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Available in Adobe Acrobat .pdf format - download the Adobe Acrobat Reader. Athens Banner Herald It's time to bring Georgia's elections into
the 21st century
Macon Telegraph Removing voting booth hurdles Tuesday's elections in Georgia offered a glimpse of the high-tech future of democracy. With the touch-screen technology debuted Tuesday in some parts of the state, similar to that used at Kroger's automated checkout lines, votes were recorded instantly. The added bonus of eliminating errors such as voting twice in the same race should help banish phrases like 'voter intent' and 'hanging chad' from our vocabulary for good. The test run in 13 Georgia cities apparently went off without a hitch. Secretary of State Cathy Cox deserves credit for leading the way through this advance in democracy. As our national leaders squabbled about how to solve the problems that led to last year's debacle in Florida, Cox developed a plan to have touch-screen voting in all of Georgia's counties by the 2004 elections, with the cost being covered through the issuing of state-backed bonds. Though the nation's attention was drawn to our neighbor to the south in 2000, the problems with voting were actually more severe in Georgia. Thirty-five percent of ballots cast registered no vote for president, more than the gap in Florida. In the midstate last Tuesday, the perils of paper balloting were apparent in the delays experienced in Houston County. While the next leader of the free world was never in doubt that night, it was a tense time for the two candidates battling to succeed Pam Bohannon in the Legislature and the thousands of parents waiting to find out if the county's schools would be getting a much-needed boost in funding from a 1-cent sales tax. Glitches such as these should be eliminated in 2004, and Georgians will be able to leave their polling places confident that they voted for the candidate or ballot issue of their choice. Our country has a sometimes shameful history of erecting hurdles at the voting booth, so any time we can take one down is a reason to celebrate, especially when Georgia takes the lead. - Keith Demko/For the editorial board
Atlanta Business Chronicle Big winner on Nov. 6 was electronic voting Congratulations to Atlanta's first woman mayor, Shirley Franklin. But there was possibly an even bigger winner than Franklin on Election Day, and that was Cathy Cox. Georgia's forward-looking secretary of state is intent on putting archaic punch-voting systems into the techno trash heap of the typewriter and the eight-track. Cox took advantage of the Nov. 6 elections to test electronic push-voting systems in several cities across Georgia. While folks in Fulton and elsewhere were reporting hanging chads and tens of thousands of undercounted ballots, results of electronic voting in Lithonia, Decatur, Suwanee, Canton and nine other test cities were instantly available at the push of a button the moment polls closed. Government, laggard that it is, is always last to innovate, and objections still ring out about electronic voting because old folks and others supposedly don't know how to operate those new-fangled gadgets. Too much change confuses folks, the bureaucrats say; let the private sector change from record players to CDs and from typewriters to LCDs; government is going to keep the old, the dumb and the slow until we colonize the moon. But Cox's test proved that just like old folks buy their music on compact disc these days, they can take instantly to push voting. Electronic voting was a cinch for the elderly and the disabled -- even a blind woman in Statesboro reported that she didn't need her husband's help to vote. Instructions delivered through headphones steered her through the process. Cox, high above the fray in a plane, had instant election results beamed to her hand-held computer. "Seeing is believing," she told a reporter. "A number of people who were afraid of the unknown now understand what we're talking about. These machines are so easy to use -- and we've seen that with voters of all ages, from all backgrounds, from all walks of life." Electronic systems from six manufacturers were tested Nov. 6; the state will select the most cost-effective and, with the help of $30 million to $50 million in state funds, put an electronic system in place throughout Georgia by the 2002 presidential election. Is it needed? You betcha. Though the focus of the much-contested hanging chad centered on Florida, the fact is there were more Georgia ballots that lacked a presidential vote last year, 3.5 percent, than in the Sunshine State. In Fulton County, 6.3 percent of all ballots failed to record a vote for president in November 2000, more than double the 2.9 percent in Florida and triple the 1.9 percent national rate. Fulton faced more troubles Nov. 6 with high rates of undercounts in several races. The undercount reflects voters who opted not to vote in that race -- but it also includes the infamous hanging chad and other old-tech infirmities. Electronic voting has the support of the governor, but Cox has championed the issue since the electoral debacle in Florida. Her real-time field tests should put to rest any questions of whether electronic voting is feasible. We ought to even be able to pay for it in a lackluster economy: Thurbert Baker, the state's attorney general, has ruled the machines can be purchased using bonds, which allows us to pay for them over time. The only excuse for continuing to stick with punch cards is to keep government hopelessly in the dark ages, to keep counting votes by hand or by unreliable machine -- when we have the very simple technology to replace that system with one that works and that counts every vote. Democracy matters, right? Isn't it important that we vote, that we make voting simple and the results reliable? Then it's way past time we jazz up voting systems with a little gee-whiz technology. Dickerson is a public affairs specialist and a panelist on WAGA Fox 5's "The Georgia Gang." He can be reached at jdmedia@bellsouth.net.
Atlanta Journal and Constitution ELECTION 2001: Push-button voting passes its
first test More than two miles above above the Georgia countryside, the electronic triumph made itself apparent on Cathy Cox's hand-held computer. Beamed from 13 cities across the state to her airplane, reports made it clear that the first trial run of new, push-button voting systems was a rousing success. Voters said the systems were easy to use, and as soon as the polls closed Tuesday night, several of the cities --- among them Decatur, Lithonia, Suwanee and Canton --- had results with the push of a button. Meanwhile, other cities and counties that used traditional methods settled in for the tedious --- and sometimes perilous --- task of counting ballots by machine or hand. The results of the tests of systems made by six manufacturers will help determine whether electronic voting becomes the statewide standard, as Cox proposes. All Georgia voters are to be using electronic voting machines by the 2002 presidential election, if funds are available to acquire them. Some could be using them as early as the August primaries. Gov. Roy Barnes is a strong supporter of updating the state's voting machinery, some of which has been in place more than 100 years. Barnes, who was in Mexico on a trade mission Tuesday, could include funding for equipment in state budget proposals he will release in January. Cox, who flew to five of the test cities to observe the voting, was elated by the performance of thetest equipment. "Seeing is believing," Cox said. "A number of people who were afraid of the unknown now understand what we're talking about. These machines are so easy to use, and we've seen that with voters of all ages, from all backgrounds, from all walks of life." She began pushing for electronic voting systems after her office reported that 3.5 percent of ballots cast in Georgia in November 2000 did not record a vote for president --- more than the voting gap in Florida. Cox said installing electronic voting equipment statewide could cost from $30 million to $50 million. She said that under a recent ruling by state Attorney General Thurbert Baker, the machinery could be purchased through the sale of state-backed bonds, which would spread the cost over a number of years. Among the main concerns were that elderly and disabled voters might not be able to use the system properly, said Wendy Davis, who ran a voter education program in Canton. But Beth Godfrey, a blind Statesboro resident, gave the system a rave review. "I was an independent voter for the first time in my life," said Godfrey, who has been blind since birth. Instead of relying on her husband, she was able to listen to instructions on headphones and use a simple push-button device to record her vote. Canton Councilman Wade Buchanan, a retiree, was equally enthusiastic. "I never voted as easily as this," said Buchanan. "It would be hard to make a mistake." The systems display voters' choices and allow them to make changes, if necessary, before recording their votes. A state commission will decide which system to buy.
Atlanta Journal and Constitution Few apparent problems as state runs test of
electronic voting STATESBORO, Ga. (AP) _ Until Tuesday, 43-year-old Beth Godfrey of Statesboro had never cast a ballot in an election without someone's help. Blind, she needed someone to read the choices to her. That changed for her at a polling place in a senior citizens center here, thanks to some new electronic voting equipment the state rolled out for testing in 12 municipal elections. Earphones which plugged into the machine allowed her to hear the ballot read to her. Buttons allowed her to cast her vote. With a broad smile, she said, ``I'm really happy with this. This is something that needed to be done a long time ago.'' Secretary of State Cathy Cox, taking a personal inspection tour of some of the test sites, was all smiles, too. ``Isn't that just overwhelming?'' she asked. ``Positive, negative, anything in between. The feedback we get today will help us shape the system we want for Georgia.'' Since the long presidential count in Florida last year and the problems with hanging and dimpled chads, Cox has been campaigning to replace voting equipment statewide with a standardized electronic system. The equipment in use now varies from county to county. Many use scanning machines, some use punch cards, some still use the antiquated, lever-activated voting machines and two rely on paper ballots. Each of those systems can fail to count votes, and Cox believes as many as 94,000 presidential votes went uncounted in Georgia in 2000 because of vote-processing errors. Given that finding, she told reporters at Statesboro, ``We didn't have the luxury of living with the status quo.'' The test Tuesday involved machines by several different manufacturers. A special state commission eventually will choose one of them or seek custom-built machines, based largely on feedback from election workers and voters. At Scott Elementary School in Thomasville, voter Harris King listened to the instructions from a high school honor society volunteer and quickly cast his ballot. ``It's a very simple process. If you make a mistake, you can go back and correct it,'' he said. The machines prompt voters to review their choices before making their votes final. They will not allow users to spoil their ballots by voting for too many candidates for an office. They will remind voters if they fail to cast a ballot in a race, giving them the option of returning to that section if they choose. Until Tuesday, one question on the minds of poll workers had been whether older voters would accept the change to voting equipment which borrows its technology from the computer age. At the precinct in the William James Alternative School in Statesboro, Elise Brady, 67, said the electronic equipment was ``much easier than the punch. Much clearer.'' ``And it doesn't leave any hanging chads,'' said Bill Brady, 72. Cox said she was pleased with the test. ``I was hopeful the voters would respond well to it. Now, the proof is in the pudding ... Voters have responded well to it, voters of all backgrounds and all age groups and all education levels.'' A statewide system would cost between $50 million and $60 million, but Cox says she wants to phase in the conversion over the next three years so the cost can be spread over time. Her first goal is to place electronic voting machines in the 17 counties now using punch card ballots and the two (Montgomery and Taliaferro) which use paper ballots.
Augusta Chronicle Voting devices receive praise STATESBORO, Ga. - Forty-three-year-old Beth Godfrey voted without help Tuesday for the first time in her life. The legally blind Statesboro woman didn't need her husband to mark her ballot. She could do it herself, using an electronic voting machine equipped with headphones and raised buttons. "I was surprised. I didn't know I'd have this opportunity," Mrs. Godfrey said after selecting her choice for a seat on the city council. "(But) I didn't have any trouble determining what I needed to do." Statesboro was one of 13 Georgia cities experimenting with electronic voting during Tuesday's municipal elections, a pilot project spearheaded by Secretary of State Cathy Cox. Although Ms. Cox has championed overhauling Georgia's hodgepodge system of voting technology for several years, the issue gained momentum last year when uncertainty over the presidential vote count in Florida delayed the result for more than a month. Georgia had an even larger number of presidential votes that went uncounted, either because an error occurred with the ballot or because the voter didn't select a candidate. Florida's election woes received so much more publicity than Georgia's more than 90,000 "undercounts" only because the margin between the candidates was so close there. "We didn't have the option in Georgia of living with the status quo," Ms. Cox said Tuesday during a tour of several of the participating cities. "We had to do something to assure our voters that their votes were being recorded and counted." In March, the General Assembly approved legislation putting Georgia on track to launch electronic voting statewide by the 2004 presidential election. Lawmakers also ponied up $200,000 for the pilot project, and Gov. Roy Barnes chipped in $60,000 for voter-education efforts in the selected cities. On Tuesday, voters arriving at the polls were greeted by student volunteers offering to show them on a demonstrator how to use the type of electronic voting machine chosen for their city. As they left, other student volunteers armed with clipboards conducted exit polls to gauge their reactions to the new technology. "I love it! It's grand!" said Karen Vranch, of Thomasville, after voting in a school board election. "They needed to do this a long time ago." "It's a very simple process," added Harris King, another Thomasville voter. "And if you make a mistake, you can always go back, correct it and continue on." Andrew Edwards, of Statesboro, said he had no problem figuring out how to use the machine but that he wasn't sure everyone would have as easy a time. "I worry about people who have trouble with the (English) language or who don't have experience with electronic equipment," he said. Nell Revell, the precinct manager at Thomasville's Scott Elementary School, said most people seemed to take to the machines quickly. "A lady came in awhile ago and said she'd never be able to do it," Ms. Revell said. "After she (voted), she said it was easy." Rep. Buddy DeLoach, of Hinesville, a member of the state commission in charge of choosing the new voting system, said the group expects to have a recommendation ready for the Legislature when it meets in January. The commission could choose one of the six vendors that took part in the pilot project or pick from the best features of each system and have the selected vendor design a system to the state's specifications, said Mr. DeLoach, who met Ms. Cox at her Statesboro stop. "We want to look for a system that voters like and that election officials who use it like," Ms. Cox said. Ms. Cox said the statewide system is expected to cost $30 million to $50 million, a much lower figure than preliminary cost estimates first floated last year. She said the higher projections came before she had spoken to any of the vendors and didn't take into account the volume discount that such a large order would entail.
Savannah Banner Herald Electronic voting goes smoothly Turnout is just average in Statesboro, but voters seem to like the electronic machines they tested. STATESBORO -- With his father running for city council, Jeff Brannen would've voted Tuesday whether it meant punching chads, pulling levers or darkening circles. Instead, Brannen touched his finger to a computer screen to cast his vote for dear ol' dad. "It would seem archaic to go back to paper," he said afterward. "This just seems so much easier." Voters here, like those in 12 other Georgia cities, tested electronic voting machines making their state debut. If all went well in the pilot project -- and if the legislature comes through with funding -- hundreds of thousands of Georgians could vote electronically as soon as next year. Tuesday, Statesboro got a glimpse of the future. Beth Godfrey loved it. Godfrey, who is legally blind, usually has her husband fill out her ballot for her. This year, for the first time ever, she voted on her own, using an audio-version of the touch-screen program. Just one city council race mattered for her; mayor candidate William Hatcher had no competition. But voting independently mattered a lot to Godfrey. "I didn't know I would have this opportunity," Godfrey said afterward. She profusely thanked Secretary of State Cathy Cox, who had stopped in to check things out. Other voters weren't as enthusiastic, though few complained they were personally confused. Andrew Edwards, 72, said he didn't see any reason to change the old standard of optical scan voting. He worried that elderly voters might be scared off by the new technology. "I don't want anyone to be disenfranchised," Edwards said. "There needs to be a great deal of help for people who aren't (sure of themselves)." That wasn't a problem at the Bulloch County Senior Center. More than a dozen poll workers staffed the room holding 20 iVotronic voting machines. One poll worker accompanied each voter to the mini-booth and plugged in a cartridge to bring the ballot up on screen. Even before that, as they entered the building, two workers offered to walk voters through the process on demo machines. That wasn't a problem at the Bulloch County Senior Center. More than a dozen poll workers staffed the room holding 20 iVotronic voting machines. One poll worker accompanied each voter to the mini-booth and plugged in a cartridge to bring the ballot up on screen. Even before that, as they entered the building, two workers offered to walk voters through the process on demo machines. "It's running as smooth as I've ever seen one run," said poll manager Kenneth Davis. Some voters were surprised with all the attention, especially the television cameras and reporters that followed Cox on her five-city tour. "Is this the line?" asked one concerned voter standing behind the pack. In anonymous exit interviews, one voter complained that a poll worker hovered over her shoulder, eager to help but invading her privacy. Another groused that whatever the voting system, politicians could find a way to rig it in their favor. A third seemed to speak for the majority, saying if it were any easier, you could vote from home. Cox made electronic voting a top priority after last November's election, when Georgia's "undervote" percentage topped the figure in much-publicized Florida. "We didn't have the option in Georgia of living with the status quo," Cox said. "We had to make a change, and if you're going to make a change, you ought to move toward technology." In coming weeks, Cox's office and a state voting commission will discuss the merits and drawbacks of each electronic system, read through the voter surveys and talk to poll workers. Regardless of what they find, the General Assembly must buy into it. Last session, legislators easily passed a bill calling for a statewide, standard voting system by 2004. This session, Cox wants them to ante up. She's hoping to get $20 million in the governor's supplemental budget early next year for the first round of changes. That means people could vote for Cox -- who's up for re-election next year -- using the touch-screen machines she pushed for. "That wouldn't be a bad thing," Cox said with a smile. PAYING THE BILLS Electronic voting could be a reality for many of Georgia's 4 million voters next year, but the state needs to move fast. Funding is the biggest obstacle. Officials hope federal money will become available, but Secretary of State Cathy Cox is planning to push ahead even if it doesn't. According to Cox, the attorney general has said Georgia could issue general obligation bonds to pay for the upgrade. Payments might be stretched over five to seven years, though Cox wants all the equipment in place by 2004. Six vendors participated in the state's electronic voting pilot project Tuesday. After analyzing the results, a state commission will either recommend purchasing one of the systems, or ask vendors to submit bids for a custom-made machine with facets of various models.
Statesboro Herald Voters give electronic voting
'thumbs up' During Statesboro's election Nov. 6, Beth Godfrey cast a secret ballot for the first time in her life. As a visually impaired voter, her husband Konrad had always assisted her at the poll. But Tuesday, she was able to cast her ballot independently, using an auditory ballot with the electronic-voting system the city tested for the state. "This was the first time I've ever voted a ballot by myself," Godfrey said. At the polling booth, Godfrey said she listened to an auditory version of the ballot, and then cast her ballot by pressing the raised buttons on a voting machine. "I appreciated it," she said of the opportunity to vote her ballot herself. In addition to casting their votes for city council candidates, the voters and election officials also passed judgment on the electronic equipment, and the consensus seemed to be the electronic equipment was quicker and easier to use. Glenn Atkinson, a student at Georgia Southern University, said using the electronic equipment was "very efficient" and "very easy." Atkinson voted for the first time last November during the presidential election, and he observed the confusion over uncounted ballots in Florida, and later learned there were more than 94,000 uncounted ballots in Georgia. He said after using the electronic equipment, he felt confident about his vote. "I know my vote will be counted this time," he said. Rev. E.C. Simmons, a veteran poll worker who worked at the Senior Center Tuesday, said she'd heard several compliments about the new system, including that it was quicker and the ballot was easier to see. "Everyone we've talked with said they've been really pleased with it," said Election Superintendent Judy McCorkle. Overall she said the election went very smoothly and they had experienced only one small glitch with an electronic ballot, which was quickly fixed. The president of Election Systems and Software, Aldo Tesi, was on hand in Statesboro during the election, monitoring how the test pilot ran. The iVotronic system that Statesboro tested was also used in the Suwanee and Reidsville elections. A total of 13 cities in Georgia tested six different election systems Tuesday. Outside the Seniors Center, three workers were conducting exit polls on how the voters liked the equipment. Overall, they said, people had indicated they were pleased with the equipment and confident to very confident that their votes would be counted. Secretary of State Cathy Cox visited the Seniors Center Tuesday afternoon. She had already traveled to several other test sites Monday and Tuesday morning, and she said the test pilot elections seemed to be going well across the state. "What we're seeing is extremely exciting," she said. "The voters seem to be taking well to the new equipment." Cox said older voters seemed particularly pleased with the change, putting to rest concerns that seniors might be put off by the use of technology. "Seeing is believing - the seniors seem to love it," she said. The results of this test pilot will be used to help determine which electronic voting system is right for Georgia. The 21st Voting Commission will have a recommendation ready by the end of the year. Cox said they hope to have some equipment in use by next fall, but that a system will be in use statewide by the 2004 presidential election. The next step will be to obtain funding, and Cox said she plans to seek funding from the General Assembly in January as well as look into the possibility of federal funds. Replacing all of the election systems in Georgia will cost between $30 and $50 million Cox estimated, but the cost will be shouldered by the state, not the county and city governments. Katherine Fitch is a staff reporter for the Statesboro (Ga.) Herald, Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2001.
Lagrange Daily News Voters ‘touch’ choices in
municipal elections Every vote cast in municipal elections today will count, the state’s top election official said here Monday. That wasn’t the case last November, when 94,000 Georgia votes - including 675 in Troup County - weren’t tabulated in the presidential election. There should be no under count with the new touch-screen ballot machines that voters are using for the first time today, Secretary of State Cathy Cox said. While the technology has been tested in other states on a small scale, Georgia is the first to use them state wide. “This is truly a historic day for the state and really for the whole country - we will be part of the largest pilot program in the entire United States,” said Cox, referring to LaGrange, Hogansville and West Point, which are among 13 cities to test the machines today. “We’re not just setting a standard in Georgia, the entire country is going to be looking at us and finding out what we like about the machines and what we don’t like.” As Georgia moves toward a uniformed statewide election system for its 159 counties by 2004, it appears the state will be going with the touch-screen voting systems. Members from the 21st Century Vote Commission, a bipartisan panel created to help Cox in evaluating the election equipment, will conduct exit poll interviews to determine how well the machines worked. Cox hopes to present legislators with the results this year and if approved expects one-third of the state to have the machines in place by 2002. The state also will pay the $50 million to $60 million tab that the machines are expected to cost, which is worth it. Cox said that during the 2000 presidential elections an average of 1.9 percent of votes nation wide were not counted, with 2.9 percent in Florida and 3.5 percent in Georgia going unaccounted. “Think about how many state-wide races in the last few years that were decided by less than 94,000 votes - we’re lucky we’re not tied up in lawsuits,” Cox told the more than 30 county and city officials who attended a two-hour election briefing with her Monday afternoon at LaGrange City Hall. “When I came aboard I said I couldn’t serve as chief election official . . . and tell voters that we may or may not count their vote because of the hodgepodge equipment we have.” Six companies have supplied the machines statewide for today’s elections, including California-based Unilect, which is furnishing the equipment for Troup County. “I don’t think there is anything beyond what these machines can do as far as ways to elect someone - the Internet is too insecure - and there is nothing on the horizon,” said Unilect President Jack Gerbel, whose company has supplied these computers to other states, including North Carolina, since 1995. Gerbel, who began election work 37 years ago with IBM punch cards, said the machines were more accurate, faster and would save money because polls wouldn’t have to buy ballots, however he didn’t know how much money would be saved. The machines have seven fail safes installed in case a component malfunctions, according to Gerbel, and also a built-in battery back-up should there be a power outage. “The really great thing about these machines, though, is that they are so easy and the seniors love them because the screens are big,” Gerbel said. “People who shake can use them and if you were to make a mistake you can go back and correct it and not be embarrassed.” After the polls close at 7 tonight the final tallies at each machine will be tabulated and then the results will be brought to the county administration building for certification, said Troup County Election Superintendent Donald Boyd. Many of the officials who attended Monday’s seminar, including Hogansville council member Jimmy Jackson said they were pleased with the machine and felt secure with its accuracy. “I really like it,” said Jackson, who’s practiced on it several times in the past few months.
Rome News Tribune Voter: It was easier than I thought Most Rome voters seemed surprised at how smoothly the voting process went Tuesday with the new eSlate electronic voting machines. “I loved it,” said Jo Heyman, who voted at the East Rome precinct at Second Avenue Baptist Church. Her husband agreed. “It was easy. And it helped that instructions were printed in the Rome News-Tribune. These folks at Hart did a great job of explaining everything, too,” he said. Hart Intercivic makes the eSlate, a large computer-like device with a wheel and buttons for casting ballots. Use of the electronic voting devices enabled final city numbers to be tallied by 8:10 p.m., just a little more than an hour past poll closings at 7 p.m. David Hart, chairman of Hart Intercivic, was in Rome Tuesday to observe some of the voting before going on to Canton, the other Georgia city that tested the eSlate. Eleven other cities in Georgia tested touch-screen machines. At the Town Rome precinct on West Third Street, poll manager Sam Shapard said, “It’s been going good. People have had the chance to go through the demo, and all of the other paperwork is about the same. Operation of the machines doesn’t seem to be a problem.” Betty Royal, who voted at the Town Rome precinct, said, “It was a lot easier than I thought it would be.” Her husband, Robert, said his voting “went just fine.” Daniel Hicks of Marietta was conducting exit polls at the East Rome precinct for the Secretary of State’s Office. “Everybody seems to like the system. Most say they would recommend use of this system in the future. And they seem to be flying right through the ballot,” Hicks said. The 21st Century Voting Commission will examine reactions from voters and poll workers statewide and then make a recommendation to the governor by the end of the year as to which voting machine might be best for Georgia.
Press Release PEACH STATE POLL EXAMINES THE IMPACT OF ELECTION
2000 WRITER: Ann Allen ATHENS, Ga. - Georgians are still troubled about the 2000 presidential election process and the problems associated with recording and counting votes, according to the Peach State Poll, a quarterly survey of public opinion in Georgia by the University of Georgia’s Carl Vinson Institute of Government. The survey finds that a strong majority of residents (four out of five) approve of the Statewide Uniform Electronic Voting Initiative passed during the 2001 legislative session. Proposed by Secretary of State Cathy Cox, the legislation mandates that all voter precincts use the same type of voting machines by the July 2004 General Primary. A majority (79 percent) of Georgians believe that the legislation will improve the accuracy of vote counting. In regard to modernizing election equipment, 69 percent of Georgians support state spending but are not in favor of raising taxes for that purpose. One-half (50 percent) of the public disapproves of a hypothetical tax increase to fix the problems associated with the November 2000 election; 38 percent of the public strongly disapproves. Forty percent of Georgia residents say they are "very concerned" about the state of the election equipment being used in the nation today; an additional 33 percent say they are "somewhat concerned." When the question is brought closer to home, more than half of all Georgians say they are either "very concerned" (31 percent) or "somewhat concerned" (24 percent) about the equipment used in their precinct. The survey shows that those residents most likely to vote are also more apt to express high concern over the state of election equipment than are those who are less likely to vote. Almost one-half (47 percent) of likely voters said they are "very concerned" about the state of election equipment in the nation as compared with 29 percent of those unlikely to vote who report being "very concerned." Other survey results: The first Peach State Poll, which concerned environmental issues in addition to election issues, was conducted during the month of September and included 802 telephone interviews of randomly selected adults in Georgia. For a sample of this size, the margin of error at the 95 percent confidence level is +/-3.5%. The Carl Vinson Institute of Government, a public service and outreach unit of the University of Georgia, has as part of its mission to provide policymakers with systematic, objective research to inform policy decisions. |
