Voters will experience a blast from the not-too- distant past Tuesday when they use the old lever voting machines to cast their primary ballots. The city Board of Elections pushed for the one-time use of the retro devices, which were last used in the 2009 election, primarily because they are better suited to a two-person runoff. “It’s a much more shorter time process to change it to a two-person contest,” BOE spokeswoman Valerie Vazquez said. But not everyone is convinced the old ways are the best. City Councilwoman Gale Brewer, the chair of the governmental operations committee and a candidate for Manhattan borough president, said she is concerned that voters will be confused by the temporary change. “I think it’s weird for 21st century to be available and then go to the lever machines,” she said. “I’m not hopeful, but I might be wrong.”
The board asked state lawmakers to move the primary date to the summer to give them more time to prepare for a runoff, but Albany leaders denied the request.
Vazquez said the denial forced the BOE to go with Plan B: the return of the lever machines just for the primary election. The legislature and governor approved that request in July, as well as a new Oct. 1 runoff date, instead of Sept. 24.
More than 5,000 machines have been in storage since 2009, the last time they were used in an election, Vazquez said, adding that they have gone through a complete inspection.
Full Article: The return of the lever pull: To prepare for runoff, BOE goes Lo-Fi.