Suit claims Mecklenburg voting machines could leave voters vulnerable to COVID-19
North Carolina’s NAACP has filed suit against election boards in Mecklenburg County and elsewhere, charging in part that new, touch screen voting machines risk exposing voters to COVID-19.
The suit also says the ExpressVotemachines are “insecure, unreliable, and unverifiable” and threaten “the integrity of North Carolina’s elections.”
The N.C. State Board of Elections, which was also sued, referred questions to the state Justice Department. Laura Brewer, a spokeswoman for Attorney General Josh Stein, said the department is reviewing the filing.
Mecklenburg and several other counties adopted the machines in response to a 2013 state law requiring paper ballots in an effort to maintain elections security and stop potential hacking.
The machines are similar to those used in the county since 2006. But after using a touch screen to make their choices, voters pull out a paper copy of their ballot and give it to a poll worker who inserts it into a tabulator. County and state officials have said the machines are secure.
The suit alleges that the machines give voters a printed copy of their selections. But it includes a barcode of the selections that the suit says “may not necessarily match the human readable text.”
The NAACP also alleges that the machines are susceptible to sabotage or hacking.
Katina Granger, a spokeswoman for Election Systems & Software, which makes the machine, said the claims are false.
“This equipment has been used successfully in North Carolina and in thousands of elections across the nation, is certified by the federal Election Assistance commission as well as the State, and elections using this equipment are regularly audited to ensure accuracy and security,” she said in an email. “ES&S stands by the ExpressVote 100%.”
The lawsuit also points to what it says is the particular risk the machines pose during the current health crisis.
“Using the ExpressVote is particularly perilous during the COVID-19 pandemic,” it says. “COVID-19 can be spread to many North Carolinians through contact with the touchscreen computer or other parts of the ExpressVote … using the (machine) will exacerbate the public health crisis and cause longer lines where more voters will be exposed to one another.”
Mecklenburg Elections Director Michael Dickerson said his office is working with the state to ensure that voting is safe.
“There are ways to clean the equipment and, if you are using a disposable stylus, you can eliminate the human touch of the panels,” he said. “Also, it is not only the voting panels but the check-in stations, poll book tables, entry and exit doors are all concerns that we will have to deal with. …
“Of course our goal is always to make the voting process safe and secure for the voters.”
This story was originally published April 16, 2020 at 4:17 PM.
