Voters will use new equipment in fall
Elections board chooses ES&S machines over competitor's this week

By Rebecca Helmes  Palladium-Item   11 February 2005
EATON, Ohio Preble County should be using optical scan voting machines from Election Systems & Software by the November elections.

The Preble County Board of Elections unanimously chose the ES&S equipment over competitor Diebold's optical scan equipment this week.

The county, which currently uses the punch card system of voting, had to change its voting equipment because Help America Vote Act (HAVA) regulations required it.

Board of Elections Director Marilyn Jackson said the board just liked the ES&S equipment better.

Optical scan equipment consists of a paper ballot where voters mark boxes or ovals next to the names of the people they want to vote for. The ballots are fed through a machine that tabulates the results. If a recount needs to be done, a verifiable paper trail exists.

"It's going back to the paper ballot type," Jackson said.

Jackson said people who work the polls will have to be trained on the new equipment, and that will probably be done over the summer. Voters will also have to get used to the new method.

"We'll have to have additional people to help us," Jackson said. "We'll be busy now this summer with learning ourselves and training."

Jackson said the optical scan machines will not be ready for use by the May elections.