the Freewill Elementary School. I thought that was great, because as I was allowed to ride the school bus each Tuesday to be a volunteer mentor and tutor, I wouldn’t have to inconvenience anyone to take me voting. My husband could vote on his way into work and not be late. I could vote when I got to school.

As I approached the registration/sign-in table, I asked if someone could assist me. It temporarily threw them into a tizzy. Who was legally allowed to assist this blind lady vote? After some discussion, one representative from the Republican Party and one representative from the Democratic Party accompanied me into the booth -along with my guide dog.
I’m not sure what we would have done if there’d been representatives from the Conservative Party, Green Peace Party, Socialist Party, Liberal Party, etc. I don’t think we would have all fit into the booth! Can’t you just picture all those human and canine legs sticking down from the voting machine curtain?
I found the top line of levers (Yes, yes, I’m thankful that I could at least reach up that tall.) and requested that, as I put my finger on the little lever, one of them tell me which candidate I was on. They discussed whether or not they should alternate reading or should one read the whole line, then the other would read the next whole line. I decided to solve their dilemma by just voting one straight line; some thing I would not ordinarily have done. I like to vote individuals, rather than straight party. Later, I found out that they had neglected to direct me to the “propositions”.
On the one hand, I should have been more assertive and asked if there were more items on the whole ballot, but I was embarrassed and just wanted to get out of there. One of them was triumphant; the other irritated. It was not a secret ballot by any stretch of the imagination.
The next year I received an Absentee Ballot with a note stating that they noticed I was having difficulty voting. I could have put the ballot on my computer’s optical scanner and read all the information, but then how would I be able to find the correct little box for my “X”? Once scanned into my computer, I could mark my choice and print it out, however, then it becomes a facsimile and a bit illegal to mail in! If I had someone assist me to put my “X” on my selection, it is no longer a secret ballot.
Cornucopia’s opinion is that one machine could not possibly be able to meet all the needs of all the people with handicapping conditions, why not develop a system where﷓by one could vote from their home computer or touch﷓pad telephone using security PINs or secure electronic registration methods? Each functioning person with a handicapping condition already has adaptive equipment for his/her needs; others can probably use a telephone; no transportation barriers; no use of fossil fuels; no trees felled for paper; and complete confidentiality. It might even cost a whole lot less.
Oh, Dear Gussy, some other year, some other election and maybe, just maybe, I will be able to exercise the privilege of casting my secret ballot.
Copyright © 2010 by Kate Chamberlin. All Rights Reserved.
In Hind-sight:
1. The guidelines that were e-mailed to me were invaluable. I felt as if I’d been better trained than the poll workers. Perhaps an explanation of the location of the “monitor off”, “audio on”, and “machine on” , and “zoom” could be added to the guidelines, but it sounded like these features were on the side away from where I sat. If I knew that for sure, I could have directed the PSW where to go.
2. Knowing that after the chosen button or arrow was selected, the voice would be delayed was very helpful…I just waited.
3. The little box with the keys on it kept slipping off my lap. Perhaps one of those trays with a non-skid “pillow” on the bottom would prevent slipping and give the box a firmer base.
4. Occasionally, the noise in the polling room got so loud, I had to push the ear-piece tightly to my ear, in order for me to hear the voting machine’s voice. I had it turned up and I’m not hard of hearing. It was the room noise that was the problem. Perhaps some kind of sound curtain, “study carrel” or “ear muff” type of head set could be used.
5. I am used to using a talking computer and accustomed to listening to synthesized speech, so perhaps the PSW should have listened to me when I tried to tell them I thought the message indicated there was a printer problem. They assumed it meant they were to take me over to the scanner. If there is a “page 2”, do you have to take out the paper ballot and turn it around so it prints on the other side?
Sue Cohen: No, the machine will do it all.
6. It was not clear how to actually get the ballot privately into the privacy sleeve. Does the ballot come out print side up or down?
Sue Cohen: The privacy sleeve should have been velcroed so the printer would put the ballot directly into the privacy sleeve.
7. I have been voting in my district for 38 years, 25 of them as a blind person. I’ve had a newspaper column for 15 years and I have never been silent about feeling disenfranchised from being able to vote by secret ballot. Wayne County has chosen to ignore me.
Sue Cohen: …Trust me-I am taking this very seriously. I will analyze your testimonial and bring these issues to the proper people.
I encourage you not to give up on the new machines-but rather help me to get good pollworker training in Wayne County. I spoke to the election commissioners in Wayne county about the pollworker training I provide in April-and they basically said that no one uses the BMD so why should they train their pollworkers.

Over-all, I feel the BMD I used was rather good and having used it once, shall be better able to do it next time. The poll workers were well intended, polite, and concerned. They just weren’t well trained in how to use this technology.
Psw: I hadn’t touched the machine in over 1-1/2 years, since they came out. Our meetings deal more with policy changes. I’d never actually gone through the entire process by myself, much less with a blind person. I was the only one in the 2 districts voting at the fire hall that used the BMD.

Will I ever vote again? You bet your bippy. I’ll be there!
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