Electronic voting machines had hitches, but no glitches

Most problems with the iVotronic in Tuesday's primary were traced to confused poll workers or faulty power supplies, not malfunctioning machines.

BY LUISA YANEZ Miami Herald   02 September 2004

The much-maligned iVotronic voting machines appeared to perform well in Miami-Dade County on Tuesday as voters grew more comfortable with the touch-screen equipment. But some machines did act up, frustrating poll workers.

A survey of calls for assistance from poll workers to the elections department's ''war room'' on primary day shows three types of complaints:

• The iVotronic's ADA model, an audio ballot machine meant for the visually impaired, stumped poll workers throughout

the day by ''freezing up'' or switching to a ''white screen,'' according to the forms election workers at the calling center were required to fill out for every call for help.

• Complaints showed that poll workers faced with ''dead'' iVotronics discovered the machines came to life again after workers were instructed to plug them into different electrical outlets at precinct sites.

• And frequently, poll workers reported problems with the iVotronics that were traced to low batteries.

BEING ANALYZED

The color-coded complaint forms about 14,253 in all that also dealt with logistics, administration and voter registration problems were still being culled by election workers Wednesday.

They indicate that problems with the iVotronics were handled quickly via telephone by troubleshooters. In most cases, the touch-screen machines returned to proper working order.

Seth Kaplan, spokesman for Miami-Dade Elections Department, said the department has not yet had a chance to look at patterns of problems with the iVotronic. But he said the department would address any such issues.

First, the Miami-Dade canvassing board was in the process of certifying Tuesday's primary results, which must be completed unofficially by noon today and officially by Sept. 7.

''After each election, we analyze these forms and learn where we should put our emphasis,'' Kaplan said.

TRAINING ISSUES?

It's normal for the screens on the audio ballot machines to go blank temporarily when voters have the ballot read to them over headphones. Poll workers may have been confused by the disappearing displays, Kaplan said. ''That might be an issue with training the poll workers,'' he said.

Batteries on iVotronic machines are meant to last for hours but in some cases may not have been charged all the way, Kaplan said. Malfunctioning electrical outlets may have gone undetected before Tuesday, he added

''What's important is how we responded to these problems, and we think we did a pretty good job,'' he said.

Officials with Election Systems & Software, the makers of the iVotronic, could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

But ES&S's president and CEO Aldo Tesi posted a release on the Omaha-based company's website lauding the iVotronic's performance in Florida, where 12 counties use the system.

''The success of Tuesday's elections underscores what we have known for a long time: The iVotronic voting system is extremely accurate, reliable, secure, and easy for voters to use,'' Tesi wrote.