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No votes were recorded on this touch-screen polling booth, which sat idle Tuesday at St. Paul's Lutheran Church. There were problems throughout Lodi with machines and volunteers not showing up to help voters. This polling place didn't get started until 8 a.m. (Jennifer Howell/News-Sentinel)
Missing volunteers, new machines cause delays
Voters had to be turned away from some polling sites and sent elsewhere Tuesday after absent volunteers and confusion with touch-screen voting machines caused problems across San Joaquin County.
One polling station in Lodi was even closed for most of the morning after the inspector failed to show up with the necessary equipment.
Tuesday's primary election was San Joaquin County's first to rely entirely on touch-screen voting machines, which are similar to ATMs, and the transition was marked with a few hang-ups.
Deborah Hench, San Joaquin County registrar of voters said the election has been one of the hardest she's had to organize with delays and confusion at polling locations throughout the county. The difficulties were partially because of lack of staffing; at least six inspectors quit after 5 p.m. Monday, Hench said.
One of the most serious headaches arose at the Lodi polling station at Fire Station No. 3 on Ham Lane when the inspector there failed to show up Tuesday morning.
"We've never gotten in touch with him," Hench said that afternoon. "I even had the police go by and check on him."
While officers couldn't get the man to answer the door, Hench said they did notice his vehicle parked in front of his house was loaded with polling equipment.
The polling center didn't get going until 10:30 a.m., which Hench said was "totally unacceptable."
Fifteen voters were redirected to the nearest polling site at a home 100 yards away, said David Jackson, one of the volunteers at the station.
But despite the delays early Tuesday, many voters leaving the polls later in the day reported few problems with the machines.
Greg Wright, a teacher at Lodi High School, appreciated that the new touch-screen machines printed out a sheet of paper detailing how he had voted electronically. Even though voters didn't get to keep a copy, Wright found the printout "reassuring."
Wayne Harris, who provided technical support for several area polling centers, said some "older folks" preferred the paper ballots.
At Lodi Fire Station No. 2 on East Lodi Avenue, volunteers were unable to properly set up all four machines until 8:30 a.m.
Field inspector Bonnie Mayer said most of the problems might have been avoided with more training on the touch-screen machines for the volunteers.
But Hench said many of the volunteers failed to attend training sessions before the election.
"We give them four hours of training, however, we had people who never came to the training and thought they could just show up and be a worker at a polling location," Hench said.
Several of the six voters who had to leave Lodi Fire Station No. 4 in the morning had already returned to vote before noon after the machines were fixed at 9 a.m., said Cora Lachenmeier, a polling place clerk.
"We hope they all come back," Lachenmeier said.
Hench said none of the volunteers working Tuesday were told to turn people away, and voters could have handed in sample ballots that could be copied and turned in to be counted.
A malfunctioning voting machine in Tracy did have to be replaced, but Hench said that was the only technical issue.
She said the problems only underscored her office's need for volunteers and inspectors to work elections.
"This is what happens when we don't have enough staffing," she said.
Many voters said they liked the new touch-screen voting machines because they made process easier.
"It's very self-explanatory. It's like going to an ATM," said Ivan McDougal, a Lodi retiree who voted at Lodi Fire Station No. 3.
McDougal and his wife, Maria McDougal, admit they aren't very computer savvy, but they still said they had no problems with the touch screens.
"We have no computer experience or anything, and it was no problem for us," said Maria McDougal.
Mark Radke, director of marketing for Diebold Inc., the maker of the machines, said he was in Stockton for most of the day and heard of no technical problems.
He did say he heard of some confusion, and the missing inspector in Lodi , but added it usually takes an election before voters and volunteers become totally acquainted with the system.
"What we've seen is we've used this very unit in other states and after they've conducted two or three elections it's really more familiar to volunteers and voters," he said.
City Editor Andrew Adams contributed to this report.
Contact reporter Melissa Dahl at intern@lodinews.com.
First published: Tuesday, June 6, 2006
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