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TextVoting Equipment Information
All Fairfax County polling places will be equipped with two types of voting equipment for the upcoming presidential election - optical scan and touch screen.
Optical Scan Voting Machines
Beginning with the November 2008 General Election, Fairfax
County is introducing the AccuVote™ optical scan voting system at each
polling place. These machines “read” a paper ballot marked by the voter.
It is expected that the optical scan machines will help reduce the time
spent waiting in line at the polling places since more voters can vote at
the same time. The Office of Elections will continue to deploy the
existing WINvote touch screen machines to all precincts. These machines
comply with the federal Help America Vote Act of 2002, Public Law 107-252
(HAVA), which mandates accessible voting devices for blind and visually
impaired voters.
The General Election
of 2004 brought out over 73% of Fairfax County voters. Since then the
County has added four new precincts and registered more than 50,000 new
voters. As demonstrated nationally by voter interest in the 2008
presidential primary elections, this November’s presidential election
could set
new records for voter turnout. Unless the County deployed additional
voting machines, long lines at County polling places would severely
inconvenience voters and that can be expected to discourage many persons
from voting.
However, due to
General Assembly legislation in 2007, the County was prohibited from
purchasing additional WINvote touch screen voting machines. So, at the
Fairfax County Electoral Board’s request, the Fairfax County Board of
Supervisors approved the purchase of the AccuVote™ machines in hopes of
better serving the voting public. In reaching its decision, the Electoral
Board was aware that the AccuVote optical scan voting system has been
used reliably for absentee voting in Fairfax County since 1996.
- Optical Scan Overview Sheet
- Optical Scan Voting Machine Instructions
- How To Cast a Write In Vote
- Download Adobe Acrobat Reader
The following Optical Scan Voting Machine Demonstration Video(s) requires a Media Player in order to be viewed Download Media player.
Touch Screen Voting Machine
In addition to the AccuVote optical scan voting machines,
every polling place will also be equipped with 3 to 6 WINvote™ machines,
depending on the size of the precinct. The WINvote machines, also known
as direct recording electronic (DRE) machines, have been used in Fairfax
County since 2003. These touch screen machines are designed to provide
voters with disabilities the ability to cast their votes unassisted. Each
machine is equipped with an audio headset that enables voters with visual
impairments to cast a secret ballot without assistance. This light-weight
machine may also be carried outside the polling place for curbside
voters.
The following Touch Screen Voting Machine Demonstration Video(s) require a Media Player in order to be viewed Download Media player.
Code of Virginia,
§24.2-1009:Stealing or tampering with ballot containers,
voting or registration equipment, software, records or documents is a
Class 5 felony.
If you do not have the Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer, click on the image below to go to the Adobe Systems download site. Download and install the program according to the instructions. Adobe Acrobat Reader is free and is distributed by Adobe Systems.
Contact Us if you have any questions.
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