January 16, 2006

Inaccessible Voting Machines in NY May Prompt Federal Suit

Reported Friday by the Associated Press:

In a letter received this week, New York officials were told by Wan Kim, assistant attorney general in the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, that the state was lagging behind every other state in complying with the HAVA requirements. The state was supposed to meet HAVA requirements by Jan. 1.

Lee Daghlian, the spokesman for the state Board of Elections, said it is not certain New York will be able to have new voting machines in place and workers trained to operate them in time for the September primaries or the November elections. Failing that, Daghlian said counties across the state would have to use their old machines....

Daghlian said the threat of a lawsuit came as no surprise given the delays New York has experienced. The board spokesman said he expected state officials to seek a negotiated settlement and the letter from the Justice Department might actually speed efforts to get new voting machine standards adopted.

Read NY last in voting updates; feds may sue (Associated Press via Rochester Democract and Chronicle)

Posted on January 16, 2006