Cleburne County Arkansas Rejects Voting Machines – Will Move to Paper Ballots
CLEBURNE COUNTY, Ark. – A Cleburne County quorum court voted to remove voting machines from elections, making it a “paper ballot” county.
Officials with the Arkansas Voter Integrity Initiative Inc. (AVII) said the vote was in response to AVII CEO Colonel Conrad Reynolds’ push for election computers to be removed from Arkansas elections. The decision will now require votes to be hand counted.
“The machines do not read the names on the ballots, instead they scan barcodes, which humans cannot read,” Reynolds said. “They also utilize proprietary software that we are not allowed to examine. This all means voters cannot verify that their vote is being counted properly as mandated by state law.”
An AVII attorney noted that it is in Arkansas law that each county has the right to choose their voting process.
Cleburne County Justice of the Peace Jacque Martin voted in favor of moving to paper ballots, stating “It’s time we take back and return to having elections we can have faith in – with transparency and integrity.”
AVII officials said that they are aiming to get the remaining 74 county quorum courts in the state to vote to return to paper ballots by early 2023.