Texans say voting machines change their voting choices

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) – Some Texas voters have complained that the machines had reversed their selections to the opposition in early ballots, including the high-profile Senate battle between Republican MP Ted Cruz and the Democrat Beto O 'Rourke.

The state secretary's office announced Friday that problems had been reported with the Hart eSlate voting machines, used in about 30% of counties in the country and equipped with a selection wheel of candidates and buttons to switch from one screen to the other. But it is said that they are caused by the voters themselves and often occur when they fill in and submit the ballots too quickly.

"Hart eSlate machines do not work badly, the problems reported are the result of a user error." In general, voters press a button or use the selection wheel before the end of the rendering process. the screen, "said Sam Taylor, spokesman for the state secretary's office. Rolando Pablos, who was nominated by Republican Governor Greg Abbott.

The machines are used in about 80 counties, including the largest state, Harris, which houses Houston, as well as Travis, which includes Austin, and Tarrant, encompassing Fort Worth. Early voting in Texas began Monday and was characterized by high turnout and long lines. It will run until November 2, before election day, November 6.

Many Hart eSlate machines used in Texas do not provide receipts or other types of written records to voters, but voting voters see a screen indicating their choices prior to final submission – and may go back and make changes. Similar machines are being used in parts of Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Virginia, according to Verified Voting, a nonprofit group aimed at ensuring accurate elections.

The maker of the machine, Hart InterCivic, attributed Texas's problems to a 16-year-old technology.

"The same story happened in several elections," said Steven Sockwell, vice president of marketing for the company. "There was no turning around then and there are not any anymore."

Instead, Sockwell said, which usually happens in cases where someone thinks his vote has been changed, is that an elector will choose a party ticket directly and then will unintentionally change votes in individual races without realizing it.

Also in a statement to supporters, Cruz quoted "several reports" on the race selection change and added: "Once you have selected the Republican ticket, wait and do not select" next "until vote will not have filled all the selections. "

A notice to county clerks and election administrators released earlier this week by Keith Ingram, the secretary of state's election director, said: "A number of people who voted on Hart eSlate machines said that when 'They had voted right, it seemed to them that the machine had changed one or more of their selections to a candidate from a different party.'

The Texas Democratic Party called the issue "dysfunctional", saying the Democrats had inadvertently decided to vote for Cruz and accused the secretary of state's office of not doing enough to warn voters of potential problems.

The party's president, Gilberto Hinojosa, said in a statement that "the Republican government of Texas has blamed the voters and did nothing." He called for a state-wide public service announcement to warn voters, to train election officials on the issue and to remove "all faulty machines".

Taylor said Friday that his office "had already trained election officials nationwide" while ordering "election administrators to post additional signs in multiple languages" and asking county officials to "keep a detailed journal and meticulous faulty machines and delete machines that malfunction. "

Taylor also said that his office "has no legal authority to force" sellers of voting machines "to perform upgrades if their voting systems are in compliance with federal and state laws," and that Hart eSlate's system was certified in 2009. He stated that the counties are responsible for the purchase of their new voting materials.

"We will continue to educate Texas voters using existing resources," said Taylor, "and we urge all Texans who vote to take their time, slow down and carefully review their ballot prior to voting. to vote one. "