Primaries in MS today: Software problems plague voting precincts

[Maddy McCall]

Software problems plague voting precincts

By Richard Lake
[email protected]


Software problems have been blamed for slow moving lines at two voting precincts off Spillway Road in Rankin County.

However, the problems are more widespread, said Harry Carr, precinct manager at precinct 218.

Today, registered voters began going to the polls at 7 a.m. to cast ballots in the primary election.

“People are very patient and we’re doing our best with them. We’ll make it. It may just take longer,” said Bill Young, an election worker at precinct 219.

Voters said the delay wasn’t a big problem.

“Once you got in there it went pretty quickly,” said Hardy Mangum, 44, who was voting at precinct 219.

Before 7:30 a.m., one out of six machines were working at precinct 218; three out of seven machines were working at precinct 219. At least 15-20 people were waiting in each line.

The polls close at 7 p.m.

http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070807/NEWS/70807008
*******************************************

The last time I voted on one of these machines, it was a one-issue referendum. The chancery clerk's wife was at the precinct, literally showing people how to use the touch screen by standing there with them, telling them where to touch. When she attempted to do so with me, I told her, "No thank you." She got huffy with me, and I told her, "Any form of voting that requires your interference isn't a safe form of voting. I hate these machines...they are too easily corrupted." She said, "No they aren't." And I told her, "You need to do some reading. You're very behind on the controversy that these machines are causing. Cities everywhere are going back to paper ballots."

I love to go to the poll on election day. I hate knowing that I'll see stuff that's just wrong.

[iconoclastic cat]

1. Sheesh, what a brilliant retort by her. Very Monty Python. nt

[thunder rising]

2. I'll just stand here beside you and make sure you press the right buttons

She's not behind on the controversy .... she IS the controversy.

[Maddy McCall]

3. And I'm young and educated enough to stand up for myself.

I had no problem telling her to back off. But there were elderly people voting (this precinct is mostly populated by elderly folks) that just let her push push push.

The thing that bothers me is that the workers at this precinct didn't step in, because, after all, she's the chancery clerk's wife, and who are they going to tattle to?

grrrr

[Maddy McCall]

4. UPDATE: It's getting WORSE: Votters find missing ballots, software probs at polls

More than two dozen Hinds County precincts were without Republican ballots this morning when the polls opened at 7 a.m.

Some precincts were short on Republican workers, and one had none at all.

Software problems at some Rankin County precincts caused lines to move slowly, and paper ballots had to be used elsewhere in the county.

Officials in both counties said they expected the problems to be fixed soon. Madison County officials did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

Hinds County Elections Commissioner Connie Cochran said 31 duffel bags containing Republican supplies for 31 precincts were not picked up Monday night.

That means Republicans in those precincts could not vote when the polls opened.

Pete Perry, chairman of the Hinds County Republican Executive Committee, said many were delivered early this morning. There were 19 remaining to be delivered at 8:30.

By 9:30, he said all but two were being delivered. Those would be taken care of soon, he said.

Most, he said, were in precincts with few Republican voters.

“We’re getting them out there,” he said between frantic cell phone calls at the county elections commission headquarters this morning. “But these are the precincts where no Republicans vote anyway.”

In addition, he said no Republican workers showed up this morning when the polls opened in Precinct 79, which is on Ridgewood Road in north Jackson.

The party quickly got two workers there, and two more were planned to be on hand soon, Perry said.
“We’re sorry it was a problem this morning,” he said.

Cochran said no other problems had been reported in Hinds County.

In Rankin County, software problems were blamed for slow moving lines in at least two precincts.
Only one of six machines was working when the polls opened in Precinct 218, a fire station on Spillway Road.

Three of seven machines were working down the street at Precinct 219.

snip/

Precinct 218 manager Harry Carr said elections workers were up very late Monday night trying to take care of the problems.

They partially succeeded.

Election Commission Chairman Harold Crain said those were the only two precincts he’d heard about with those problems.

Two other precincts in his district — 212 and 220 — had to switch to paper ballots because of problems with the electronic ballots.

snip/

However, the problems are more widespread, said Harry Carr, precinct manager at precinct 218.

More: http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070807/NEWS/70807008

[Kurovski]

5. K&R#5

Dump the machines now.

[babylonsister]

6. Groundhogs Day! nt

[Maddy McCall]

7. ANOTHER UPDATE. This will make you laugh.

In the precinct where I just voted, the Democratic line was humming along, no problems with the evil Diebold machine assigned to our line.

But the Republican machine was having MAJOR glitches. The line for Republicans was backed up, while the Democrats were sailing through on our machine. The Republican who was voting at the machine beside me was cursing because, he said, the machine cancelled his vote three times. I said, "Maybe I was too hasty to condemn these Diebold machines, after all." He scowled at me. :D