County picks voting system
BY ERIC MANN    Decatur Daily Democrat  August 9, 2005 
  

Infinity is coming to Adams County.

That's the name of the high-tech voting system, costing almost $287,000, that the county will buy with federal money funneled through the state government.

The county commissioners on Monday unanimously adopted the recommendation of the Adams County Election Board to purchase the Infinity system from MicroVote General Corp. of Indianapolis.

A total of 74 machines will be obtained: 43 for regular use and 31 that are compatible with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by being able to be used with earphones for voters with visual impairments.

Adams County Clerk Nan Nidlinger, who serves on the election board with Doyle Lehman of Berne and Ralph Smith Jr. of Monmouth, said the names and political parties of candidates and the offices they seek can be listed in larger type on the Infinity machines for easier reading by voters.

While the overall cost of $286,808 will be paid by federal funds, the only county cost will be an annual fee of $5,500 for software maintenance.

Nidlinger told the commissioners that the 43 regular Infinity machines will cost $3,150 each, while the 31 ADA-compatible machines are $3,370 apiece.

The commissioners agreed to a three-year contract with MicroVote, which has been in business for 24 years. The warranty on the Infinity voting machines is good through December, 2008.

This system has been in use in Allen County and is in operation or soon will be in operation in Wells, Jay, and Huntington counties and numerous other Indiana counties, according to Nidlinger.

The election board has been busy since early June this year studying the voting systems of the five companies chosen by state officials for consideration by the counties. The election board members noted that MicroVote answered all 51 questions the board posed to the firm.

The Infinity machines are likely to arrive in December, which will be in plenty of time for use in the May, 2006 primary election and the November, 2006 general election, said Nidlinger.

However, she expects two demonstration Infinity machines to be delivered this month, so she can use them at public meetings and gatherings to get people used to a new way of voting.

The clerk said money will be saved by her office as the programming for each election will be done by her and her staff.