As State Legislators across the nation discuss the pros and cons of old-fashioned, hand lever voting machines vs. newer, touch-screen electronic models, let's not forget about our blind and physically disabled voters.
I am one of the approximately 1.1 million blind citizens living in the United States today. I am also a husband and the father of two wonderful kids. I work, pay taxes, own a home, travel independently and do a lot of volunteer work with the blind in our state. I go to church, take care of the house, cook most of our meals and maintain several gardens with vegetables that I start from seed. I own and use power tools, I've painted my garage, and built my kids a tree fort. Last summer, along with the help of another blind guy, I totally renovated my master bathroom.
I can do all these things, completely by myself. But one thing I can't do is vote independently. I have to have sighted assistance for this. Sure, I can have one of the election volunteers at the voting booths help. But how can I be certain they cast my vote the way I want? I have no idea who these people are, what their politics are or how they feel about the mental capacities of blind voters. There is no way for me to ascertain if they voted the way I indicated.
The right to vote independently and privately is fundamental to a democracy. There is a reason that people go into a voting booth alone. There is a reason that people pull the curtain behind them before they place their vote. Our voting system is designed with absolute freedom in mind. Freedom to vote for whomever we want, free of pressure from any outside observer. This freedom needs to be extended to the blind and visually impaired.
Voting reform is inevitable. After the fiasco of the 2000 presidential election and the difficulties encountered in many states, I don't think anyone can deny that. Americans take a lot of pride in being the leader of the free world. If we expect to continue to command the respect that comes with that title we must not accept any voting system that is subject to challenges. We must not accept any system that can be perceived as substandard.
Moving to an electronic system is the logical choice. This is great for blind and visually impaired people because speech technology has progressed to a point that makes almost anything electronic operable by a blind person. It has only been in the last few years that blind citizens have been able to utilize talking ATM machines.
Earlier this month, some voting districts in California, Kentucky, Tennessee and Texas used accessible electronic voting machines for their primary elections. These machines were voice guided, or ATM style. At the 2001 convention of the National Federation of the Blind there were three different vendors with accessible voting machines on display. Nothing new needs to be invented here, the technology already exists.
Of course the largest objection to changing to newer voting technology is cost. However, Congress has approved a voter reform bill that will finance up to eighty percent of a state's costs for moving to the newer systems. A similar bill is currently being discussed in the Senate. President Bush has indicated that he supports moving to the newer technology.
There are things that I need sighted help with, and I am appreciative of the many people in my life that provide such assistance and have helped me get to where I am today. I am very grateful to have the opportunity to vote and express my concerns. But this is a no-brainer. The number of senior citizens in our country is increasing every day, so the ranks of the disabled are growing in turn. We all have a constitutional right to vote independently and privately, this should not even be a debate.
I encourage all blind and visually impaired Americans to contact their local Representatives and demand accessible voting technology be approved in there state. And now, not some time off in the future. It is time to move forward and update our voting system so that every American can be counted.