[mcmama]

Well, I did my early voting today. Only took about half hour. Didn't have to wait in a line outside. Of course, I got there just before it opened.

Is anyone else who can do early voting using a paper ballot, or is this just a north Florida thing? I've never used a paper ballot before, and I found it still a bit confusing. Not as bad as punching out holes, but still, more time consuming than going into a booth and pushing buttons. More difficult to read too. There was a large print explanation of how to fill out the thing posted, but I don't think there were any large print ballots. Took me a minute to understand about drawing the line to fill in the blank.

How do people who are visually impaired vote? Does someone read it for them and fill it out for them? Do they get machines? Do they get braille? I didn't see any of this, and did not ask because it was so crowded.

Is there a margin of error for how the pencil mark is read by the scanner?

Last time I voted in FL was when I lived in Miami during the first Reagan election. I voted in the Republican Primary. I pulled a little lever. Took 5 minutes. That was 28 years ago. Since then I have lived in NY and NJ. Always pulled little levers and pushed buttons. 5 minutes or less. None of this paper ballot nonsense, just sign in.

Why can't voting machines be the same everywhere in the USA? Really, pick a model and stick with it, and have the feds pay for it so that local governments don't have an excuse.

All the public information is Florida is so well placed and searchable online. It is WAY ahead of NJ in this. Don't know why voting is so backward here. Is EVERYONE using a paper ballot for early voting?

[KR258]

My dh did early voting the other day and also used the paper ballot too. He didn't say much about it but we got a sample one in the mail early so we knew what to expect...it looked exactly the same except it didn't say sample on it.

I believe the paper ballot is for all voting in FL

[mcmama]

What about other states where you can vote early? Do they use a paper ballot too?

And on election day at the precincts, are we using paper ballots in Florida, or do they have machines?

[pattiewrites]

I think it all varies by county. When I lived in St Lucie County, we had paper ballots with the opti scan machine. You were given a black magic marker and filled in the bubble next to who you were voting for. The machine then scanned the ballot and read the responses. The problem comes in when people don't fill out the thing right and the machine may not read the votes.

I agree with sticking with one standard for the entire state, or country. I prefer the paper ballots to the electronic machines with no paper trail. That scares me. There is too much room for hacking and no back up to prove or disprove anything.

[KR258]

I believe they're doing paper because they want a paper trail. Last time there was alot of debate about whether the results were accurate and many people saying their votes didn't count. I think they still have the old machines but went to paper because many don't trust the machines and this way they can go back and look at the paper ones if they think the machine didn't scan them right. I don't know if they have something special with big writing or accommodations for blind....I do think it's better than not having something to go back and look at. So on election day it will be paper...it will probably make it take longer for those who need help and that's why if you can early vote you should! I'm glad you did get it done early so you don't have to worry about it anymore! I wish I could but I am still waiting on my card and hoping it comes in time

I am a last minute person.

[kalhayd2]

I voted early in Tampa Bay with a paper ballot. Which proved difficult with a 11 month old on my hip attempting to tear it to shreds!
When I voted last term on election day(same city)it was done via computer. Way easier, IMO-

[pattiewrites]

Originally Posted by kalhayd2

I voted early in Tampa Bay with a paper ballot. Which proved difficult with a 11 month old on my hip attempting to tear it to shreds!
When I voted last term on election day(same city)it was done via computer. Way easier, IMO-

The problem is that they are also way easier to hack. I like a paper trail because I no longer trust our elected officials to do their duty, without agenda.

[iras112]

I have a questions. My nephew lives in Orlando, Fla. When he went to vote, he was told he could not use a black pen, only a pencil. It was not a Scantron paper ballot, so why not a pen for safety of his vote?