New voting machines in place for '06 election

The Jackson Sun    27 September 2005

Madison County Administrator of Elections Kim Buckley is hoping for small turnout during the May 2006 primary elections.

Not because she is not fond of a busy election turnout, but because she wants to make sure that everyone understands the Election Commission's new electronic voting machines.

"The August election is going to be huge," Buckley said, referring to a ballot that will include Tennessee governor, judicial and local government positions.

To Buckley, it's too huge of an election for poll workers and voters to adjust to a new voting system. And that's why she wants May to serve as the "test run" for the new machines.

The change is being made because all election offices must comply with a federal mandate to have electronic voting machines before the federal election on Aug. 3, 2006. Following recounts in the 2000 presidential election, Congress passed the Help America Vote Act of 2002 in part to replace punch-card voting machines in counties that still had them.

The Madison County Election Commission has its eyes set on a brand called eSlate, a machine that is about the size of a legal pad and costs approximately $2,500 each.

With eSlate, voters navigate the ballot by using a rotary wheel to their candidate and place their vote.

The commission hopes to purchase 150 to 200 machines, but the state of Tennessee is still working out all of the details, Buckley said.

Funding to purchase the machines is being funneled from the federal government to the state, she said.

"Right now, I believe the state is trying to make (how the money is divided) fair and equitable," Buckley added.

So in the months ahead, Buckley plans to promote voter education and visit civic groups to educate people on the new electronic system.

"It's so important and most imperative that the system guards the integrity and purity of any election," Buckley said. "The system should also be easy to use and equipment that poll workers can adapt to easily."