Nassau County's first Election Day with the new ES&S DS200 Ballot Scanner went off without a hitch in Bellmore as residents flocked to Martin Avenue Elementary School to vote. Residents used the new privacy booths and scanners with ease.
"It was a piece of cake," said Gwen Langdon of Bellmore, who thought the new voting system was as easy as could be.
On top of previous demonstrations with the new system in Bellmore, a number of poll workers were on hand to help any voters who had any type of problems with the ballot or machines. The residents seemed happy with the amount of explanation and planning that had gone into the voting process.
"I thought it went very smooth," said Brian Dolingo of Bellmore. "Everything was explained to me and I was able to write in my candidates."
Fran Schwartz, of Bellmore, added: "I thought it was very easy, very clear. The ballots were clear. The machine that took the filled-in ballot was very easy to use and I was glad to hear that they had accommodations for blind people."
Some residents who had a chance to use the new system back in the September primaries felt that Nassau County has improved with the on-site help and ability to move things along quickly.
"I used them for the Primaries," said Sudhir Vaishnev of Bellmore. "No problems, I think things have improved since the primaries."
Gloria Balaza, one of the voters on hand, is a poll worker herself. Although she obviously had no problems voting at Martin Avenue, she said that the new system had presented problems at the site she worked at.
"I had no problem," she said. "I'm a poll worker and I found that people needed to ask questions. It goes slower than the old machines. The old machines worked great, but we had to change and it takes longer."
While the new voting system might take a little time to get used to, it already seems to have had a successful start.
