Voting Machines

VOTING MACHINES AND INSTRUCTIONS
Election Department - Clark County, Nevada
Last updated on February 01, 2008

Voting Process
Overview: An election official will direct you to the correct precinct table when you first enter your polling place. You will give your name to the Clerk at the precinct table. The Clerk will find your name in the Precinct Register and ask you to sign next to your facsimile signature. The Clerk will then verify your identity by comparing your handwritten signature to your facsimile signature. The Clerk will complete a voting receipt showing your precinct number, then give you the receipt and direct you to an "Edge" (touch-screen) voting machine to vote. All voting machines will have Spanish and English ballots and instructions.

Touch-Screen Electronic Voting Machines
Technology Leader: The Clark County Election Department is recognized throughout the United States as a leader in incorporating technology into the voting process. Both during early voting and on Election Day, you will find voting is quick and easy.
Electronic Touch-Screen Voting Machines: Touch-screen machines are used in all Clark County polling locations. Similar in appearance to an ATM machine, the machines make voting easy and assist you throughout the voting process. You register your choices and cast your ballot electronically by touching a screen. When you have made all your selections, a printer records your choices and you must confirm they are accurate before casting your ballot. If you have made an error, you void the paper record, correct your mistake on the touch-screen machine, and the printer reprints your selections. After you confirm the printout is accurate, you cast your ballot. The paper record then scrolls out of view and the machine resets for the next voter. The touch-screen machines allow you to vote in either English or Spanish and support audio voting for vision impaired persons as well as sip-and-puff technology. Click here for instructions how to vote on touch-screen machines.

Optical Scan Paper Ballots
Description: Optical scan paper ballots are used for mail/absentee ballot voting, emergency voting and challenge voting.
How to Vote an Optical Scan Ballot: Clark County began using this type of voting system for the first time in the 2004 elections. Voters will receive voting instructions when they receive their optical scan paper ballot.

Security
Accuracy and Integrity: Clark County's residents can be absolutely confident in the accuracy and integrity of each election:
	The electronic touch-screen voting machines are stand-alone units and cannot be “hacked into” because they are not on a network.
	The software used on each machine is obtained directly from the Secretary of State who received it directly from the federal laboratory that tested it. It is then verified with hash coding algorithms to ensure no one has tampered with it and that it is the exact software the federal laboratory tested.
	The machines are stored in a secure environment in which access is limited and monitored by cameras, motion sensors, and various other sensor and personnel monitoring systems.
	The machines are delivered to the polling locations in a manner that prevents anyone from tampering with them without it being immediately evident to election poll workers.
	Finally, when the election is over, all results are audited. The number of individuals who signed precinct registers are matched with the number of ballots cast, and the electronically recorded results are matched with the results verified by the voters on the paper printouts.