Now that North Carolina will face a shorter early voting period this year, the simple task of casting a vote could now become longer and more laborious.
Orange County officials should implement some of the measures officially recommended by the Commission on Election Administration in a report to President Barack Obama last month, in order to make voting as painless as possible.
The report mentions there is no one-size-fits-all program to be implemented across the country. Instead, proposals such as online voter registration, extra voting stations and elections personnel, are measures local elections officials can implement and should focus on.
Such measures will help compensate for the shortened early voting period, which will decrease from 17 to 10 days. They would shorten wait times and improve public confidence.
Orange County elections officials would, in fact, be remiss if they don’t apply some alternatives to the voting process, as time will be of the essence.
One of the Commission’s key recommendations calls for a modernized voter registration process. Expanding online voter registration while collaborating with state-run web portals would improve accuracy of voter lists and give voters instant feedback on the vote they cast. This is not only invaluable, but cost-effective, avoids the errors inherent in paper-based voting and reduces delays when counting ballots.
Extra polling stations would reduce congestion at high population sites, so that voters can avoid a needlessly complex process and long lines. Utilizing well-equipped facilities, like schools, is also recommended.
Added personnel, preferably well-trained and bilingual, would ease of voting lines at extra polling stations. This also serves a larger bulk of voters.
