State: Supervisors wrestle with voting options

With a high-profile governor's race and the promise of brand new voting machines, Florida officials will be seeking redemption in the 2002 election -- a chance to atone for the presidential contest that made a mockery of the state last fall.

"There will be an intense, gigantic microscope on the state of Florida," said Hillsborough County Elections Supervisor Pam Iorio, outgoing president of the Florida State Association of Supervisors of Elections.

"We're all acutely aware of that."

But as the 67 supervisors convene this week at Saddlebrook Resort in the Wesley Chapel area of Pasco County for their annual summer meeting, there is mounting concern about their ability to follow through on replacing the outdated machines that caused so much chaos on Nov. 7.

Some of the state's biggest counties, including Pinellas, Palm Beach, Miami-Dade and Broward, are seriously considering new "touch screen" or similar electronic machines that operate much like ATMs. The problem is the machines have not been certified yet by the Florida Division of Elections, which is said to have the nation's most rigorous standards for voting equipment.

The division probably will not approve the machines until August at the earliest, Iorio said, which leaves supervisors a relatively short time to get approval from their county commissions, order the equipment, get it delivered and in place, then train pollworkers and educate the public.

The delay has created a "slight timing problem," Iorio said Monday after the first day of the supervisors' meeting.

"Forty-one counties have to change technology and that's a major decision to make and major move on the part of any county," she said. "This is a major issue for all of us."

Most supervisors, including Iorio, are favoring updated optical scan systems that ask voters to mark an oval or fill in an arrow with pen or pencil. Optical scan systems have long been approved by the division.

But consider the plight of Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections Deborah Clark, who believes optical scan technology is not much of an improvement from the much-maligned punch-card ballots that recently were banned by the Legislature.

Clark wants to buy a touch screen system, but, without certification, may be locked into an optical scan system. Whatever she buys will be used for years in Pinellas.

Also this week, the supervisors will be working to create scores of new rules for conducting elections and recounts. While the Legislature passed the most sweeping election reforms in the nation, many of the details were left to the Division of Elections, which will closely consult with the supervisors.

Among the key questions this week: What should be the guidelines for divining the intent of voters who mismark their ballots? The lack of such a standard seriously undermined the recount that followed the Nov. 7 election.

Also attending the conference are more than 20 election companies with more than a passing interest in what goes on this week.

Many are purveyors of touch screen or similar electronic systems, including Global Election Systems, which says boasts a "Smart Card" to activate its machines and prevent people from voting more than once. The company says it also has the capability to identify voters using electronic scans of fingerprints, eyes and facial features.

Hart Intercivic, an Austin, Texas, company, announced Monday it is teaming with the computer giant, Dell, to manufacture its electronic voting system.

Such corporate marriages will be more common as the elections industry tries to keep up with the demand caused by the 2000 election, Iorio said. At least 28 states have launched studies of their election laws and procedures, and some have gone further.

Besides Florida, the biggest prizes include Georgia and Maryland, both of which plan to buy one type of voting equipment for every county in the state.

Many companies are realizing they must team up with larger players to be able to fill orders and service the counties they serve, Iorio said.

"The industry is changing rapidly," she said. "It's changing week to week."

Florida has wrestled with new technology before. In 1945, when the state's election supervisors first convened, most Floridians voted on paper ballots. But a newfangled invention, the lever machine, was starting to gain popularity.

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Lucy Morgan

From the Times state desk