[nabs-l] Accessible Voting

Tue Aug 28 18:39:03 UTC 2012

Thanks Scott for that info. That is very helpful.

Brandon: Different states do voter registration differently. I would
Google "register to vote (insert your state)." And you'll probably
find some information. I know that when I moved to Seattle, I
registered to vote when I got my state ID. There are usually several
ways and places to register to vote. I know that with Washington, if I
already had a state ID, I could have done it online. I just would have
had to know my state ID number. So that might be an easy option. I
don't know what to tell you when it comes to the braille ballot
though. Arielle was the first person I had ever heard to talk about
such a ballot. I will say though that when the accessible voting
machines work, they are convenient. I know that some people have
talked about a confusing interface, but I honestly found it to be
pretty straight forward. Again though, there could be state
differences. Perhaps you could research what precinct you will vote
at, see if you can find a contact online and inquire about their
accessible voting machine.

Cindy

On 8/28/12, Brandon Keith Biggs <brandonkeithbiggs at gmail.com> wrote:
> Hello,
> I am needing to register, how do I request the Braille ballot?
> Thank you,
>
> Brandon Keith Biggs
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Arielle Silverman
> Sent: Monday, August 27, 2012 9:08 PM
> To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
> Subject: [nabs-l] Accessible Voting
>
> When I voted for the first time in 2004 (before Help America Vote Act,
> HAVA, went into effect) I was living in Arizona and I used a mail-in
> Braille ballot. I was able to complete the entire process
> independently and I marked my answers on the ballot by circling them
> with a pen. I may have had to sign something but my signature was
> never matched against anything and as far as I know, my vote was
> counted properly (though my vote never really counts in AZ, but I
> digress). Do any other states offer accessible Braille ballots? I
> think it's an awesome idea and was surprised that Colorado apparently
> does not have them.
> When I voted again in 2006, I went to the poll excited about using an
> accessible voting machine, but the machine was nonfunctional. My
> mother and I had gone to the poll together and I was comfortable
> having her fill out my ballot, so I did that to ensure my vote went
> through. In that year the voting machines were brand-new and I
> reported the problem to an NFB committee that was collecting reports
> about the successful implementation of the HAVA regulations. I have
> used the voting machines in CO with no major issues. I am shocked and
> exasperated that people are still having problems getting the talking
> machines to work even four years after HAVA went into effect. It is
> also disturbing that a poll worker would suggest who to vote for when
> filling out a ballot as a reader and it makes me worry that some poll
> workers might be altering the votes of the people they assist.
> It might be good for someone in NABS leadership or on the membership
> committee to contact someone at national to find out what is currently
> happening with accessible voting and what the major issues are. I
> agree an informational call about how to use the voting machines, and
> what our rights are as blind voters, might be helpful for NABS
> members, although this of course is not just a student issue.
> Nevertheless, young folks voting for the first time could uniquely
> benefit from this info.
> Arielle
>
> On 8/27/12, Stephanie H. DeLuca <sjhhirst at gmail.com> wrote:
>> This website is very informative.  The following link takes you to a page
>> where they have links to several laws relevant to people with
>> disabilities.
>>
>> http://www.section508.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=Laws
>>
>> In the field of observation, chance favors only the prepared mind.
>>     ~Louis Pasteur, lecture 1854
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Aug 27, 2012 at 10:48 PM, Stephanie H. DeLuca
>> <sjhhirst at gmail.com>wrote:
>>
>>> Heh, I mean Cynthia, sorry!
>>>
>>> In the field of observation, chance favors only the prepared mind.
>>>     ~Louis Pasteur, lecture 1854
>>>
>>>
>>> On Mon, Aug 27, 2012 at 10:46 PM, Stephanie H. DeLuca
>>> <sjhhirst at gmail.com>wrote:
>>>
>>>> I'm excited to see that other people support the idea of getting
>>>> involved
>>>> but sad to admit that it's a problem.
>>>>
>>>> My story is this:  In 2008, I went for early voting at one of the
>>>> designated places in Nashville.  When it was my turn, they designated a
>>>> polling machine to me.  Before I began the process, I asked about
>>>> assisted
>>>> voting.  Maybe I should have asked about accessible polling machines?
>>>>  Anyway, he just said he'd have to help me and that was the only option
>>>> I
>>>> had.  I turned him down and went through the process myself (I do have
>>>> some
>>>> vision).
>>>>
>>>> It seems that the voting issues fall into a few categories:
>>>> 1) lack of knowledge of rights/responsibilities on behalf of the voter
>>>> 2) lack of training and knowledge of polling staff
>>>> 3) lack of a functioning accessible voting machine on site
>>>> 4) difficult-to-follow tutorials/instructions for the accessible
>>>> machine
>>>>
>>>> For me, numbers 1 and 2 seem to be the biggest problems.  How do we get
>>>> the word out and how do we insure that the people at the polling places
>>>> are
>>>> trained and that there is a funcitoning machine available?
>>>>
>>>> I like the idea about having demos.  Barring that, would it be possible
>>>> to record a tutorial and post it online?  Maybe by someone who has used
>>>> it
>>>> recently?  I've heard that the tutorial provided at the polling place
>>>> is
>>>> often not straightforward or easy to follow and that a blind user could
>>>> do
>>>> a better job haha
>>>>
>>>> I think we should at the very least inform people of their rights.  I
>>>> think finding the federal law wouldn't be too hard, but some rules vary
>>>> state by state.  I'm having trouble tracking down the information for
>>>> TN,
>>>> for example.  Anyway, here is the federal law (I think).
>>>>
>>>> *Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act*
>>>>
>>>> The Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act of 1984
>>>> generally requires polling places across the United States to be
>>>> physically
>>>> accessible to people with disabilities for federal elections. Where no
>>>> accessible location is available to serve as a polling place, a
>>>> political
>>>> subdivision must provide an alternate means of casting a ballot on the
>>>> day
>>>> of the election. This law also requires states to make available
>>>> registration and voting aids for disabled and elderly voters, including
>>>> information by TTYs (also known as TDDs) or similar devices. For more
>>>> information, contact:
>>>>
>>>> U.S. Department of Justice
>>>> Civil Rights Division
>>>> 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
>>>> Voting Section - 1800 G
>>>> Washington, D.C. 20530
>>>>
>>>> (800) 253-3931 (voice/TTY)
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> *National Voter Registration Act*
>>>>
>>>> The National Voter Registration Act of 1993, also known as the "Motor
>>>> Voter Act," makes it easier for all Americans to exercise their
>>>> fundamental
>>>> right to vote. One of the basic purposes of the Act is to increase the
>>>> historically low registration rates of minorities and persons with
>>>> disabilities that have resulted from discrimination. The Motor Voter
>>>> Act
>>>> requires all offices of State-funded programs that are primarily
>>>> engaged
>>>> in
>>>> providing services to persons with disabilities to provide all program
>>>> applicants with voter registration forms, to assist them in completing
>>>> the
>>>> forms, and to transmit completed forms to the appropriate State
>>>> official.
>>>> For more information, contact:
>>>>
>>>> U.S. Department of Justice
>>>> Civil Rights Division
>>>> 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
>>>> Voting Section - 1800 G
>>>> Washington, D.C. 20530
>>>>
>>>> www.usdoj.gov/crt/voting
>>>>
>>>> (800) 253-3931 (voice/TTY)
>>>>
>>>> It seems that the NFB has a lot of lawyers.  Is it possible for us to
>>>> get
>>>> someone trained in law to help us with this one?
>>>>
>>>> Here is another good resource, the Department of Justice:
>>>> http://www.justice.gov/crt/about/drs/
>>>>
>>>> One question I have is, why aren't ALL voting machines accessible?  It
>>>> seems like this is more of a software issue.  Would it not be possible
>>>> to
>>>> write accessible software to be used on all machines?
>>>>
>>>> One other thing is that we should encourage people to file a complaint
>>>> if
>>>> they have these aforementioned problems this year and in the future.
>>>> We
>>>> (the NFB) should provide information on that, as well.
>>>>
>>>> While I think this is a concern for the whole NFB on a national level,
>>>> I
>>>> think as students, we are in a good spot to target new voters and
>>>> college
>>>> students who have not voted before.  Maybe we could draft a brochure
>>>> about
>>>> rights and responsibilities and general information (maybe even for
>>>> people
>>>> who aren't blind but are disabled?) and make sure it gets distributed
>>>> at
>>>> voter registration drives going on campus.
>>>>
>>>> Cindy also makes a good point about getting to the voting place.  Also,
>>>> this will become even more difficult in many states that require valid
>>>> state IDs (like TN, AL, AR, etc.).  How should we deal with this?
>>>>
>>>> In the field of observation, chance favors only the prepared mind.
>>>>     ~Louis Pasteur, lecture 1854
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Mon, Aug 27, 2012 at 5:58 PM, Cynthia Bennett
>>>> <clb5590 at gmail.com>wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Stephanie:
>>>>>
>>>>> That is a great idea. I had a similar experience as Josh as I voted in
>>>>> my first election. They were the 2008 primaries, and I was very
>>>>> excited. When the machine did not work, I asked a poll worker to
>>>>> assist me. They filled in the ballot as I wished, but the worker did
>>>>> make some comments about their preference on a politician. This
>>>>> occured when I said that I did not want to vote for a particular
>>>>> office, because I was unfamiliar with any of the candidates. I said
>>>>> something like, "I don't want to fill in anything for this," and the
>>>>> worker responded with "Oh, I heard that ___ is pretty good. Do you
>>>>> want me to fill in his/her name?" I chose to still not vote for that
>>>>> particular office. This practice is illegal, and I chose not to say
>>>>> anything about it. But I do think that an informational call about
>>>>> rights and accessible voting machines would be awesome. Unfortunately,
>>>>> each state is a little different, but information about federal
>>>>> mandates on the presence of accessible voting machines/rights and some
>>>>> typical patterns in accessible voting in states would be great. For
>>>>> example, Washington conducts mail ballots. There are a few precincts
>>>>> around town, but if you work in a neighborhood in which it takes a
>>>>> while to get to a precinct, you are at a disadvantage as a blind
>>>>> person. So, you can either take off work and use public transportation
>>>>> to navigate to one of the few and very busy precincts and wait in a
>>>>> 3-hour line, or you can find a reader and disclose your voting
>>>>> preferences. The other animal in this issue is that if you choose to
>>>>> get a reader to fill out your signature does not match the signature
>>>>> on your state ID which is kept on file, then your ballot can be deemed
>>>>> as false and not counted. As a blind person, I do the best I can with
>>>>> my signature, but I do think that even the most ambitious blind people
>>>>> are at a disadvantage when having to match a signature, and our
>>>>> ballots could not be counted, and we may not hear about it, or we
>>>>> would learn of it after elections are closed. If we are afraid that
>>>>> our signature may not match that of our state ID, then we can have 2
>>>>> witnesses sign. But that is 2 more people that have to see my ballot.
>>>>> I do not think that this practice is common within the states, and I
>>>>> would definitely not like my experience to dominate the nature of the
>>>>> call, but I wanted to relay it to show that I think this is a very
>>>>> good idea. I would personally like some professional/legal
>>>>> advice/legal suggestions on how this can be changed.
>>>>>
>>>>> So, if you have any suggestions on people to conduct this call, or
>>>>> resources for where this information can be found, please share it. If
>>>>> not, the membership committee will certainly take the initiative to
>>>>> conduct an informative call if we do in fact decide to pursue this
>>>>> topic. But I wanted to make sure that since you made the suggestion,
>>>>> you are welcome to provide suggestions on people to conduct the call.
>>>>>
>>>>> I know that someone comes to each NC state convention with an
>>>>> accessible voting machine to show in the exhibit hall. During this
>>>>> time, people can vote in a fake election and orient themselves to the
>>>>> machine. I am not sure if NC is still doing this since it has been a
>>>>> few years since the accessible machines were introduced, but I think
>>>>> there is still a need for outreach about accessible voting.
>>>>>
>>>>> Keep the good membership call suggestions coming!
>>>>> Cindy
>>>>>
>>>>> On 8/27/12, Joshua Lester <JLester8462 at pccuaedu.onmicrosoft.com>
>>>>> wrote:
>>>>> > Hi, Stephanie!
>>>>> > That's a great idea!
>>>>> > I went to my voting site, earlier this year, and the machine didn't
>>>>> work.
>>>>> > My Disability Rights person that works for the governor, here said
>>>>> he'd come
>>>>> > down, to show them how to work it, but he never showed up!
>>>>> > Thanks, Joshua
>>>>> > ________________________________________
>>>>> > From: nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org [nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] on
>>>>> > behalf
>>>>> of
>>>>> > Stephanie DeLuca [sjhhirst at gmail.com]
>>>>> > Sent: Monday, August 27, 2012 2:53 PM
>>>>> > To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
>>>>> > Subject: Re: [nabs-l] NABS Membership Call Survey
>>>>> >
>>>>> > I think a discussion on voting as people with disabilities would be
>>>>> good.
>>>>> > Since a lot of people are on college campuses, it'd be a good
>>>>> opportunity to
>>>>> > get involved with informing people with disabilities (mainly VI)
>>>>> > about
>>>>> > rights and responsibilities for voting.  I've been to/worked at
>>>>> > several
>>>>> > voter registration drives, and I have NEVER seen information on
>>>>> > voting
>>>>> if
>>>>> > you have a disability.
>>>>> >
>>>>> > On Aug 27, 2012, at 2:32 PM, Cody Bair <codyjbair at yahoo.com> wrote:
>>>>> >
>>>>> >> Hi All,
>>>>> >> As you are probably already aware, NABS conducts monthly membership
>>>>> calls.
>>>>> >> In order to get this school year started we are currently seeking
>>>>> >> your
>>>>> >> input on what topics you would like to see us cover this year.
>>>>> >> Please
>>>>> >> either reply directly to this thread with your suggestions or mail
>>>>> them
>>>>> >> directly to
>>>>> >> Nabs.membership at gmail.com
>>>>> >> Sincerely,
>>>>> >> The NABS membership Committee
>>>>> >>
>>>>> >>
>>>>> >> _______________________________________________
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>>>>> >
>>>>> >
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>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> --
>>>>> Cynthia Bennett
>>>>> B.A. Psychology, UNC Wilmington
>>>>>
>>>>> clb5590 at gmail.com
>>>>> 828.989.5383
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
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>>>>
>>>>
>>>
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-- 
Cynthia Bennett
B.A. Psychology, UNC Wilmington

clb5590 at gmail.com
828.989.5383