Michigan’s counties, cities and townships are gradually replacing voting systems statewide. In Barry County, the new voting equipment was delivered last week.

Election workers will be trained on election day procedures by County Clerk Pam Palmer in four two-hour sessions, held June 19-22. She is expecting about 275 people total with 25 to 50 in each class.  Township clerks and their deputies will receive training on the new system at Thornapple Township, also in June,

 

Barry County will use the new system for the first time on a limited basis in the May 8 election with a Gull Lake Community School bond proposal in which voters in three Barry County precincts are eligible to vote. “That’s perfect. It will shine a light on one township; it’s a good test,” Palmer said.

The first widespread use comes in the Aug. 7 primary election.

 

Voters likely won’t notice much difference; they will still follow the same procedures with a paper ballot, she said. The machine’s readout will let the voter know that they have voted successfully or if an error is detected, will ask them if they want to revote.

 

A significant change is that election results from townships will come to the county clerk through a Virtual Private Network, The figures sent electronically will do away with midnight trips to the county by workers from precincts bringing cards with the totals because they don’t have modem capabilities.

 

“That will make it easier for election workers. Absentee ballots will continue to be done during the day and by 8:30 p.m., we should have the totals,” Palmer said. //

Michigan Sales Manager Tim Allshouse and Norma Townsend, election support specialist, are with Governmental Business Systems, which works under Dominion Voting Systems, Inc.

 

Allshouse, Townsend and Palmer spent two days last week making sure new election equipment works perfectly, testing ballot boxes, scanners, touch screens and printers. Palmer said it was all parts of the system were opened, tested and repacked. The equipment was then turned over to the townships.

 

Allshouse said the new, more efficient, more reliable system is not connected to the Internet, so can’t be hacked, is 100 percent paid by the federal government through the Help America Vote Act and is American with Disabilities Act compliant. Also the touch screen is much more user friendly, he said.

 

The Bureau of Elections has a 10 year contract with Dominion. GBS services 66 counties in Michigan and also works in Illinois and Indiana, Allshouse said.

 

County clerks enter into contracts with one of three state-approved vendors; Dominion Voting Systems, Inc., Election Systems and Software, and Hart Intercivic, Inc.

“One reason I went with Dominion was it is locally based. Hart doesn’t have an office in Michigan,” Palmer said.

 

Photo:Tim Allshouse, Michigan sales manager for Governmental Business Systems, checks a tabulator’s  accuracy by  ‘voting’ with several sample ballots.