Democracy in action
The voting machines in 43 states are at least a decade old and in danger of malfunctioning
The technology voters will use in more than 80 percent of states to cast their ballots this coming Election Day is wildly outmoded, according to a new report from New York University School of Law's Brennan Center for Justice.
The center's researchers "surveyed more than 100 specialists familiar with voting technology, including voting machine vendors, independent technology experts, and election officials in all 50 states" to find that in 43 out of 50 states, the voting machines in use are at least 10 years old. This places the majority of them close to or even past their expected lifetime, and it also means they're running on software and security measures that are long out of date. Beyond software concerns, many machines still in use also require repairs using parts that are no longer manufactured.
At least 22 of the 31 states that will need new machines before 2020 have no plan for how to fund the purchase. As Louisiana Secretary of State Tom Schedler commented in a hearing on voting machines, "It’s getting a little scary out there."