Access issues during primary
I attended a debriefing on Thursday at the DC Board of Elections and Ethics on the state of access by the disability community during the September Primary. In attendance were myself, Bill O’Field, Jim Dickson, with American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), Amy Metzel, with University Legal Services (ULS), the local Protection and Advocacy agency, Tracy Warren, and Laura White. We discussed some major problems that voters with disabilities encountered at the polling places, and what the Board of Elections could do to resolve them. Amy Metzel presented a report from ULS. The report stated that:
1. Poll workers often did not utilize the access at certain poliing places.
Often, accessible entrances, particularly at schools, were locked, and poll workers did not bother to ask maintenance personnel to unlock these doors. It was agreed that the Board would communicate with maintenance personnel itself to make sure that this does not happen in the future.
2. In some cases, signage indicating the accessible entrances to polling places was either nonexistent, or confusing.
It was suggested that during the set-up of the polling places, the precinct captains would be required to fill out an accessibility checklist, and sign off on it, making them accountable if simple and do-able accessiblity measures are not met. the Board and the disability community will also create a cadre of disabilty advocates and activist who will visit each polling place on the day before Election Day to make sure that the sites are accessible.
3. Poll workers did not know how to use the electronic voting machines.
Currently, the Board offers poll workers the opportunity to practice on the electronic voting machines during training. I suggested that this be a mandatory part of the training rather than elective, and cited the fact that the state of Maryland already does this. The Board agreed to the suggestion. This would be especially helpful for seniors and others who may feel uncomfortable with electronics and computers, as a staff member will be present to answer their questions and address their concerns.
4. Curbside voting is being used as an excuse not to make polling places accessible.
Poll workers at several polling places have been encouraging voters with disabilities to use curbside voting so that they won’t have to deal with accessibility requirements. Both the Board and the disability community are angry over this. The Board stated emphatically that it wants to do away with curbside voting for a number of reasons, and will be agressive in emphasizing this during upcoming poll worker trainings.
These are just a few of the concerns and problems that were discussed during the debriefing. Some of these problems comes down to a simple matter of the prevailing societal attitude of poll workers and precinct captains. Though there has been some improvement, especially in the area of etiquette, there is still a ways to go. A combination of education, and holding polling place staff accountable will help greatly. I feel that the Board is very sincere in its efforts to make Election Day a positive experience for voters with disabilities. They were extremely receptive to input from the disability community, and will continue to work closely with us.