As much as three weeks before Election Day, San Diego County’s touch-screen voting machines were scattered throughout the region, sitting in poll workers’ homes and garages. These machines “” a critical player in American democracy today “” were the subject of much concern, and their performance on Nov. 7 was closely watched. Little attention has been paid, however, to the volunteers who stored the machines leading up to the election, transported them to the polls on Election Day and inspected them as problems arose.
Many of these civic-minded volunteers “” paid a minimal amount for the 16-hour day “” had never worked at the polls before. And while many touch-screen inspectors were adults, some were 17-year-old high school students who volunteered in order to complete school community service requirements or government class assignments.
The Student Poll Worker Program, which began in San Diego County in 1998, has given thousands of high school students the chance to work at precincts since its inception, though students were not entrusted with voting equipment until the most recent election.
In fact, more than 1,500 high school seniors served as poll workers countywide this November, up from 200 in June, with 304 serving as touch-screen inspectors responsible for storing the machines before the election.
“This is the first time we’ve allowed [high school students] to be anything other than clerks. They didn’t go to training before,” said San Diego County Registrar of Voters Mikel Haas. “The kids all showed up. They are as trustworthy and as dedicated as the adults. They learn fast and are not intimidated by any technological devices. Their parents, teachers and schools are behind them. We haven’t had an issue with them. They’re diamonds.”
Students at least 16 years old with a 2.5 point grade average, a teacher’s recommendation and a parent’s permission are eligible for the program and can choose to serve as clerks with no training or as touch-screen inspectors.
Arthur Miramontes, a 17-year-old senior at Hilltop High School in Chula Vista, was given four machines “” three touch-screens and a card-making machine “” to bring to the polls following his orientation. Poll work helped him fulfill his school’s community service requirement.
To date, the “sleepover” policy that grants poll workers custody of voting machines leading up to elections has drawn criticism from watchdogs, but there has been little discussion about the inclusion of minors into the pool of volunteers.
In a pre-election interview, Haas refuted criticism of the advance distribution of voting machines, saying, “We know who our poll workers are.”
In a subsequent interview, Haas clarified his remark.
“We know who [the poll workers] are. We know their names and their addresses. We know where they live,” he said. “It’s a mixed bag out there. Some were touch-screen inspectors before, but there are 1,650 precincts. It’s not indicative of their performance whether they’re experienced or not.”
Haas explained that touch-screen inspectors “can be anybody and don’t have to be registered to vote,” as with high school poll workers, most of whom are under 18 and ineligible to vote.
The computer-based voting machines, which computer security specialists at Princeton and Johns Hopkins universities have demonstrated to be vulnerable to software tampering, were distributed to workers selected for their willingness to spend a long day volunteering at the polls. Key workers also had to complete a four-hour training class, though none undergo screening or background checks.
When asked if the touch-screen inspectors, who received their machines following the training, were given instructions about safeguarding the touch-screens, Haas said, “All the person had to do was keep them in a secure location.”
While an experienced adult poll worker in Point Loma who preferred not to give her name affirmed that her class was told the machines “need to be somewhere secure, not in your car,” other volunteers said they did not receive such instruction.
Todd Cullum, 17, a senior at Carlsbad High School and a touch-screen inspector at Fire Station 4 in Carlsbad, reported he was told nothing specific about storing his six machines.
“They didn’t give instructions and didn’t say anything particular about where to put them. They didn’t tell you to keep them in a secure place,” Cullum said, though he added that each has a lock and seals, and records if and when it has been turned on.
Marsha Alexander, longtime Ocean Beach resident and touch-screen inspector at the Masonic Temple in Ocean Beach, said, “I’ve never worked at the polls and they don’t know me from a hole in the wall.”
Alexander noted that she was concerned when given six of the 28-pound machines after her training with no instructions about storage or security.
“I put them in my garage and I covered them up so they weren’t visible. But I didn’t feel very comfortable with it,” she said. Alexander also expressed concern about entrusting voting machines to high school students for an extended period of time.
“I don’t think it’s a responsibility they should have to deal with. It’s absolutely not appropriate “” I felt a little put upon myself with the responsibility,” she said. “I’m not surprised since I’d heard how desperate they were for poll workers.”
By all accounts, the high school students did an excellent job setting up the touch-screens and making minor adjustments and repairs. Jim Morrison, a poll worker for 15 years and precinct inspector at Bayview Terrace Elementary School in Pacific Beach, was impressed with his 17-year-old touch-screen inspector, despite initial concerns.
“She was very diligent. She did a great job. She’d grown up with computers and was very at ease with them,” he said.
For Miramontes, “they were easy to operate,” but he found himself one of only two workers at his polling place.
Jess Durfee, San Diego County Democratic Party chairman and a former high school teacher, spoke well of using students at the polls.
“One of the things we’ve observed is that some of the longtime poll workers aren’t used to the technology. In some regards, the kids are more adept at the new technology than the longtime workers,” he said.
But reported problems with the touch-screen systems throughout the county beg the question: Is the inclusion of minors in the behind-the-scenes electoral process a benefit or liability for the county registrar of voters?
On Nov. 7, many machines malfunctioned and were taken out of service either temporarily or for the day. Some poll workers and voters complained about inadequate training, though Haas said training was increased from three to four hours for this election.
On the training, Alexander said she was a given a DVD and notebook to review and “at the time, (the training) seemed adequate,” though Election Day was “chaos.”
“There was a lot to learn in four hours,” said the Point Loma poll worker, who noted that there were far more security steps for this election than in previous years. “I felt they went overboard in security, with the checks and rechecks and seals. Everything had to be signed by two people. This election had more procedures than usual.”
Yet some voters experienced problems at the polls. Former City Councilwoman Valerie Stallings, who requested a paper ballot, was told in error that hers would be treated as a provisional ballot, even though her name appeared on the voter register.
Judy Hyde, a University City resident who uses a cane, said she was ridiculed by a 30-something male poll worker when she requested a paper ballot because of her concerns about voting machine security, saying, “Maybe next year you’ll be brave and take a chance on the computers.”
“I thought it was extremely inappropriate to make fun of seniors for asking for a paper ballot,” Hyde said.
Elsewhere, paper ballots ran out quickly, especially when voting machines went down. Durfee received one of the last paper ballots at his University Heights precinct at 9 a.m., by which time one of three touch-screens had malfunctioned.
“By the time a friend voted at noon, all three machines were down and everyone was voting on photocopied paper ballots,” Durfee said. “These machines shut down all over the county. Mikel Haas assured us that this would not happen.”
Durfee noted that the San Diego County Democratic Party has compiled over 200 reports of voting problems and that he has called for Haas’ resignation.
“We’ve tried this twice. [The machines] don’t work. It’s time to go back to paper ballots and go to optical scanners,” Durfee said. “How many people came out of the polling place not sure whether they voted or if their vote counted?”
While Morrison felt that voters in Pacific Beach were mostly happy with the new touch-screen system and felt confident with the computers, Alexander in Ocean Beach disagreed. At her precinct, three of the six machines went down, and all six had to be jury-rigged to alternate power supplies.
“Most of the people said they were comfortable using the machines, but their last question was, ‘Will my vote be counted?’ People had heard and read the reports of problems. There was an atmosphere of distrust,” she said.
Haas, still in the midst of final ballot counting ” he expects counting will continue until election certification in December “does not anticipate abandoning the electronic systems.
“It’s too soon to see about potential changes. We’ll look at what went right and what went wrong,” he said.