DAUPHIN COUNTY, Pa.– The Jan. 14 special election for the state 48th Senate District is the last time Dauphin County’s current voting machines will be used to cast ballots.
The Dauphin County Bureau of Registration and Elections wants to assure voters in the nine municipalities taking part in the special election that the electronic system they are familiar with will be in place. The special election covers precincts in Highspire, Middletown, Paxtang, Royalton and Steelton boroughs as well as Conewago, Londonderry, Lower Swatara and Swatara townships.
A new paper-ballot system made by Clear Ballot Group Inc. and approved in December by the commissioners will be in place in all 159 precincts for the April 28, 2020 presidential primary. The county is currently finalizing the purchase and will conduct voter training sessions on the new system prior to the primary.
The state gave Dauphin County permission to use the current voting machines for the Jan. 14 special election. Despite the commissioners’ insistence that the current machines are reliable and hack-proof, the state threatened to take the county to court if a new system certified by the commonwealth was not in place by the primary.
The mandate to buy new voting systems came after the Wolf administration in 2018 settled a lawsuit filed by Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein after the 2016 election. Stein sought a recount and alleged there were security concerns with Pennsylvania’s voting machines. Though she didn’t prove her claims in court, Wolf agreed to require the state’s 67 counties use voter-verifiable paper ballots by the 2020 election.
Voters with questions can call the county’s Elections Bureau at 717-780-6360 or visit www.DauphinCounty and then click on Government and Elections & Voter Registration.
SOURCE: Office of Dauphin County Commissioners
