READING, Pa. – The Berks County Board of Elections voted Thursday to approve the schedule for testing election equipment ahead of the May 19 primary election.
Berks County Commissioner Christian Y. Leinbach urged members of the public and leadership from the Democratic and Republican parties to attend in order to observe the accuracy of the equipment.
“I don’t look on it as a good thing when nobody’s showing up,” Leinbach said. “So, I’m imploring the party leadership at the very least to be there; both parties. I don’t want to hear complaints later about not having access, and then anyone else that believes that this is important, be there.”
Election officials explained the testing process involves certifying all the equipment and then sealing them until Election Day.
“Whether we’re talking about the electronic poll books, the ballot marking device or the ballot counting civil scanners, all of those, it applies the same,” Leinbach said. “But I really noticed recently that there is hardly anybody showing up and some cases I think we’ve actually had no one.”
Director of Elections Anne Norton said it is the best practice for anyone wishing to attend to preregister. All the information is available on the Election Services page on the county web site.
Norton outlined the schedule: The ExpressVote ballot marking devices and the high-speed scanners will be tested on April 13 at 9 a.m. at the South Campus in Mohnton.
The electronic poll book testing will begin at 9 a.m. on May 11 at the South Camous and the central counting tabulators will be on May 8 beginning at 10 a.m. on the third floor of 600 Penn Street in Reading.
Norton said the equipment technician will be happy to answer any questions at that time.
Norton also said during the meeting that approximately 17,400 mail-in absentee ballots will be mailed to voters who requested them about one month before Election Day.
May 4 is the last day to register to vote or update registration, and May 12 is the last day to request a mail in ballot.