If technology is introduced without proper testing, it will simply eliminate some errors but create new ones, said Michael Wiklund, a director of the American Institutes for Research. It's the kind of thing that needs to be approached professionally and methodically. But the ballot simply replaced one set of usability problems with another. The concept of electronic ballots may intimidate some who'd describe themselves as computer- phobic, but there are things we can do to lower that hurdle. Complaints about the readability of IRS tax forms reached such a fever pitch in recent years that the agency invested the time and money necessary to improve the design, he said.
Voters drop ballots in a sealed ballot box after recording their choices.
New York became the first state to adopt paper ballots for statewide elections in 1889. Used by 1.7 percent of voters in 1996 elections. The name of each candidate or ballot issue is assigned a lever. The voter pulls a lever to indicate a choice. A pulled lever automatically returns to its original position, causing a counter wheel within the machine to tally the votes.