[nabs-l] voting

[Elizabeth Mohnke]

Hello Sophie,

I think it is great that you are eager to vote in your first election. While
the Help America Vote Act requires states to have at least one machine that
a blind person can use at every polling place, it does not specifically
state what kind of voting machine should be used. Therefore, each state does
things a little differently. To find out which voting method is used in your
state, you could try searching for this information on your states Secretary
of State webpage, calling your local clerk's office, or asking other NFB
members in your state or local chapter.

I voted absentee once when I was about to move just before an election took
place. The absentee ballot was not in Braille, so I had to have someone
sighted help me fill it out. However, this was quite some time ago, and
things may have changed since then. I always do my best to vote in person
because I think this helps to show others that people actually want to use
the accessible voting machines. I think it also helps to show others that I
want to participate in the voting process as a blind person.

However, none of the generalizations Sean stated in his post have applied to
me. I actually found it easier to vote using the accessible voting machines
when I lived out in the country with my parents than I have while living on
my own in the city. The last time I voted, the accessible voting machine was
not working. They had already called the repair person once to come out and
fix it, but when it stopped working again, this person was not available to
take another look at it to get it back up and working again. Since Michigan
still uses a paper ballot, I had to have someone help me fill out the
ballot. When you request someone at the polling place to help you fill out
your ballot, they will make two people do this to ensure your ballot is
being cast in the way that you want it to be cast. 

I felt really bad about doing this as it seemed as though the voting place
was somewhat busy at the time. And I felt even more bad about this when my
ballot was spoiled when the poll worker marked the ballot incorrectly near
the end of the ballot. When I called the NFB hotline number when I got home,
it seemed as though there was really not much they could do about my
situation based on the type of accessible voting machine my state currently
uses.

Anyway, I hope some of this helps you. But I think the most important thing
for you to do in order to vote is to make sure that you register to vote in
time so that you can actually vote in the election. I am not sure if this is
standard for all states or not, so perhaps someone else may be able to help
you find this information if you need it.

Warm regards,
Elizabeth












-----Original Message-----
From: nabs-l [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Sophie Trist
via nabs-l
Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2014 12:52 PM
To: nabs
Subject: [nabs-l] voting

NABS friends,

I'm turning eighteen this fall, just in time to vote in my 
state's senatorial elections. And I was wondering, how do blind 
people vote? D we enter a voting booth with a friend or pole 
worker and just tell them what buttons to push? I might be making 
this up, but I might have heard something once about how blind 
people can get absentee ballots sent to them in braille. Thanks 
in advance for your answers!

Yours sincerely,
Sophie

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