Harris County Electronic Voting Implementation Project Overview

· In the November 2001 elections, Harris County's new electronic voting system was used for early voting in person. The eSlate™ performed efficiently, and a record number of voters turned out to use the new equipment.

· The equipment was used successfully in Early Voting for the March 2002 primary elections, and demo eSlate™ units were happily tested by voters in Election Day polling places. By the November 2002 general elections, the new system will be fully in place for Early Voting and Election Day voting.

· Harris County, the 3rd largest county in the nation, is the largest county in the United States to adopt an electronic voting system.

· Through the HarrisVotes! outreach campaign, Harris County Clerk Beverly Kaufman is committed to making all registered voters familiar and comfortable with the new equipment before they encounter it in the polling place.

· Harris County began researching voting systems well before November 2000, when the presidential election brought voting methods to the forefront of public discussion. While the old system was accurate and highly effective, it was getting more costly to maintain and was limited in the size of ballot it could support.

· Harris County Clerk Beverly Kaufman put together a community-based task force to look at new voting systems. The task force selected the eSlate™ Electronic Voting System, designed by Texas-based Hart InterCivic, Inc. The equipment is built in Sugar Land, Texas.

· The eSlate™ device is about the size of a legal pad, one inch thick, and weighs just 5.2 pounds. The voter uses a rotary wheel to navigate through the ballot and select his or her vote. This rotary interface was chosen because it is more accurate and durable than touch-screen systems.

· The new system is user-friendly. The voter can select English or Spanish, and other languages may be added later. The eSlate™ provides greater ease of use and privacy for disabled and mobility-impaired voters, and can even accommodate breath control - "sip and puff" - users. The system also includes an audio ballot reader for the visually impaired or literacy-challenged.

· The new electronic voting system is easy, accurate, secure, and private.

· Ms. Kaufman is asking the community to help get the word out through the HarrisVotes! Partners program. For more information, please visit our website at www.harrisvotes.org.