In June 2016 the Voting Solutions for All People had just reached its most significant milestone in completing the Research and Design Phase of the new Ballot Marking Device. Three years since reaching that feat our Department now has in its possession the first 15 production-grade Ballot Marking Devices. These units are the first of 31,000 that will be arriving later this year in preparation for the full implementation to the March 3, 2020 Presidential Primary Election.

On Monday, June 17 both the VSAP Executive Steering Committee and Smartmatic project teams assembled at the Election Operations Center to unveil the new devices. After recognizing this accomplishment our teams immediately went to work examining the devices and setting up the infrastructure to begin testing.

While these Ballot Marking Devices are predominately intended for testing purposes our office will offer community based-organizations the opportunity to receive live demonstrations at our Norwalk Headquarters or at a specified event - with notice. If your organization would like more information, please contact outreach@rrcc.lacounty.gov.

Nearly 10 years after the Registrar-Recorder kicked off our efforts to modernize Los Angeles County's voting system, Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean Logan and his team were presented this week with ballot marking devices (BMD) developed by Smartmatic. This delivery of completed devices coincides with the end of the Engineering Validation (EVT) Testing phase of Smartmatic's system development effort.

The Registrar's team visited the Santa Monica offices of Smartmatic, the County's chosen contractor in charge of the design completion, engineering, and manufacturing of system components. The system was designed by and for Los Angeles County during prior phases of the Voting Solutions for All People (VSAP) initiative that focuses on transparency, accessibility, usability, and security.

On March 4, 2019, Smartmatic staff provided the Registrar with a demonstration of how each BMD will function inside a secure election environment that included a simulated warehouse and vote center. The next phase will focus on completion of the design and delivering machines to the California Secretary of State for testing and certification before Los Angeles voters use them to mark their ballots in future elections.

The new system will make it easier for voters with disabilities, and voters with limited English proficiency, to cast ballots. The system is unique in that it was designed by Los Angeles County and will be publicly owned and operated by the County. Smartmatic was chosen to manufacture the devices after an extensive vetting process in accordance with Los Angeles County's competitive procurement policies. Smartmatic has extensive experience in manufacturing secure and customized election technology all over the world.

The new voting system is slated to be in place in time for the March 2020 California Presidential Primary election—with plenty of testing and pilots beforehand.

In less than a year, voters in Los Angeles County will be preparing for the next Presidential Primary election. One notable difference that voters will experience is the introduction of vote centers. Los Angeles County will transition from a polling place model to vote center model that will provide greater convenience and accessibility to the voters of LA County.

In the last few months, our Department has been working to identify suitable locations for these vote centers by gathering community input. In November 2018, our office kicked off the first round of community engagement meetings to engage the public on this process. Within a three-month period, our office worked collaboratively with 18 community-based organizations to facilitate 33 community meetings all over the County. In these meetings attendees learned about the new 2020 voting experience and were asked to suggest potential locations for vote centers.

The meetings featured a presentation, multiple information stations and a question and answer session. Community members were also asked to share the information with their neighbors, friends, family and peers.

Nearly 1,000 individuals attended the vote center meetings and of those attendees 265 provided suggestions for a potential vote center. If a member of the public missed the in-person meetings they were still able to suggest potential sites through our online vote center portal. To date, our office has received 1,407 location suggestions through the portal. Although the online portal is no longer open, our Department is still accepting location suggestions via email vsap@rrcc.lacounty.gov.

In the next two months, our office will analyze all the data that has been received via the meetings and portal. In April 2019, we will kick off our second round of community meetings. This round of meetings will focus on the list of potential vote centers within that community. We will still offer a thorough overview of the future voting experience and vote center model for those attendees who did not attend the first round of meetings. . Follow us on social media @lacountyrrcc to stay updated on future community meetings and any new updates on the 2020 election.

by Whitney Quesenbery

Making voting universal (and secure)

Picture this: It's Election Day, 2020, and some states are reporting massively long lines of voters waiting to get a ballot, mark it, verify it, and cast it. Others have no lines at all. A few are celebrating higher turnout but shorter lines.

What's different in these places?

Or perhaps on that Election Day some voters can mark their ballot with no problems, while others use antiquated systems that take a long time to use. Still other voters have to ask someone to help them because there are no accessibility features to help them mark their ballot on their own.

Which voter would you rather be?

A voting system for everyone

The Help America Vote Act (HAVA) was passed in 2002 to improve voting for everyone. It said that every polling place has to have a way for voters with disabilities to vote privately and independently, as other voters do.

A voting system is more than just a way to mark a ballot. The way we vote should reflect basic principles for trustworthy elections:

• Everyone can use the same voting system
• Everyone can mark their ballot without errors
• There are paper ballots to provide a way to audit or recount the election
• Ballots can be counted quickly and accurately
• Everyone can have confidence in the election results

Maybe you are thinking, “How hard can it be to fill in a few circles on a paper ballot?” There is a lot of evidence from real elections that it's harder than you might think, especially if the paper ballot is not designed well. Having a way to verify how your ballot will be counted makes a big difference to whether your vote counts.

In the 2016 California Senate primary, there were 34 candidates—enough to force the display of the contest across 2 columns on paper ballots. Where that happened, the number of people who voted for more than one candidate was a high 1.4% for districts where the ballots were checked and counted in the polling place. Where ballots are counted at a central office, the overvote rate was a shocking 4.9%, showing how important error checking is in helping voters verify their ballot. Compare that to still-high-but-more-reasonable a 0.7-0.9% rate for a single column display.

Ballot marking devices

For jurisdictions that use paper ballots, that usually means there is a ballot marking device. That's a computer that acts like a pen, but is fully accessible. Voters make their selections through a digital interface and when they're done, the machine prints a human-readable, human-countable ballot that is cast with all the other ballots.

Ballot marking devices can help many voters, and they are more usable and more accessible than they have ever been. By displaying and marking the ballot on a screen, voters can adjust the text size if they need it a little larger because they don't see well (or may have left their glasses at home). Ballot marking devices can be an efficient way to provide ballots in alternative languages. Reading the ballot aloud (through headphones) helps voters who don't read well and those who cannot see the screen. Every ballot marking device interface can be personalized, so no one has to request a special voting machine to use accessibility features. Every voter at a polling place or vote center can use the same voting system.

But the most important benefit is that ballot marking devices include features that help ensure that they capture a voter's intent and record it in a consistent way. These features include preventing overvotes, warning about undervotes, and a review screen that lets the voter confirms their selections in each contest before printing a ballot.

In other words, ballot marking devices combine an electronic interface and a printed paper ballot in a way that helps everyone. In addition to creating a consistent experience for voters, they can also improve elections in general by reducing the number of ballots that are challenged (or that can't be counted) because they have ambiguous marks.

Two concepts seem especially promising for making ballot marking devices the universal voting system: printed ballots with voter selections and the use of QR or bar codes.

Voter-selections ballots

Most paper ballots look like a standardized test with lists of options and circles, squares, or ovals to fill in to select your answer. On a ballot, a voter verifies their selections visually, by the relationship between the candidate name and the location of the mark. The optical scanners that count these ballots look for marks at specific locations on the ballot. The scanners are programmed to connect those locations to the candidate.

Ballot marking devices have an alternative. They can print a list of all of the contests on the ballot and the voter's selections (or if they haven't made one for that contest). It's like a conversation:

1. The voter marks and reviews their choices on-screen
2. The voting system replies by showing the list of selections
3. The voter checks that list to verify that the ballot reflects their intent
4. And then casts their ballot

Voters not only review how they have marked their ballot, but also get a confirmation of how the system interprets their marks.

There are a lot of benefits to a voter-selections ballot:

• Better verification. Voters just read the list instead of relying on their assumptions about how their ballot will be counted.
• More accessible. Voter who need help reading printed material can use a magnifier or a personal device that converts printed text to electronic text.
• Easier for people with low literacy. The words on the ballot focus on the candidates who have been selected. Fewer words, easier to read.

We also believe that more people will verify their vote when it's on the actual ballot to be counted, not a “receipt.” Security experts tell us that only a relatively small number of voters need to verify ballots on each voting system, but obviously, the more who do, the better.

We'd love to see more research on how people—especially new or infrequent voters—interact with voter-selections ballots. There has already been robust design research and usability testing in Los Angeles County as part of the work to develop a new voting system. All their reports are online at https://vsap.lavote.gov/

But more general research could build confidence in these ballots and help develop good design guidelines. (Hint to funders!)

QR codes

QR codes—those little squares of squiggles—are the second part of making voter-selections ballots work.

Ideally, the ballots would be counted by reading the names printed on the ballot, but character recognition (OCR) is not yet fast enough or accurate enough to use in an election. The Los Angeles project reviewed current systems, and we believe their conclusion. Of course, technology is always getting better, so the day when a voting system can read the printed text may not be far off.

Scanners can read QR or bar codes very accurately, so the solution is to put all of the selections into a code. There is a potential problem: what if the system encodes something different than the selections printed on the paper? There have to be rules to make sure this can be checked easily. There are three simple rules:

• The code and the list must be on the same piece of paper, so it's easy to audit.
• The code must be a public specification. That includes both the encoding method and how the information in the code is read.
• The ballot information on the code and paper must be the same.

This combination of a selections-only ballot and a QR or bar code is already in use in some voting systems. Oregon has used it for their accessible vote-by-mail ballot for many years. Military and overseas voters have an option to use a similar system that sends a digital ballot marking program, so they can mark, print, and return their ballots within the deadlines. The codes are also useful as a backup if a ballot is too damaged to run through the high-speed scanners.

Running elections

Let's go back to those scenarios at the beginning of this article.

Can ballot marking devices help with long lines? Maybe.

They are certainly a good alternative to computer voting equipment that records votes electronically with no audit trail at all. Jurisdictions currently using these “direct recording electronic” (DRE) systems already know how many they need to keep their lines under control and can replace them with ballot marking devices and a ballot scanner.

They are more streamlined than a ballot-on-demand printer because every voter is handed a blank ballot paper to be printed with their selections.

They are fully accessible, so there is no special accessible voting system that poll workers have to learn to set up and operate.

There are innovations that can make using a ballot marking device even faster. Los Angeles County has tested the idea of an interactive sample ballot that would let voters make their choices at home. Then, at the polling place the voter can quickly transfer those choices to the ballot marking device, make any changes, and then proceed to review, print, verify and cast the ballot. This idea was tested in an academic research project that showed it could speed up voting and reduce lines.

We've already talked about how ballot marking devices help many voters—with disabilities, overseas voters, voters who don't read well, or who use an alternative language.

Voter-selections ballots are also easy to audit. They don't even have to use the codes for the audits or recounts. Those second-checks could use the printed names, since most voters will have used that list to verify their vote.

Summing up

Let's review.

Digital ballots help people vote independently and privately, with accessibility options.

Ballot marking devices produce the printed ballot that is critical for audits and recounts.

A printed ballot that's easier to read means more voters verify their ballot, adding to confidence in the election.

QR codes make it possible to count the ballots as quickly and accurately as we expect in today's elections, no matter what size paper they are printed on or what font is used.

The QR codes can also be audited for accuracy as part of strong election integrity procedures.

What's not to like?

This article is also available on medium.com/civicdesigning

Resources

Field Guide Vol. 1: Designing usable ballots

Los Angeles County Voting System for All People

Anywhere Ballot

Principles for remote ballot marking systems (PDF)

On June 13, 2018, Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean Logan officially signed the contract with Smartmatic USA making them the Voting Solutions for All People's (VSAP) Prime Contractor and Systems Integrator. Smartmatic USA will assist the Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk (RR/CC) in manufacturing and implementing components of a new voting experience for Los Angeles County scheduled for introduction in the March 2020 California Presidential Primary election.

Following an extensive 9-month bidding and evaluation process, Smartmatic USA was selected after being scored by technical, legal and financial evaluators in accordance with Los Angeles County's competitive procurement policies. The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the contract during on June 12, 2018.

Smartmatic USA and its team will be responsible for systems integration, engineering and manufacturing of the system components that were designed by and for Los Angeles County voters with a focus on security, accessibility and usability.

The revolutionary new voting experience will make it easier for all Los Angeles County voters, including voters with disabilities and multilingual voters.

Meet Ruth. She is an LA County voter and 103 years old! She went through the voting demo on the VSAP Ballot Marking Device prototype with ease and interacted with the touchscreen naturally. Ruth is just one of hundreds of seniors who have interacted and tested with our Ballot Marking Device prototype and one of 15 attendees at Pacific Post Acute Nursing Facility in Santa Monica where our VSAP team gave a VSAP presentation on June 15, 2018.

The 20th class of the Administrative Intern Program visited the Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk (RR/CC) on April 17, 2018 for a Departmental tour. They were provided an overview of the various election services and records management operations at the RR/CC.

An exciting element of the tour was a visit to the VSAP Lab, where they were guided through a simulation of the new Vote Center Model by members of the VSAP team. They learned about how Vote Centers will function in the future in conjunction with the various components of the new voting experience including ePollbooks, the Interactive Sample Ballot (ISB) and the Ballot Marking Device (BMD). As the class interacted with the BMD, they were impressed by its accessibility features and how it will provide an independent voting experience for all LA County voters.

The VSAP Team also had an opportunity to show them the new and intuitive Vote by Mail ballot design, as well as talk about the highlights of the Vote Center Placement Project.

The Admin Interns had excellent questions about how the RR/CC plans to implement VSAP, while maintaining secure and transparent elections with potential cost savings to the County for the future.

Our VSAP and Outreach Teams attended the Older Adult Summit held at the Pasadena Convention Center on April 5, 2018. This event provided an opportunity for the attendees ages 55 and up to interact with the Ballot Marking Device and gain information about the new voting experience. We registered new voters and distributed materials for this year's statewide elections. We connected with other City and County Departments who are interested in conducting voter education and registration in their respective communities.

This is the second annual summit organized by the Workforce Development, Aging and Community Services (WDACS). This summit is intended to provide resources and practical tools for older adults through workshops and information booths from various County Departments and private agencies in the older adult care and services field. For more information about the Older Adult Summit and WDACS, please visit https://wdacs.lacounty.gov/.

On March 16, 2018, the VSAP team held a VSAP Summit at the Liberty Community Plaza in Whittier, Calif. The theme of the Summit was “The Future is in Good Hands”.

In preparation of the implementation of the new voting experience, the VSAP Summit helped to refocus the VSAP program members through various group activities.

Each project and workstream team gave a current update and reflected on the project's milestones and recent achievements. They also participated in assembling a group puzzle and created a vision board for the future of the department.

The attendees included the Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, Dean Logan, the Assistant Registrar Recorders, along with the VSAP Project and Workstream teams and the newly appointed VSAP ambassadors from the Emerging Leaders latest cohort.

On March 27, 2018, Disability Rights California invited members of the VSAP and the RR/CC's Outreach Teams to participate in a Peer Self-Advocacy Skills event at Easterseals, an adult day care center for adults with developmental disabilities in Norwalk, CA.

The event was focused on how to navigate the voting process in Los Angeles County. The VSAP Team provided an overview of the changes to the new future voting experience, which included a demonstration of the Ballot Marking Device (BMD), while the Outreach Team was on hand to offer participants an opportunity to register to vote.

Overall, there were 25 participants in attendance and 7 volunteers interacted with the device, each with their own customized simulated voting experience. One volunteer voted using the Spanish language interface, while another volunteer was able to increase the font size on the screen. The last volunteer, who had limited use of her hands, successfully completed the entire voting experience using her just foot on the touchscreen!

This experience served as a reminder of why we are committed to designing and implementing a modern voting system that is easy and accessible for all people across Los Angeles County.