Patent ID: 8733646

Claim:
A method of voting using an integrated voting system for accommodating paper ballots and audio ballots in an election, comprising: providing an integrated voting system at a polling location, wherein the integrated voting system comprises an accessible voting station in communication with a voting device, wherein the accessible voting station and the voting device are located together at the polling location to allow each of a plurality of voters to vote in either an audio ballot mode or a paper ballot mode at the polling location; if the voting system is operating in the audio ballot mode, (1) utilizing the accessible voting station to: present an audio ballot to a voter; receive one or more voting selections entered in response to the audio ballot from the voter; print a printed ballot that includes the entered voting selections; read the printed voting selections from the printed ballot, present an audio representation of the read voting selections to the voter; receive a verification of the audio representation of the read voting selections from the voter; and providing the verified printed ballot to the voter for tabulation, wherein the verified printed ballot is the sole record of the voting selections of the voter and (2) utilizing the voting device to: receive the verified printed ballot from the voter; read the printed voting selections; and tabulate the voting selections that are read from the printed ballot to thereby cast the voting selections on the printed ballot in the election; and if the voting system is operating in the paper ballot mode, utilizing the voting device to: receive a paper ballot with one or more marked voting selections; read the marked voting selections; and tabulate the marked voting selections to thereby cast the voting selections on the paper ballot in the election.