Officials Polish Statewide Voting System

Officials have worked to prepare the state for today since last year's vote, said Gary Bartlett, executive director of the N.C. State Board of Elections.

Bartlett said most problems last year were routine, except those in Robeson County. The county was unprepared and did not test voting equipment soon enough, forcing votes to be hand-counted.

He said that this year the SBOE sent personnel to ensure everything is ready.

Voting processes came under scrutiny after the 2000 presidential election, which involved numerous mishaps and miscounted votes, most notably in Florida.

North Carolina ranked fifth in the nation in votes not counted during the 2000 election, according to a 2001 study designed to prevent a recurrence of the previous election.

The study was a joint effort from the California Technical Institute and Massachusetts Institute of Technology Voting Technology Project.

The report stated that 3.3 percent of votes in North Carolina were not counted. In Florida, 2.9 percent of votes were missed. The study measured the residual vote -- the difference in votes cast and votes counted, said Cal Tech political science Professor Mike Alvarez, who headed his university's part of the study.

But Bartlett said the study's findings are irrational. "There is no such thing as votes not counted," he said. He added that errors might be attributed to voters making mistakes on the ballot.

The electoral process is also on the federal agenda.

President Bush signed last Tuesday the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to revamp elections by giving states $3.9 billion to replace outdated voting machines and improve voter education and poll-worker training.

The bill will be in place by the 2004 presidential election.

Bartlett said that he thinks the legislation is long overdue and that North Carolina will benefit from the assistance. He said estimates show that if the state does everything the legislation suggests, elections will cost $6.5 million a year.

But he added he does not think a one-time appropriation is sufficient. Bartlett said the states need continuous funding to operate efficiently.

Local election officials also say they are confident in this year's voting process.

The state is well-prepared, said Johnnie McLean, SBOE deputy director of administration. She said North Carolina has trained officials and has performed test-runs on machines. "There are always a few glitches, (but you) try to minimize problems and keep them from affecting the outcome and integrity of the election."

Orange County has conducted test runs of machines and anticipates everything going smoothly after a relatively problem-free 2000, said Carolyn Thomas, director of the Orange County Board of Elections.

Kimberly Welborn, director of the Mecklenburg County Board of Elections, said the area is busy with preparations. She also praised the new federal legislation because it will allow the county to fully modernize its voting process. "We have punch cards, so we're excited that we will get money for upgraded equipment."

The State & National Editor can be reached at stntdesk@unc.edu.