Is ES&S Gaming the Disabled Voting Technology Market?

(This article, by Vote Trust USA and VotersUnite.Org Information Manager John Gideon can be found at: http://www.oregonvrc.org/go/ES&SControl)

News from Vote Trust USA:
ES&S, one of America's largest voting machine manufacturers has a strange way of selling the system that provides the disabled with access to its widely praised optical scan voting machines. The optical scan machines, which are popular because they are cheaper and produce a paper trail for election recounts, can be adapted to support the needs of disabled voters through the use of the AutoMARK Voter Assist Terminal (VAT) system.

ES&S has an exclusive agreement to market the AutoMARK VAT system as an add-on to ES&S systems, and AutoMARK's system just completed successful federal elections standards testing (http://www.automarkts.com ), so there should be a strong market for the AutoMARK VAT. However, it's hard to conclude ES&S is trying its best to sell the AutoMARK VAT when a recent VoteTrustUSA article offers examples where ES&S is:

1) Refusing to demo AutoMARK in one of the largest US markets.
2) Reducing the commission paid to salespeople who sell AutoMARK.
3) Minimizing publicity about the AutoMARK 's successes.
4) Increasing AutoMARK's price as the size of the contract increases.

Gideon's article is particularly important for members of the Federal Election Assistance Commission, serious elected elections officials, members of the disabled community and public guardians. After reading it, they may well need to ask if ES&S's action are marketing techniques designed to take advantage of a business bonanza or if those actions are evidence that ES&S is trying to decide where and whether Americans will be voting on paper or on the paperless touch screen machines ES&S also sells--and whether America's disabled community will be forced to vote via touch screen machines even if there are better and cheaper technologies available for them.

For interviews with John Gideon or with other members of Vote Trust USA, please contact the Vote Trust USA national office at 847-869-5025 or by e-mail at: jkrawitz@votetrustusa.org . An extensive number of articles by Vote Trust USA members can be found online at: http://www.VoteTrustUSA.org . VoteTrustUSA is a project of The Campaign for Fresh Air & Clean Politics, a non-profit, non-partisan 501c-3(h) organization devoted to ensuring that all American votes are honestly cast on paper ballots, accurately counted and easily available for recount.

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