CAMDEN — By BRADLY GILL
Staff writer
Ouachita County Clerk Britt Williford spoke to the Camden Noon Lions Club at the group’s Wednesday meeting about the county’s new voting equipment and the switch from assigned poll sites to voting centers.
“I’ve been county clerk for 18 years, been in the courthouse 28 years and voting is my ‘thing,’” Williford said. “I think that’s probably the most important function I have as clerk.”
Williford stated that the most significant change in the upcoming election is the move to voting centers instead of the assigned polling sites used for the last 50 - 75 years in Ouachita County.
The National Conference of State Legislature website states, “Vote centers are an alternative to traditional, neighborhood-based precincts. When a jurisdiction opts to use vote centers, voters may cast their ballots on Election Day at any vote center in the jurisdiction, regardless of their residential address. Colorado was the first state to use vote centers with a pilot program in Larimer County. States either permit jurisdictions to replace precincts with vote centers, or have required them statewide.”
Thirteen states allow jurisdictions to use vote centers on Election Day: Arizona, Arkansas, California (beginning in 2018), Colorado, Indiana, Iowa (for some elections), New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Wyoming.
Williford said that Ouachita County will have six voting centers, with locations in Bearden, Stephens, Chidester, Elliott Baptist Church, Calvary Baptist Church in East Camden and The Charles O. Ross Center in Camden.
“A vote center is just like early voting except it will be on election day, “Williford said.
He also reiterated that registered voters will be able to vote at any voting site.
For example, if a voter worked in East Camden but lived in Bearden, they could vote at the Calvary Baptist Church in East Camden on election day.
Early voting will start Oct. 22 and will be held from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, with voting on Saturdays from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m.
Registered voters will be able to vote at the Ouachita County Courthouse during the early-voting period
Voting in Ouachita County will also take place on new equipment starting this election. Election Systems and Software’s Express Vote machines will be used, giving a verifiable paper trail, previously unavailable in the county.
ESS’s websites sates the ExpressVote can be used as a marker
“After all selections are made, a human- and machine-readable paper record is produced that includes text and an optical scan bar-code. Votes are digitally scanned for tabulation on an ES&S DS200®, DS450® or DS850® device.
The machines can also be operated by the vision impaired with a braille labeled controller and headphones that read the ballots.
Another change will be the poll book, formerly a large book containing the voter info of registered voters, will now be an electronic tablet.
Voters will be required to bring a valid government ID. Williford said that a State ID or State College picture ID are acceptable, but employer IDs or passports are not.
He stressed that none of the voting rules have changed and that voters can request assistance if there is confusion.
Williford said that voters should familiarize themselves with the ballot measures as their are a number of quite lengthy measures.
A voter guide can be found at www.uaex.edu/ballot as provided by the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension service.