Howard County Reportedly Among Areas with Problematic Voting Machines

Maryland election officials have said some electronic voting machines have been taken out of commission during early voting, and Howard County is reportedly one of the jurisdictions where there were problems.

A woman voting at the Miller branch of the Howard County Public Library told WBAL that the machine where she was voting (number 18) would not accept her vote for a Republican and instead repeatedly beeped at her. Donna Duncan of the Maryland State Board of Elections told Patch that machine was removed from service the first day of early voting.

However, the issue in Howard County wasn’t an isolated occurrence, according to reports.

Delegate Kathy Szeliga (R-Baltimore/Harford) said that when she tried to select a Republican candidate’s name on the touchscreen in her precinct: “...the machine kept going ‘beep, beep, beep,’” according to WJZ.

A Harford County man told The Baltimore Sun that when he voted early in Aberdeen, his vote for a Republican congressman registered but then the machine changed his selection, illuminating the Democratic candidate’s name instead.

Republicans attributed the problem to the age of the machines, which are due for replacement by 2016, according to WTOP.

The Maryland Democratic Party spokesman told The Baltimore Sun that he had not heard of any issues with the machines’ alleged ”vote flipping.”

As of Monday—the fifth day of early voting—the Maryland State Board of Elections said that fewer than 20 machines had been identified as problematic, and technicians could not replicate the issue in 12 machines.

“There are 850 machines out for early voting, so it’s a small percentage,” Duncan from the election board said. She explained sometimes the voting machines get jostled during transport and cause issues with the calibration.

“A calibration issue is something that happens generally in every election,” Duncan said. “Each voting machine is calibrated and tested prior to it being packed up and sent out to the polling place. In the travel to the polling place and the unpacking, it may have gotten jostled—it shook around, and when it gets set up, the calibration has shifted.” In that case, she said, the machine is taken out of service and voters moved to a different voting booth.

Three machines were taken out of service due to the issue, according to WTOP. Those removed were in Howard, Anne Arundel and Frederick counties, the deputy administrator for the Maryland State Board of Elections reportedly said.

Election officials said the problem was usually voter error, so gave tips to ensure accuracy:

• Use a fingertip not a fingernail on the touchscreen.
• Review the summary screen.
• Inform election judge of concerns about the machine before submitting your ballot.

Early voting continues through Thursday, Oct. 30. Election day is Tuesday, Nov. 4.

Related: Early Voting in Columbia for 2014 Election

Screenshot from CNS YouTube video.