OHIO — A grassroots effort to ban electronic voting machines in two Ohio counties is drawing state and national attention and potential legal action. Organizers behind the “Coalition of Concerned Voters of Ohio” say it’s not about politics, but about security, cost and giving citizens the right to decide how elections are run.
Petitions in Seneca and Monroe Counties gathered more than enough signatures to put a question on the ballot but they were rejected by the Secretary of State, Frank LaRose. The state says current law only allows counties to adopt the use of machines, not reject them. But organizers argue the law gives counties discretion. Now, they are exploring legal options.
They also say hand-counted ballots would be less expensive and more secure, especially in smaller counties. Tim Stechschulte, from the Coalition of Concerned Voters of Ohio, says part of the issue has to do with the cost.
“With the total cost of the machine, not anything else other than the machine added cost and you divided by the people that voted, it came out to $63.60 to process one ballot. That is a huge burden on especially the small counties that are struggling. If you look at hand counting for a dollar a ballot in straight labor costs, versus $63, that is just a game changer,” he said in an interview.
LaRose’s office says an audit of last year’s voting in the presidential election and Senate race shows it was 99.997% accurate.
Spectrum News Staff
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