California: Secretary of State rejects Vote-PAD because of problems for blind voters
The Eureka Reporter reports: When it comes to providing access to disabled voters by the November election, Humboldt County is firmly wedged between a rock and, well, a rock, county Registrar of Voters Carolyn Crnich observed Tuesday — and the only way out is a costly one.
On Friday, California Secretary of State Bruce McPherson made the long-awaited announcement on the certification of the low-tech Vote-PAD voting device: no deal.
“(T)he current version of Vote-PAD does not accurately or reliably record and verify votes,” he stated in a letter explaining his decision. “(A)fter conducting two days of extensive testing of the system’s accuracy, reliability and accessibility, ...it was very clear that some voters who are blind would be disenfranchised if this system were approved for use in California.”
The Vote-PAD devices, essentially transparent sleeves with various assistive elements, were the county’s first choice for meeting the federal mandates of the Help America Vote Act, a 2002 law that, among other things, required counties to improve disabled voters’ access by January of this year. -- The Eureka Reporter - Article