Day before early voting, glitch found with machines
by Matthew Thompson, Charleston Daily Mail
Charleston, W.Va. -- On the eve of early voting, problems with the general election ballots are causing Kanawha County officials to conduct an emergency test of its voting machines.
On Monday, the Secretary of State's office notified the County Clerk's office of a problem in the programming cards used in the M100 machines.
The machines scan a person's optical scan ballot to determine if they have made any mistakes, such as voting for too many candidates.
County Commission President Kent Carper said the problem is in the section for Supreme Court candidates.
If a person votes a straight party ticket, then deviates from the party in the Supreme Court section, the machine still counts the vote as a full straight ticket, Carper said.
Carper said he's pleased the mistake was caught before early voting begins Wednesday at 8 a.m.
"There's a glitch and they caught it and corrected it, but I have to say it's not a great confidence builder," Carper said. "Voter confidence is paramount."
