This post at CTLP basically captures my thoughts on the optical scan machines. For those of you outside CT, this was the first election where we went from the old lever machines to the new optical scan machines. As the CTLP post points out, I also hated the fact that the poll worker could see my ballot, and I hate that it takes longer to vote. This election was one where I was voting party line anyway, and the old lever system that would’ve been one switch and done. Here I had to fill in the bubbles for each and every candidate. No big deal, but does make it more tedious.

The privacy thing bugged me more. If a ballot ever needs both sides, turning it over won’t be enough to hide your votes. The bold, black circles make it easy to read from a distance so there really isn’t any privacy. I think the principle of the issue bothers me more than any actual concern about my poll workers. I’ve seen them every year since I started living in West Hartford, and they’re uniformly helpful and knowledgeable.