To quell doubts about the territory’s voting machines fueled by outrage on talk radio and failed lawsuits from former Sen. Adelbert Bryan, the St. Croix Board of Elections is inviting concerned citizens to select the machines and watch them being tested this weekend.
Each machine in both districts is tested and certified before every primary and general election, and the testing is always public. But the increased level of public suspicion and concern may mean more people are interested.
“In the past, participation in certification has been minimal, but this time we anticipate a lot more people may come,” said Raymond Williams, board chairman, at a meeting of the board on Friday.
Bryan filed suit in U.S. District and V.I. Superior courts claiming voters must be given an opportunity to use paper ballots and asking for injunctions forcing the election system to accommodate their use. He argued in court and on talk radio that the type of voting machine used in the territory may be subject to political manipulation and has no voter-verified paper trail.
The machines now used were made by Shouptronic and were bought in the late 1980s. They do not produce a voter-verified paper trail but instead merely print out the electronic record after the fact. But Bryan’s suggestion that results may be tampered with does not seem to be supported by any independent evidence, according to local officials.
At the territorial level, Judge Julio Brady was blunt and acerbic in his rejection of Bryan’s request for an injunction against the V.I. election system.
"Even a cursory examination of the … arguments presented by (Bryan) demonstrate a startling absence of proof of facts," Brady wrote. "Rather, his presentation can best be described as expressions of personally held opinions on the election system."
Regardless, Bryan’s campaign set off a small series of incidents at the polls during last month’s primary, including several loud confrontations with poll workers and elections judges, and a surge of voters demanding paper ballots.
Because of those problems during the primaries, the St. Croix board voted Friday to post rules of behavior, including a ban on using cell phones and cameras inside polling places to record voters and the voting process.
“During the primary we had people going behind the voting machines to take pictures while people were using them,” said board member Rupert Ross. “To avoid that, we need a sign.”
According to V.I. Superintendent of Elections John Abramson, the very age of the machines makes them more secure than more recent, computerized voting machines.
“There are no points of entry, no portal," Abramson said in a recent interview. "And if you want to connect a monitor or jump drive, you have to have a portal. We now have a much more secure system by default, because of the age of the machines."
The system also requires a pass code, which, according to a licensing agreement with the V.I. Elections System, stays with the manufacturer. Other machines being used nationwide may have touch screens and a wireless Internet hookup, but they also "open themselves up to great vulnerability," Abramson said during that interview.
Usually, the board begins the certification process by randomly selecting voting machines to test first. But Friday, Abramson suggested a slight change to the routine.
“I would recommend letting those who show up choose the machines they want to see,” Abramson said. The board unanimously agreed. Present were Williams, Ross, board members Carmen Golden, Jacqueline Heyliger, Dodson James, Lisa Moorhead and Ana “Anita” Davila. No one was absent.
Certification of the voting machines will take place at the V.I. Elections Office in Sunny Isles, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday. The general election will be Nov. 2. For polling locations and other election information, see the Elections System website or call 773-1021, 774-3107 or 776-6535.
