By Mark Scott
Buffalo, NY – The state Board of Elections Thursday approved new voting machines for use by disabled voters in this Fall's election.
The Elections Board's action is a crucial step in a court-ordered timetable to finally comply with the Help America Vote Act, established to improve the accuracy of voting after the long contested 2000 presidential election.
One of the machines selected is an optical scanner that uses paper ballots voters fill in with a pen, much like standardized tests in schools. The two other machines approved yesterday are "auto markers" that create paper ballots complete with a record of voters' choices. The next step is for each county to select which machine they'll use.
The state is now on track to provide at least one machine accessible for disabled voters in each polling place this Fall. The state board still needs to decide how to replace the rest of the old lever-action voting machines. New machines for all voters must be in place for the 2009 elections.
After years of delay, a top official of the League of Women Voters says she's pleased New York is finally on the road to a secure and accessible voting system.