Voting Technology

(Note: This page was created for the Fall 2004 California General Election)

Attention California Voters:

You Have the Right to Request a Paper Ballot

Thirty percent of California voters live in counties that will use paperless, electronic voting machines in polling places on Election Day.

New voting security rules allow voters who are concerned about e-voting security to cast a paper ballot at the polls. The California Voter Foundation (CVF) is urging voters to exercise their right to cast their ballot on paper, because the electronic voting machines produce results that cannot be publicly verified.

The ten counties where e-voting machines will be used are:

Alameda
Merced
Napa
Orange
Plumas
Riverside
San Bernardino
Santa Clara
Shasta
Tehama

See CVF's county-by-county map of California voting equipment.

A video informing voters of their right to cast a paper ballot is online at www.paperorplastic2004.org

Counties are not implementing uniform procedures to meet the so-called “paper or plastic” requirement. Depending on where the paper ballots are cast, voters exercising this choice may have to:

• Ask for a paper ballot up front;

• Wait to vote if there are no open ballot stations; and/or

• Fill out an extra form.

California’s voting technology is in a state of transition. This year, the California Legislature unanimously approved, and the Governor signed a new law requiring a voter verified paper record of every electronic ballot cast; however, this law does not take effect until the 2006 Primary election.

In the meantime, the Secretary of State has implemented new voting security rules that, among other things, require counties that use electronic voting systems to give every voter the option of voting a paper ballot if he or she wishes.

The California Voter Foundation has gathered information from the counties about how this rule will be implemented:

ALAMEDA: Voters will not be informed of their right to cast a paper ballot. Provisional ballots will be used, and paper ballot voters will be required to fill out a provisional ballot envelope.

MERCED: Voters will not be informed of their right to cast a paper ballot. Provisional ballots will be used, and paper ballot voters will be required to fill out a provisional ballot envelope.

NAPA: Voters will not be informed of their right to cast a paper ballot. Voters may have to wait for a polling station to cast their paper ballot. Regular paper ballots or provisional ballots may be used depending upon supplies in each polling place. In either case, paper ballots will be placed inside provisional ballot envelopes and voters will be instructed to write their names on the outside of the envelope; pollworkers will write “on roll” on the envelope to indicate that the voter is on the voter roll.

ORANGE: Voters will not be informed of their right to cast a paper ballot. Regular paper ballots will be used; voters exercising this option will not be required to fill out a provisional ballot envelope.

PLUMAS: Each polling place will feature a “voting rights” poster that includes the right to cast a paper ballot. Provisional ballots will be used, but voters will not have to fill out a provisional ballot envelope.

RIVERSIDE: Voters will not be informed of their right to cast a paper ballot. Voters may have to wait for a voting station where they can mark their paper ballot. Regular paper ballots will be used; voters exercising this option will not be required to fill out a provisional ballot envelope.

SAN BERNARDINO: Voters will not be informed of their right to cast a paper ballot. Provisional ballots will be used, and paper ballot voters will be required to fill out a provisional ballot envelope.

SANTA CLARA: Voters will not be informed of their right to cast a paper ballot. According to county officials, the two voting options will be prominently displayed within each polling place. Regular paper ballots will be used; voters exercising this option will not be required to fill out a provisional ballot envelope. The county plans to keep track of voters’ preferences by making notations in the poll book.

SHASTA: Voters will not be informed of their right to cast a paper ballot. Provisional ballots will be used, and paper ballot voters will be required to fill out a provisional ballot envelope. The county has also added an additional code to the provisional ballots used for this purpose so they can be differentiated from other provisional ballots.

TEHAMA: Each polling place will feature a poster notifying voters of their right to cast a paper ballot. Provisional ballots will be used, but voters will not be required to fill out a provisional ballot envelope.

 

 

 

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This page was first published on October 29, 2004 | Last updated on November 4, 2006
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