Holmdel Voters Confused By Ballot Question Order Switch

HOLMDEL, NJ — A switch between the order in which state and local questions were laid out on sample ballots and on the actual ballots in the voting machines has caused some confusion with voters in Holmdel.

Secretary of the Monmouth County Board of Elections Allan Roth said that the sample ballots that were sent out to voters had the state questions on the left and the local questions on the right. The opposite, however, is true when it comes to the ballot on the screen.

"We told our poll workers to tell the voters that there was a switch," Roth said.

He also said poll workers were instructed to put up signs warning people that there had been a switch in the order.

According to Roth, Holmdel and Marlboro are two towns in which there have been voter complaints about this issue.

A Holmdel resident told Patch that the questions on the ballot were in "a different order" and that the descriptions of what they were voting for had been left out.

"Poll workers are aware of it but not actively telling people," the resident said.

Roth said only the questions themselves and not the explanatory statements are included on the ballots.

Another voter told Patch that their mother voted in Holmdel and that her vote was changing between two candidates, causing her to have to select it a few times.

According to Roth, this issue might have to do with the screen's touch sensitivity. The county has just acquired brand new voting machines, in addition to new electronic poll books.

The official explained that there is a sheet of light that goes over the screen and picks up anything that is roughly the diameter of a finger.

"There's nothing wrong with the machine. It's happening because they are doing something with their hand — either leaning in it too close, they're making a fist, whatever the case may be," he explained. "It's breaking the light screen because you don't have to touch the screen hard to make it work. You just have to break the sheet of light that's over the screen."

Because the screen is not heat-sensitive, something like the button of a coat might trigger the machine.

"We've been instructing the voters to make sure that they only use the pointer finger," Roth said. "It's not a problem. It's just the voters have to be a little more careful with how they're pressing."

He added that the system allows for voters to double-check their vote before they cast the ballot and that there were no issues during early voting, which happened between Oct. 23 and 31.

"We had nary a complaint during early voting. I didn't hear of any complaints. Everyone said how wonderful the new machines were."

The Office of the Monmouth County Clerk released a video last month explaining step-by-step how to vote on the new machines and how to check the ballot is correct before casting it.

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