The Good Vote: Accessible Polling System For All

For many Americans, the right to vote is the ideology upon which this country was built, an icon of democracy. As seen by the struggles of women and African Americans, this inherent American right is not taken lightly. However, once again, the voting barrier is being addressed, but not by women or African Americans but by American individuals with disabilities.

A report released October 15, 2001 from the U.S General Accounting Office (GAO) found that 57 percent of voting jurisdictions experienced problems when conducting the 2000 federal elections. Furthermore, over 84% of the nation's polling places had at least one or more physical barriers preventing the ability to vote. The problems included widespread inaccessibility for individuals in wheelchairs and individuals with vision and hearing impairments. Since the beginning of 2001, the GAO has been investigating these barriers.

According to Jim Dickson of the Disability Vote Project for the American Association of People with Disabilities, "Over one half of all polling places in America are fully accessible to people in wheelchairs. And for the 10 million blind and low vision Americans, exercising the right to vote does not currently include casting an independent secret ballot." Without accessible voting polling places and voting machines, the right to vote for millions of Americans who are disabled will remain just that -----an ideological right, not a tangible reality.

At the end of the 2001 session, Senator Tom Daschle declared that a bi-partisan compromise had been reached on the Election Reform bill that, in part, both mandates and gives a deadline for physical access and accessible voting machines. Congress is currently debating this bill.

Maryland though, is currently addressing just this problem, and there is good news for Maryland voters with disabilities. The state legislature has approved phase one in Maryland's steps to becoming the first state to have a fully electronic election system. In fact, the legislature has granted the gubernatorial task force $2 million for the first phase. "The entire system will be hooked into the new voting machines and the electronic ones we already own, making the process much better and more efficient" said Linda Lamone, the administrator for Maryland's Election Laws Board in the article "Maryland connects a final piece to the electronic voting puzzle," by Jason Miller.

Phase 1 of the project will include replacing four types of voting machines- one punch card and three lever types, from Montgomery, Prince George's, Alleghany, and Dorchester counties. As more money is appropriated in the coming years, older optical scan machines that make up 79 percent of the voting machines used in Maryland's 24 voting jurisdictions will be replaced with the new electronic voting machine.

The new voting machines will be connected to an election management system that was written by state employees. The system will contain a database for candidates filing for office, a ballot preparation feature, a vote tabulator, and a results reporter. Vote results will then be sent electronically to the tabulator and reporter. Though only four counties may be using this electronic election system by the September 2002 primaries, Maryland is working diligently towards having one universal voting system for all the jurisdictions in the not-too-distant future.

Editor's Note:
To read Jason Miller's article "Maryland connects a final piece to the electronic voting puzzle," please visit the website www.gcn.com/state/7_10a/news/16750-1.html.
To learn about the American Association of People with Disabilities' (AAPD) mission in advancing the political and economic power of individuals with disabilities, visit the AAPD website at www.aapd-dc.org
To view the complete Polling Place Access Guide, it can be downloaded from:
www.aapd-dc.org/dvpmain/pollaccess/pollaccess.html

To register to vote online, please visit the website www.onlinedemocracy.com/vote/index.cfm
To download the Voter Registration Application, visit the website www.fec.gov/votregis/vr.htm