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Accessible Voting
When is your primary?
Register to vote online! Go to the Federal Election Commission: http://www.fec.gov
and click on your state.
Dear Friends,
Every citizen of the United
States has a fundamental right to vote in an election. Therefore
every voting district must allow for alternative voting
access to the polling place, as well as a voting machine.
At the very least, wheelchair access must be provided. If
you live near a polling place that is inaccessible, immediately
contact your local government office, such as an alderman
or mayor's office to request access.
When it comes to privacy, polling places are still behind
in compliance. Many voters must still receive assistance
from another person, compromising his/her privacy. In order
for all disabled voters to enjoy the same privacy in voting
that non-disabled voters do, at least one voting machine
in each polling place should have an audio prompt for the
blind and an attachment allowing quadriplegics to cast votes
with their breath, using a sip-and-puff system.
If you live in Chicago, the Mayor's Office for People with
Disabilities offers these guidelines for determining if
your current polling place is accessible:
- Call the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners
for Chicago locations: (312) 269-7900 V; (312) 269-0027
TTY;
- In suburban Cook County, call the Cook
County Clerk's office at (312) 443-5150 V; (312) 443-6434
TTY;
- Outside Cook County, call the Illinois
State Board of Elections at (312) 814-8440 V; (312) 814-6431
TTY.
- Everywhere else, check with your congressman,
mayor's office, or other local representative for accessibility
guidance.
The Chicago Board
of Election Commissioners has instituted the following procedures
for Election Day:
Alternate Entrance—If
the accessible entrance to the polling place is different
from the one used by other voters, an Alternative Voter
Entrance sign indicating the location of the accessible
entrance will be posted near the polling place entrance.
Curbside Voting—If
the polling place is not accessible, election judges must
aid the voter by bringing the economy voting booth and vote
recorder to the closest point to the door of the polling place
that a voter can reach. In this location the voter will be
allowed to vote in secrecy.
A person who requests to vote curbside at an inaccessible
polling place may provide prior notice to the Board. If the
voter provides the hour in which he or she expects to vote,
the judges of election, with the assistance of a police officer,
will periodically watch the polling place door for the voter's
arrival.
Affidavit Voting—Affidavit
voting is formal assistance for a voter who is unable to actually
cast a ballot without assistance. The voter must request assistance
and may be assisted by a person of his or her choice. An affidavit
must be completed by the voter, as well as by the persons
assisting him or her.
Handi-Hold Stylus—A
specially designed voting punch, the handi-hold stylus is
provided upon request to any voter. It has a round handle
and can be easily grasped by voters who have difficulty holding
a small stylus.
Ballot Viewer—An
aid designed to enlarge the print on ballot pages is also
available to any voter. This viewer will enable visually impaired
voters to clearly see candidates' names and offices. An informational
notice printed in very large type is posted in every precinct
to assist visually impaired voters.
Absentee Voting—Absentee
voting is not the preferred way to vote for people with disabilities,
however, for some there is no other alternative.
A voter with a permanent physical disability or a qualified
nursing home resident may request a Disabled
Voter's Identification Card (DVI),
valid for a five-year period.
Help America Vote Act of 2002
http://www.fec.gov/hava/hava.htm
Definition and up-to-date information
Candace Bennett
Infinitec.org Web Site
Managing Editor
candace.bennett@sbcglobal.net
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