[nFBMI-Talk] New voting machines a challenge for Michigan's blind voters Paul Egan

Mon Aug 6 21:06:16 UTC 2018

Hello Mark,

Thank you for posting this article to the email list. It is my understanding that the National Federation of the Blind of Michigan has been focusing on the inaccessibility of the Dominion Voting Systems. However, I am curious if the National Federation of the Blind is doing anything in regards to the inaccessibility of the Hart voting systems. 

I noticed that my county uses this system when I was looking over a sample ballot the other day. I am rather concerned how well the Hart voting system will work in the Democratic primary considering that two of the three nominees for Governor are minorities who do not have common names that may not be easily understood in the voice recording that is used for this voting system. I remember having difficulty understanding all of the recorded names when using this voting system during the mock election.

Also, I was going to bring this up before it was mentioned in this article, but I think it would be a good idea for the National Federation of the Blind of Michigan to collaborate with the Brain Injury Association of Michigan in regards to accessible voting equipment. I find it rather interesting to see this article mention people with brain injuries when there does not appear to be any official statement from the Brain Injury Association of Michigan regarding any endorsements of any of the new voting systems.

The Brain Injury Association of Michigan formed the Michigan Disability Support Alliance last year to help advocate to protect Medicaid in Michigan. The alliance has now grown to eleven organizations, and is planning to roll out an initiative to educate and encourage those living with disabilities to vote in the upcoming primary and general elections. Perhaps becoming a member of this alliance would help the National Federation of the Blind of Michigan fight for accessible voting equipment in Michigan. 

The phone number for the Brain Injury Association of Michigan is (810) 229-5880. Perhaps we could call and invite them to the upcoming state affiliate board meeting. I remember seeing a statistic stating that either seventy or eighty percent of people who experience brain injuries experience a loss of vision as a result of their brain injury. Therefore, I believe a partnership between the National Federation of the Blind of Michigan and the Brain Injury Association of Michigan could bennet both organizations.

Warm regards,
Elizabeth

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From: NFBMI-Talk [mailto:nfbmi-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Mark Eagle via NFBMI-Talk
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Cc: Mark Eagle <markaeagle at yahoo.com>
Subject: [nFBMI-Talk] New voting machines a challenge for Michigan's blind voters Paul Egan

New voting machines a challenge for Michigan's blind voters Paul Egan , Detroit Free Press New voting equipment purchased by many Michigan counties, includingWayne, Oakland and Ingham, is difficult for blind people to use without help, advocates say. Wochit Fred Wurtzel, who is blind, attempts to use new votingequipment in Lansing Township. (Photo: Paul Egan/Detroit Free Press) Buy Photo LANSING TWP. ' When millions of Michigan residents go to the polls in Tuesday'sprimary election, many will'be  be using new voting equipment for the first time. Most probably won't notice much'difference. But much of the new equipment' needed to upgrade aging voting machines around the state and paid for with $40 million in federal and state money ' is expected to present challengesfor blind voters. It's estimated about 221,000 Michigan residents have a visual disability, based on a 2015 survey. Until 2002, when the federal Help AmericaVote Act became law, most blind people had to tell their voting choices to a sighted person and trust that person to accurately mark their ballot for them.For more than a decade, blind Michigan voters such as Fred Wurtzel have used an'AutoMark Voter Assist Terminal, which had a touch screen and a keypad markedwith Braille ' among other features ' to help blind voters cast secret ballots without having to ask for help. New Dominion Voting Systems equipment 'now in use in most Michigan counties, including Wayne and Ingham, but not'Oakland or Macomb' also has voter assist terminals. But the keypads aren't markedwith Braille and some of the instructions blind voters receive over headphones reference buttons by what color they are, not where on the handset theyare located. That's not helpful to someone who can't see. Wurtzel, who is second vice president of the National Federation of the Blind in Michigan, saidit's also not easy to figure out how to turn on a privacy screen that would keep others from seeing his'ballot while he fills it out. And'he found manyof the verbal instructions ' received through a headset ' difficult to hear or otherwise confusing. Casting a secret ballot "is a fundamental right thatwe all expect," said Wurtzel.' Most everybody takes it for granted. When he first tried the new Dominion voting equipment, Wurtzel felt like he'd "beenthrown back into second-class citizenship," he said. More: New voting machines coming to Michigan: Here's how they're different More: Michigan Primary2018: Voter guide for Macomb, Wayne, Oakland counties He has since been able to experiment further with the new voter assist terminal, through the cooperationof Lansing Township Clerk Susan Aten. Wurtzel now believes he will be able to use the equipment to cast a secret ballot without assistance. For blind peopleencountering the new equipment for the first time, "it's going to be a big challenge," Wurtzel said. Still, "I want to encourage everyone to do it, becauseunless we exercise our right to vote, we're not going to be taken seriously. Michigan counties got to choose between three different types of new votingequipment ' Dominion, Election Systems & Software (ES&S), or Hart InterCivic. Wurtzel said he and about 100 other blind people got to try voter assistterminals from all three companies during a 2016 mock election the state staged in advance of the procurement process. He said the blind testers were unanimousin telling the state they preferred the ES&S equipment, which was selected by Macomb and fewer than a dozen other Michigan counties. The ES&S terminalswere closest to the AutoMark system blind people were used to, he said. The Hart InterCivic equipment ' chosen by Oakland and about 10 other counties 'was even harder to use than the Dominion equipment, Wurtzel said. Dominion and Hart InterCivic did not respond to emails seeking comment. Fred Woodhams,a spokesman for the Michigan Secretary of State's Office, said the devices from all three manufacturers are federally certified and compliant with theAmericans With Disabilities Act. Some communities began using the new equipment in 2017, he said. "We have heard from some individuals with visual impairmentwho expressed concerns about the new devices that assist voters with disabilities," Woodhams said. "Some of the people said they preferred the ES&S systemover the devices from the two other vendors, or that they liked the old ES&S Automark device that was used statewide before the election equipment replacement.Still, many people with other types of disabilities "give the new devices high marks," and prefer them to the equipment used in Michigan previously, hesaid. He cited quadriplegia and'severe brain injuries as examples of other disabilities that could be better served by the new equipment. State officials"greatly appreciate their feedback and will take their concerns into account as we work with the vendors to improve the devices," Woodhams said. InghamCounty Clerk Barb Byrum said it's "beyond concerning" that blind voters have expressed valid concerns about the new equipment and she has been meetingwith representatives of the blind community in recent months to make changes ' some of which will require federal and state approval. Though the ES&S equipmentscored better than Dominion with respect to blind voters, Byrum said she'd had problems with the level of support ES&S provided for the former equipmentand felt she needed to go with a different vendor. Oakland County Clerk Lisa Brown said Thursday she was not aware the Hart equipment had been ranked lastof the three technologies by blind testers. Most Oakland communities used the new equipment in 2017 elections and "I have not had any complaints," shesaid. "I hope we don't have any problems," Brown said. "I don't want anyone to feel uncomfortable voting. Wurtzel said that even after getting throughthe voting process with the Dominion equipment,'he is concerned the ballot he will turn in looks conspicuously different from those that sighted peoplewill mark. Though it would mostly only become an issue in the event of a recount where ballots are checked by hand, "this is not a secret ballot'becausemy ballot looks different from everyone else's," he said. In Lansing Township, Aten said the new equipment is less than ideal for blind voters who wantto vote in secret and without assistance' especially during an inevitable learning curve ' but she and her staff will do what they can to try to make thechange as seamless as possible. Aten said she's instructing her election workers ' who aren't blind ' to use the voter assist terminals to vote so therewill be more ballots that look similar to the one Wurtzel uses. Contact Paul Egan: 517-372-8660 or pegan at freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @paulegan4. Detroit Free Press, August 5 2018 _______________________________________________
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