With the presidential election fast approaching, voting and politics seem to be weighing heavily on the collective American mind. These concerns, however, are studied year-round by political scientists. In recent years, many of these political scientists, representing the likes of Caltech/MIT and the Presidential Commission on Election Administration, have warned against the dangers of aging voting machines. As technological advancement continues at an accelerated rate, the quality of many current voting machines across the nation fails to keep up. These machines, many 10 years old or older, are at serious risk of sudden system failure, causing backed-up voter lines; cyber tampering, due to outdated software weaknesses; command malfunction, where the system will switch or cancel the desired vote; and are sometimes unable to be audited, due to the lack of a physical paper trail in some models.
Greene Publishing, Inc. spoke with Supervisor of Elections for Madison County, Thomas (Tommy) Hardee. He addressed these concerns with the following information. Madison County's current voting machines are only two years old (purchased in 2014). New technology prompted the update, as the old equipment was between 13 and 14 years old. At that time, the county was entering a governor election year and new machines were necessary. This also gave voters two years to adjust to the new machines before the 2016 presidential election. In order to replace the old machines, the county will pay a lease over an eight year period, which will roll over after the eight years are up, allowing for modernized equipment to be purchased.
While Hardee is not concerned about the new machines crashing, on the matter of long voter lines, he stated that the electric ballots allow things to move faster, but that the voting procedures are complex. If voters do not know the procedures when going into, the voting process may take some time. For those concerned about tampering, cyber or otherwise, Hardee took the time to explain the process behind the elections office's safety procedures. The entire data transfer process is done manually, and there are no lines that run outside the office. All of the machines' data chips are locked and sealed, and all seals are numbered. This way, a seal cannot simply be replaced if removed by an unauthorized employee without the exchange being numbered. Whenever the seals are broken, the machine must then be unlocked, and each time the machine is unlocked a record is made on the digital log.
Additionally, all physical information transfers are supervised by other employees and recorded by office cameras. Hardee assures that this system is safe. In fact, because of its thorough procedures, the Madison County Supervisor of Elections Office was one of only two counties in the state of Florida to verified by ISO auditors. On the matter of auditing concerns, the old machines retaining a paper tail for auditing, but only for typical voters. The ADA functioning side of the old machines did not keep a physical copy. However, the new machines print ballot copies for both ADA and non-ADA voters. In the past, if the old machines were to jam when inserting the ballot, it would regularly fail to notify the voter if their vote was or was not successfully received. Now, on occasion when the new machines jam, they always notify the voter on the status of their vote.
Can you trust our voting machines? The answer is a resounding yes. With the new technology and certified security procedures, Hardee is confident that Madison County citizens need not be concerned about the security or reliability of our voting process. As Hardee said himself, “I love these machines.”
Take a look at Madison County's voting machines from a voter's perspective. These new machines were acquired in 2014 and will be used for the upcoming 2016 presidential election.