Regarding the article “Paper ballots cost Westmoreland County taxpayers $31 per vote” (June 3, TribLive): Paper vs. printed? As a trained poll worker, I can assure you both methods are secure. There is no difference in the validity of each vote, whether we use pen to paper or a ballot printed from the touch-screen machine (TSM).
Each precinct is supplied with clearly marked emergency paper ballots in case all TSMs go down. Subsequently, all unused paper ballots are destroyed.
The demand for paper ballots stems from the misconception that the TSM actually counts votes. Votes are only counted when the ballot (paper or printed) is put into the same scanner. The scanner will reject a paper ballot with erroneous marks from a pen, and the voter will need to start over. This does not happen with printed ballots.
Wasteful spending could be rectified if Commissioners Sean Kertes and Doug Chew understood the voting process at the polls. Our commissioners, who sit on the board of elections, should attend poll worker/judge of elections training before they vote to spend more money on ballots in November. Cutting costs, not peddling misinformation, should be the top priority.
Susan Witt
Greensburg