Electronic Voting Expected To Go Smoothly For February Primary

Counties around Arkansas are preparing and testing hundreds of touch-screen electronic voting machines for the state's February Fifth presidential primary. And election officials say they don't expect the problems that plagued the new machines in elections two years ago. Several counties said they have begun testing or will begin testing the electronic voting machines this week in advance of the primary, which has been moved up from May. Early voting is scheduled to begin January 29th.

Tuesday, Pulaski County officials began testing about 160 electronic voting machines that will be used during early voting and on election day for the presidential primary. County election coordinator Susan Inman says testing on the machines will take several days. But Inman says she doesn't anticipate any major problems with the equipment. Election officials around the state are hoping to avoid a repeat of 2006, when equipment and tabulation delays plagued the May primary and June runoff, the first major tests of equipment that was supposed to ease the voting process.

More than 3,900 touch-screen machines will be used in next month's primary. That's the first time the state's presidential contest has been held this early.

Lawmakers decided to move the presidential primary earlier to give the state more influence in the presidential contest. But Secretary of State Charlie Daniels and Governor Beebe have questioned whether the state will have more pull. More than 20 other states are also holding their presidential primaries on the same day as Arkansas.

A spokeswoman for the secretary of state's office says it's too early for Daniels to offer a prediction on turnout. But the state saw a flood of voter registration applications filed Monday, the deadline to register for the primary.

Monday, the state received 1,738 applications. That far eclipsed the 1,416 who registered in January 2007.