The state-of-the-art DS 200 Precinct Scanner & Tabulator is scheduled to be in place in time for the March 1 presidential election. — Photo courtesy of Election Systems & Software

By Josie Grove

Somerville voters will notice something a little bit different when they cast their ballots in municipal elections in the future. Last Wednesday, the Finance Committee approved $188,344 appropriation from the Capital Stabilization Fund for new ballot counting machines.

“We’ve had for over 25 years a machine called the Optech Eagle.” Technology has changed drastically since 1990, and even vote counting machines can be improved. Manufacturers are phasing out older machines like the Optech Eagle. “Back a few years ago, Election Systems & Software eliminated it,” explained Nicholas Salerno, the city’s election commissioner. The manufacturer will only support Optech Eagles as long as they have parts for them, says Salerno, but “parts are running very thin.” Without support and parts, a broken machine could impair the democratic process in Somerville. “It’s time to look at some new machinery because of the aged products we have,” he said.

The city of Somerville put out a request for proposals to two voting machine manufacturers, but only ES&S gave the city a bid for a new ballot counting machine, the DS 200 Precinct Scanner & Tabulator. The state and federal governments have certified this machine to be used in local, state, and federal elections.

“We’d like to have them in place in time for the March 1 presidential primary, said Salerno. “Massachusetts law requires us to have a vote 120 days before the election, which puts us around November 1.” Right now it looks like the  March 1 presidential primary will likely be the first election for the new machines.

“We’ve observed this machine functioning. We’ve tried it, we like it. It’s got all the latest tech advancements,” says Salerno.

In addition to technological improvements, Salerno says the new ballot counting machines will improve privacy. If there is a problem with a ballot, the machine will display an error message to the voter, without involving a poll worker. The voter can make sure their ballot is filled out properly without the risk of revealing their vote.

The new machines can display in several different languages, enabling better communication with voters who are more comfortable communicating in a language other than English.

Ward 7 Alderman Katjana Ballantyne asked if ES&S would provide technical support on Election Day, in case poll workers have trouble. Salerno assured her that every precinct would have technical support for the next two years, and that this was included in the $188,344 cost.

“We pay an annual maintenance fee, and they support everything,” said Salerno. The annual maintenance fee was $4500 with the old machines, and Salerno does not think the fee will increase for the new machines.

After the polls close, the machines will tabulate the votes at each precinct. The DS 200 ballot counting machines produce paper backups of their counts, so vote counts are not just stored electronically. “Secretary [of State William] Galvin won’t entertain any machine in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts without a paper trail,” said Salerno. “Other states had optical scanners only, and they’re now coming back to paper trails.”

When the polls close, the new machines will be able to wirelessly transmit each precinct results to the elections office. “The same time they have results at the precinct level, we will have them,” said Salerno. “The Secretary of State has certified wireless communication, and we are letting them know we are going that route.” Somerville would be the first city in the Commonwealth to have wireless transmission of results. Alderman at Large Bill White joked, “Just think, in the old days, people used to follow the ballot boxes to City Hall to make sure they didn’t take any detours.”

While the days of stuffing ballot boxes may be gone, it could be possible to alter an election’s outcome by hacking the tabulators. This is why the paper backup is necessary, not just a thing about if the machine breaks down. Even with this backup, the machines could be vulnerable. Salerno has faith in ES&S, citing a long history of working with the company without incident. Even though the new machines present a fresh security challenge, Salerno is confident they will be an improvement: “It’s a newer technology, so the security is only getting better.”