New Voting System - What you Need to Know
On October 30, 2014, the members of the State Board of Elections unanimously selected and certified Maryland’s new voting system for 2016 – Election Systems & Software’s (ES&S) EVS 5.2.0.0. The contract to lease the equipment was approved by the Board of Public Works on December 17, 2014.
The new voting system features the following pieces of equipment:
- DS200 Precinct Scanner and Tabulator: Tabulates ballots marked either by hand or by the ballot marking device
- ExpressVote Ballot Marking Device: Produces a voter verifiable paper record and allows voters with disabilities to vote privately and independently
- ExpressPass Printer: Prints activation card to activate the ExpressVote ballot marking device
- DS850 High Speed Central County Scanner: Tabulates absentee and provisional ballots
Maryland’s new voting system produces a voter-verifiable paper record – a “paper trail” – of each voter’s selections. This was mandated in legislation passed by the General Assembly in 2007, however funding for a new system was not available until now.
During Early Voting and on election day, Maryland voters will have options. Some voters, including voters with disabilities, will use ExpressVote ballot marking devices to mark and print their ballots while other voters will mark pre-printed paper ballots by hand. All voters will review their marked paper ballots and then insert them into the DS200 tabulation device. The ballots will automatically drop into the secure ballot box.
If you want to learn about how SBE selected this system, visit the Voting System Selection and Procurement webpage.