Residents and election inspectors are giving Livingston County’s new voting equipment two thumbs up.

Demonstrations are being held throughout the week to give voters a crash course in using the machines that will be implemented in next month’s election. The first demonstration was held Monday evening at the Hamburg Township Library and was successful, says County Clerk Betsy Hundley. Though the session had a small turnout, those in attendance said the equipment was easy to use. Hundley tells WHMI election inspectors are happy with the system's added safety and security devices.

Hundley says those voting in the precinct on November 7th won’t see much change in the process, but will notice small differences on the ballot. Squares are replacing the fill-in bubbles and are located to the left of candidates’ names. Hundley says research has found this is best practice as most Americans read left to right. After the ballot is fed into the tabulator, an American flag appears on the machine’s screen to inform the citizen their vote has been counted.

Additional public demonstrations are being held Wednesday, from 6 to 7:30pm, at the Howell Carnegie District Library and Saturday, from 1 to 2:30pm, at the Brighton District Library. Anyone who is unable to attend or has additional questions is encouraged to contact the County Clerk’s Elections Division. (DK)