New balloting system for voter confidence

OUR OPINION: SUPERVISOR MAKES A STRONG CASE FOR OPTICAL SCANNING

Opinion    Miami Herald    01 June 2005

The snafus of the 2000 presidential election did worse damage to voting in Florida than merely tarnishing the state's image. The debacle undermined voter confidence in the accuracy of election results. Voter concern about whether every ballot cast actually will be counted continues today, even though punch-card voting machines villains of the 2000 election have been replaced statewide.

Less expensive

In Miami-Dade County, expensive new touch-screen equipment has failed to restore voter confidence, primarily because of its inability to produce a paper record of each vote. This is the primary reason why the Miami-Dade County Commission should view favorably a recommendation by Supervisor of Elections Lester Sola to switch to optical-scan equipment.

Mr. Sola's analysis concludes that scanning equipment would be easier to use and would create an auditable paper record, two big pluses compared to electronic voting. County Manager George Burgess has received Mr. Sola's report and, after reviewing it, will make a recommendation to the commission.

There is another reason for switching to an optical-scan system, and it is of no small consequence. The costs would be significantly less. Mr. Burgess says that he is carefully weighing all factors involved in a switch. The county already has invested $24.5 million in electronic equipment and another $6.6 million in costs associated with the 2002 elections. If Miami-Dade sticks with touch-screen technology, it will have to spend another $1 million for more machines and batteries. Bottom line: The production costs of elections would increase significantly from the historical average of $1.5 million per election.

Optical-scan equipment, on the other hand, could be purchased for much less an estimated $8 million and operational costs would be more in line with historical costs. Thus, an optical-scan system would be less expensive, easier to use and more likely to restore voter confidence. Barring some unforeseen obstacle, the county should happily convert to optical-scan equipment.

Deliberate certainty

Mr. Burgess said that he wants to carefully review Supervisor Sola's report and weigh the pros and cons of both systems before making a recommendation. If his decision is for optical scanning and the commission approves, he said that he would advise a methodical, careful conversion. That would be wise. In the switch to touch screens from punch cards, the county was pressured to move quickly because of the looming decertification of the old equipment and upcoming election.

This time, county commissioners face no such obstacles. With a certified system in hand, they can and should move with deliberate certainty to make sure that votes are counted accurately and that voters have confidence in the system.