Officials: New software delayed SPLOST results

 September 22, 2005
By Kimberly Starks  Marietta Daily Journal Staff Writer

MARIETTA - New computer software and problems transmitting precinct results to the central Cobb Board of Elections offices in Marietta delayed results from Tuesday's Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax referendum, election officials said.

Tuesday was the first time upgraded software was used on the county's touch screen voting machines. That and security upgrades slowed the transmission of information on election night, said Sharon Dunn, director of the Cobb Board of Elections and Registration. The last of the unofficial results were reported at 11:30 p.m.

"When there is not a clean connection, the modem will not transmit," said Ms. Dunn, explaining the variety of problems that occurred Tuesday. "Or, a poll worker did not follow the steps of transmitting."

At precincts with the worst problems, poll workers had to drive to the central elections office and hand deliver the results, Ms. Dunn said.

The 1-cent on the dollar sales tax ultimately passed by a slim 117 votes, with no clear indication whether or not it passed until the end of the night.

Connecting polling machines to a telephone or fax machine - which uses modem capabilities to transfer results to the elections office electronically - is the board's standard procedure, Ms. Dunn said. In all instances, the votes have to be delivered to the board on 47 Waddell St. in Marietta.

Among the upgrades on the Diebold Elections Systems voting machines were security firewalls to ensure each precinct report is correct and memory cards are protected. An instruction tool on the touch screen system to help voters also was installed in August, Ms. Dunn said.

Cobb County began using the touch-screen machines in 2002 and most recently were used during the 2004 presidential election last November.

Ms. Dunn on Wednesday said those precincts with transmitting problems will be reported to the board after the election results are certified at 5:30 p.m. Friday.