The recount board for the October 6, 2009 City of Davenport Third Ward Primary Election met on October 12, 2009 at 9:00 a.m. in the Board Room of the Scott County Administrative Center.

Candidate Michael Elliott appointed Michael Angelos as his representative on the recount board.  Candidate Paul Vasquez appointed Sharon Vasquez as his representative on the recount board.  The representatives appointed Keith Meyer to be the third member of the board.

The board received the ballots cast in the election from each precinct individually, beginning with the absentee precinct, and continuing with precinct 3-1 through 3-4, respectively.  The following process was used to recount the votes in each precinct.

Each board member reviewed each ballot and agreed on the candidate for which the ballot was cast.  As the board reviewed each ballot the ballots were separated by candidates.  After all ballots had been reviewed for a particular precinct each board member hand counted the results.  Each board member then publically stated the vote total for each candidate.

The board requested that the ballots to be tallied through each precinct?s respective voting machine.  Election Supervisor Richard Bauer cleared the previous results from the machine memory and ran a zero tape on each voting machine which had been used in the election to tabulate the results.  Auditor Moritz took the ballots for each precinct being recounted and ran them through each respective voting machine, after which Supervisor Bauer ran a results tape and sealed the ballots.

In each precinct the results were identical to the Election Canvass held on October 8th.

The board adjourned at 11:40 a.m.

On October 6th the Elections Department conducted primary elections for the cities of Buffalo and Davenport to narrow the field of contestants for the upcoming municipal elections to be held on November 3rd.  In Buffalo seven candidates vied for six positions on the general election ballot.  Of those six candidates, voters in Buffalo will elect three to the city council.  Congratulations to Kim Buchanan, Christine Carson, Olin Meador, Dana Jo Smith, Dave Stickrod, and Debbie Wilson on making it through the Buffalo Primary Election. 

In Davenport, three candidates in the Third Ward vied for two positions on the general election ballot.  One of those candidates will be elected as Third Ward Alderman on November 3rd.  The incumbant Bill Boom received 190 votes.  There was a very close decision for second place, with one vote separating the apparent winner, Paul Vasquez, who garnered 58 votes, from Michael Elliott, who garnered 57 votes.  Michael Elliott has requested a recount.  Congratulations to Bill Boom, and tentatively, to Paul Vasquez on making it through the Third Ward Primary Election.

The recount of the Third Ward Primary Election results will occur on Monday, October 12th starting at 9:00 a.m. with the recount board meeting in the Board Room on the 1st floor of the County Administration Building, 600 West 4th Street in Davenport.  Each candidate will appoint a representative to the recount board.  Their first order of business will be to appoint a third member to the board.  The candidates have informed my office that Keith Meyer will be selected as the third member.  We hope to have the recount completed within a few hours.  If the results change then the report of the recount board would be presented to the County Board of Supervisors at their Tuesday, october 13th meeting for recertification.

SCHOOL BOARD ELECTIONS

School Board elections were held on Tuesday, September 8th. Our thanks to all the candidates for putting themselves forward and conducting campaigns for office. Our system of self-government does not work unless people are willing to make it work. Davenport had six candidates for three positions and North Scott had four candidates vying for three positions. All other races were uncontested.

The candidates for the Davenport School Board were Richard Clewell, Pat Zamora, Larry Roberson, Karen Boyd, Jon Rasler and Deborah Dierkes. Congratulations to Clewell, Zamora and Roberson for their victories.

The candidates for the North Scott School Board were Elizabeth Bosworth, Joe Slater, Mark Kruse and Robert Frieden. Congratulations to Bosworth, Slater and Kruse on their wins.

The winners for the Bettendorf School Board are Scott Tinsman, Jr., Betsy Justis and Pepper Trahan. The winners for the Pleasant Valley School Board are Francis Dohmen, Heather Witters and John Archer.

Three members were elected to the Eastern Iowa Community College District (EICC), including Shirley Stewart, Milton Shaw and John Frampton. The ballot measure to continue the building and maintenance levy for EICC passed in Scott County with 75.7 percent voting yes and 24.3 percent voting no.

Unfortunately, the turn out for this election was extremely light, with only 2.86 percent of registered voters casting ballots countywide. The best voting precinct was North Scott 6 with a 20.03 percent turnout.

ELECTRONIC POLL BOOK COMES TO SCOTT COUNTY

My office conducted an experiment in the use of an electronic poll book in one precinct in the North Scott School Board election. The precinct involved was North Scott 4 which votes at the Scott County Library in Eldridge. This precinct had the most number of voters in the county, 307 in total, so this gave the system a good test. I noted in an earlier post that my staff and I were following the development of the Precinct Atlas program by Cerro Gordo County, and its evolution to a statewide program maintained by the Office of Secretary of State. The poll book is contained in a laptop computer and can aid poll workers in handling the increasingly complex task of conducting elections, making election results more accurate in terms of properly processing special case voters, such as election day registrants or provisional voters. Also, we hope to see cost savings in the extensive amount of data processing that occurs after an election as this data will now be electronically stored and can be uploaded into the I-VOTERS, the statewide voter database.

The poll workers liked using the program, although it does take some time to learn it if you have never before used a computer. Workers who were familar with computers caught on much faster. It handled all of the special voter situations we wanted it to handle, making poll worker jobs easier for them. Most telling, the amount of time it took to update voter history was cut by two-thirds. Most of that time was spent on formatting, a one time job, and the actual time it took to upload the records was less than a second!

We plan to expand the experiment to more precincts in the upcoming municipal elections, hoping to target three to five precincts. We hope to get a better test of the system during the city elections as many more people vote in these elections compared to school board elections. Our goal is to assess whether to use the program in next year’s general election, and if so, determine the number of precincts in which to use it.

PRIMARY ELECTIONS FOR CITY COUNCIL IN BUFFALO AND DAVENPORT’S THIRD WARD

There will be a primary election for city council candidates in Buffalo and Davenport’s Third Ward on October 6th. In Buffalo there are seven candidates vying for six positions for the city election on November 3rd. Those candidates are Kim Buchanan, Christine Carson, Olin Meador, Danny Raney, Dana Jo Smith, Dave Stickrod and Debbie Wilson. Buffalo voters can vote for three candidates, with the top six vote getters moving onto the November election.

In Davenport’s Third Ward the candidates are Bill Boom, Michael Elliott and Paul Vasquez. Voters can vote for one candidate, and the top two voter getters move onto the November election.

IOWA STATE ASSOCIATION OF COUNTY AUDITORS (ISACA)

I attended the summer meeting of ISACA on July 28 & 29. This was a part conference, part business meeting bringing county auditors from throughout Iowa together to review changes in election law, to share best practices from many different offices, and to discuss and vote on a variety of legislative proposals. We heard from Michael Mauro, Iowa Secretary of State, and his staff about various issues (more on this below).

The business meeting involved discussion and voting on sixteen proposals for changing Iowa law related to county auditors and their duties. Six of the proposals related to non-election items, including assessment of medical examiner fees, real estate transfer fees, misuse by cities of property tax abatements and various issues related to townships. All six measures passed.

There were ten proposals related to elections. Eight were approved and two were voted down. Several of the proposals were technical in nature, but some were more substantive. Some of the measures which passed included increasing the maximum population for precincts from 3,500 to 7,500; changing the law to make it clear that Iowa allows so-called no-fault absentee voting; and allowing for in-person use of ballot scanners for absentee voting at satellite locations. The two measures which failed included counting write-in ballots only if they might change the outcome of an election and removing from election various non-partisan positions, such a soil and water commissioners, from the general election ballot.

REVIEW BY MICHAEL MAURO – IOWA SECRETARY OF STATE

One of the highlights of the conference was the address by Mike Mauro. Mike is a former Polk County Auditor, so he brings an “in the trenches” approach to the Secretary’s office. He reported that in the 2008 general election the new election day registration law led to a sixty-seven percent decrease in provisional voting from the 2004 general election. The reason for this was that most voters who took advantage of this provision were previously registered in Iowa, but had failed to update their registrations after moving to a new county. Without this law, 45,000 otherwise qualified voters would not have had their votes counted. He also reported that Iowa has fully converted to a voter verified paper ballot system. These changes, along with Iowa’s defacto no-fault absentee voting, have led to very favorable reviews of Iowa’s election system by the Pew Charitable Trust and the United States Election Assistance Commission.

Mauro also noted a variety of smaller changes in election law to assist county auditors in carrying out their duties and helping voters to cast their ballots. These changes included an ongoing revision of administrative rules to make them clear and less redundant, allowing auditors to identify errors on absentee ballot affidavits so that voters can correct these errors (previous law required the rejection of absentee ballots when there were errors on voter affidavits), and setting specific dates on which special elections can occur. In all he noted ten changes either made by his office or proposals he made which were passed by the legislature.

Scott County is the only major county in Iowa which has no staff nationally certified in election administration.  As noted in my last post, Scott County is one of only two counties which does not have state certification in election administration.  Certification is important because it leads to improved methods of operation and efficiency in the conduct of elections.  The result is improved service to voters and to taxpayers. 

As Scott County Auditor, I intend to change this situation by obtaining both state and national certification.  To begin the national certification process I attended a training seminar at Auburn University from May   to June    sponsored the Election Center.

The Election Center is an arm of the National Association of Election Officials.  It is the premier organization for training and certification of election and voter registration administrators.  The Center also conducts annual events such as national conferences and several regional workshops and seminars throughout the year which are designed specifically for government elections units.  The Center trains between 600 and 1,000 election and voter registration administrators every year.

The seminar I attended was part of the Center’s Professional Education Program (PEP).  The PEP is a joint effort of the Center and Auburn University’s public administration faculty and offers college level instruction for the professional growth and development of government officials in the elections and voter registration process.  These classes are conducted in several locations throughout the year.  The PEP won an award as the most outstanding continuing education program in America from the National College and University Continuing Education Association (1995).

My classes included Communications in Election and Voter Registration Administration, Law of Elections and Voter Registration, and History of Elections Part I and Part II.  I have additional classes to take before I obtain certification. 

Pictured with Roxanna is Douglas Lewis, the Executive Director of the Election Center.

Changes in State Law

The 2009 Iowa General Assembly is now closed with the legislature enacting many bills. There were several bills which affected the operations of the auditor’s office in terms of administration of health benefits, including medically necessary prosthetic devices, health insurance coverage for diabetes self-management and health care coverage of adult children.  The finance staff is working to incorporate these changes into our operations.

In the elections arena the legislature passed one bill which will cause a significant change in operations of general elections, and several bills which will have lesser effects. The most significant bill is the one for counting absentee ballots on the day before election day. This bill allows county auditors to opt for counting these ballots early.  Also, it mandates counting absentee ballots early when ballot counting was not complete by 10:00 p.m. of the previous general election.  The special precinct election board is in charge of the actual tabulation of votes and is prohibited by this new law from revealing the results of the vote until after all other tabulation has been completed on Election Day.  I intend to count absentee ballots early in general elections with significant amounts of absentee voting.  This allows ample time for an administrative recount if a voting machine malfunctions.

Other changes include allowing for opening the polls for city elections at 12:00 noon instead of 7:00 a.m.; requiring county auditors to retain records from precinct caucuses for 22 months; changing some of the time frames for absentee balloting in health care facilities; and requiring at least seven day prior notification to the political parties and candidates  of the intent to open a satellite voting station to allow them to appoint observers.

Iowa SEAT Certification -  On April 14 – 17 two staff members and I attended Iowa State Election Administrators Training (SEAT) Session I. Iowa SEAT provides certification in administration of Iowa election laws and the practice of election administration. This was the first of three sessions needed to obtain certification as election administrators. Prior to our attendance Scott County was one of only two counties in Iowa which did not have any personnel certified in election administration.

Iowa was one of the first states to introduce specialized training for election officials. The program was set up by county and state election personnel following the events of the year 2000 general election. They recognized that Iowa needed to upgrade its election programs to guarantee our elections are fair and accurate. Iowa State University helped to put the program together along with the Iowa State Association of County Auditors and the Iowa Secretary of State’s Office. The concepts provided by this program have been used nationally to help train election officials in other states.

There are two more sessions to attend before myself and two members of my staff become certified. Depending on the county budget situation, I hope to have all election personnel certified within the next two to three years.

Roxanna Moritz and Staff Display Their SEAT Certificates

Post Election Audit Bill Stalls in Iowa Senate – As you know, I support post election audits. So does Iowa Secrtary of State Michael Mauro. He formed an ad-hoc committee which included county auditors, staff from his office, Iowans for Voting Integrity and the League of Women Voters to study this issue and develop suggested legislation. The bill before the legislature came from the work of this committee. This bill would help assure the public that the optical scan tabulators used throughout Iowa to count ballots are working properly, and that Iowa elections are fair and accurate. It would have required hand counts of ballots from randomized precincts to insure the machines function properly. In Scott County we would count ballots from four precincts selected by lot.

The bill passed the Iowa House. Unfortunately, it stalled in the Senate committee to which it was assigned, and never made it to the floor of the Senate before adjournment. Post election audits are a good idea, and the legislature should take up this bill during next year’s session.

Auditor Roxanna Moritz Supports Hand Counted Audits of Vote Tabulators Such as the One Shown Above

Electronic Poll Books – The Elections Department staff and I have been monitoring development of electronic poll book software system by Cerro Gordo County Auditor, Ken Kline. An electronic poll book is a computer system that allows election officials to review and process voter information during an election, and is used in place of paper-based poll books. The functions of an electronic poll book include voter identification and verification, precinct assignment, ballot assignment, voter history update and other functions such as name change, address change and redirecting voters to their correct voting location. Commercial systems are rather expensive, and require a separate vendor supplied programmer to program the system for a specific state.

The software developed by Ken Kilne is specifically programmed to reflect Iowa election law. Secretary of State Michael Mauro has arranged to make this program available free of charge to counties wishing to use it. It runs on a precinct basis with one or more note book computers in a stand alone network linked by commercial software. The system is a complement to the existing paper-based system so that in the event of a power outage or other catastrophic event the election would continue. As voters are processed at the polling place their information is stored in the computer memory and later down loaded into the I-VOTERS database. This would avoid a lot of tedious hand data entry (and the cost of over-time and temp employees) to update voter history and new registrations.

This system also contains an internal logic tree to process special cases, such as election day registrations, changes of address within a county and provisional voting. Processing these cases would involve printing information via standard mailing labels which would be affixed to standardized paper forms. This would reduce the error rate in these special cases. Finally, it would identify and prevent felons listed in the Department of Correction system from voting. An error means that either a person was wrongly denied the right to vote, was wrongly discouraged from voting or was wrongly allowed to vote.

To date, poll books have been used successfully in three special elections in Iowa .  Poll workers have uniformly praised the system for reducing difficult decision making into simple yes or no questions with definitive answers. Election officials report that poll books have significantly reduced errors (essentially to zero) in these elections compared to other elections.

Election Dept. Supervisor Richard Bauer and Senior Elections Clerk LaDonna McCollom Are Two Staff Members Helping to Evaluate Electronic Pollbooks

Iowa State Association of Counties (ISAC) –  I returned from the ISAC meeting last week with information about a variety of proposals being considered by the Iowa General Assembly. The auditor’s staff and I are reviewing how these proposals could affect our election operations. One proposal, House File 670, would allow the tabulation of absentee ballots before Election Day. In the 2008 general election more than 40,000 people voted by absentee ballot in Scott County. Other counties saw the same surge in early voting. This massive early voting put a lot of stress on election officials throughout the state. Another proposal, House File 39, would close the polls for general elections at 8:00 p.m. instead of 9:00 p.m. This would establish a uniform closing time with the other elections, such as school board and municipal elections which close at 8:00 p.m.

After Election Audits – One of the more controversial proposals, House File 396, would require after election audits of vote tabulating equipment by hand counting ballots. Proponents of after election audits believe that tabulating equipment needs to be checked by a hand count of ballots to insure the equipment does not malfunction or be subject to manipulation. Three of our neighboring states, Minnesota, Missouri and Wisconsin have some sort of after election audit. The most extreme proponents advocate for a complete hand count of all ballots, in essence a recount.Other advocates believe that a hand count of a random sample of precincts is necessary and sufficient to insure accuracy. They cite the findings of a 2006 panel of computer scientists that including University of Iowa voting machine expert Douglas Jones, and scientists from Stanford, MIT, and other institutions, that concluded all types of voting equipment used in the United States are vulnerable to error or fraud. This panel recommended a hand count of a sample of ballots to check the electronic tallies. Without auditing of vote tabulators they concluded that paper ballots “are of questionable security value.”

The opponents of audits state that hand counts of ballots are subject to human error, which is much more likely to occur than machine error. They cite the experience of numerous county election officials who have hand counted ballots in the past. Hand tabulating ballots from general elections are especially prone to errors due to the large numbers of candidates.

Opponents also cite cost and time factors. In large counties it might be difficult to recruit volunteers to spend possibly weeks counting and recounting ballots making it necessary to employ temporary workers to complete the work. Further, a complete hand count would require many days or even weeks to complete. In this age of instant results the news media and others who are impatient would want instant audit results.

Support After Election Audits – I support after election audits to insure the proper functioning of our vote tabulating equipment and the accuracy of all other aspects of elections. A legislative race in Delaware presents a good example of how things can go wrong. On election night 2008 the challenger had won the election by thirty-one votes (31). Because the race was so close state law required a manual recount of votes in which the incumbent won by fifty votes. Election officials then re-ran the ballots through the vote tabulator and came up with the same results as election night. Further investigation showed that a small batch of ballots had been improperly printed, resulting in the incumbent?s votes being not counted. The machines worked fine, but human error in setting up the printing of some ballots resulted in a lot of embarrassment and almost the wrong result. This error would not have been caught without hand tabulated recount. (Source: Election Administration Report, Vol. 39, No. 5, March 2, 2009, page 5).House File 396, the current proposal before the General Assembly, would require random selection of four precincts in Scott County for hand counting of ballots from general elections. Two contested races would be hand counted. The ad-hoc committee which developed this legislation included county auditors, staff from the office of the Secretary of State, Iowans for Voting Integrity and the League of Women Voters. From my perspective it looks to be balanced legislation which will help to insure the accuracy of our elections and the confidence of the public that everyone’s vote does truly count. I have contacted our Scott County legislators to express my support and request that they pass this bill.

Election Day Registration Successful – Last year’s general election saw the first real test of Iowa’s same day registration law. This provision was very controversial when debated in the legislature. Supporters cited that many Iowans were denied the right to vote because they were not registered at least ten days before the general election. Opponents countered that election day registration could open the door to massive voter fraud. There were special concerns that fraud would occur in border counties, such as Scott County, with non-Iowans crossing the border to vote in our elections.The law took effect on January1, 2008 and covered the primary and school board elections. Few voters took advantage of this new option in those elections. However, in the general election 2,756 Scott County voters chose to register and vote that day. This represented about 3.2 percent of the total vote. Of that number, only eleven registrants could not be certified by the Auditor’s Office. We turned those names over to the County Attorney and Sheriff’s Offices for investigation and possible prosecution for registration fraud. A Sheriff’s detective investigated all eleven people, verified their residences and right to vote, and found no fraud was committed.

Throughout the State 45,929 Iowans used election day registration to be able to vote in the general election. This represented about three percent of the total vote. Of that number, 24,376 had been previously registered in one county but had moved to another county. Under the old law these voters would have been required to vote a provisional ballot. Generally, about half of voters who are required to cast provisional ballots simply choose to not vote.

Davenport High Twelve Club No. 47 – On March 10th Richard Bauer, Scott County Election Supervisor and I visited the Davenport High Twelve Club. We made a one hour presentation about the AutoMark ballot marker and elections in general. Richard and I had a great time and answered some very good questions. We also had many of the members vote on the AutoMark to show how it really is easy to use. If your group or organization would like a demonstration of the AutoMark please call me at 563-370-3915 or my office at 563-326-8631 and we can arrange for a presentation.

The Davenport Promise Election- The proposal to reallocate the local option sales and service tax for Davenport failed with 9,717 voting no to 6,235 voting yes. This vote represented a 22.7 percent turnout of eligible voters in Davenport. The current sales tax allocation is 40 percent for capital improvements and 60 percent for property tax relief. The Davenport Promise proposed to reallocate the 40 percent portion of sales tax receipts for two purposes. The first would allocate up to 30 percent for funding forgivable college loans for residents of Davenport, with any balance less than 30 percent used for capital improvements. The second would allocate 10 percent for public safety. This was a hard fought contest with strong feelings on both sides. Congratulations to both the proponents and opponents of this ballot measure on their efforts. Because the measure failed there will be no change in the allocation of the sales and service tax.

Davenport Second Ward Election- Congratulations to Bill Edmonds for his successful bid for Davenport Second Ward Alderman. The vote was 934 for Edmonds to 852 for Cooper, with 15 write-ins.  All the candidates are to be congratulated for putting forth the time and effort to make our Democracy work. 

Review of Polling Places – Two of my staff members and I took the opportunity of this election to visit all 32 polling sites in Davenport. First, I introduced myself and the new Operations Manager, Roland Caldwell to election workers. Next, we assessed each site for the ease with which voters can access their polling places. Finally we assessed the set up of the voter assistance technology for compliance with the Help America Vote Act. My intention is to visit all of the polling places in Scott County to assess ease of access and the set up of the voter assistance technology.

ISAC Spring School of Instruction - A staff member and I will be attending the Iowa State Association of Counties Annual Meeting and Spring School of Instruction. We will be receiving information on new legislation before the Iowa General Assembly, updates on the federally mandated statewide voter database, and the Iowa Open Meetings and Open Records law. I hope to learn some of the best practices in the State of Iowa and possibly improve how Scott County provides access to records.

Welcome to the Auditor’s Blog – This is the first of what I plan to be many entries to keep the public informed of important events and activities in my office.  I welcome comments and questions by directly contacting me at rmoritz@scottcountyiowa.com, or calling me at 563-326-8631 or 563-370-3915.  You can also write to me at Roxanna Moritz, Auditor & Commissioner of Elections, 600 West 4th Street, Davenport, Iowa 52801.

Primary Duties – The County Auditor has three primary duties.  The first duty, as Commissioner of Elections, is the conducting of elections.  The second is the production and maintenance of the official records of the county including Board of Supervisor minutes, and financial operations such as accounts payable, payroll and tax certifications.  The third is maintaining a portion of the real estate property tax system, including the maps showing the ownership of property located in the county (also known as plat maps).  Elections are by far the area which generates the most interest in the Auditor’s office, and consequently I will be writing about elections more than the other areas.  However, from time to time I will be providing information about the other duties of my office, including some of the lesser known ones. 

Tribute to Predecessor – The first thing I want to do is pay tribute to my predecessor, Karen Fitzsimmons.  She was a fixture in our community, having served as county auditor for 31 years.  Besides serving as Auditor she served on numerous boards and committees.  The entire community was shocked and saddened by her sudden death last spring.  She will be missed. 

Thank You to Staff – Next, I want to pay tribute to the staff and election workers of the Auditor’s Office.  The year 2008 was very tumultuous for them.  They had not only the loss of Karen, but the retirement of the former operations manager and the election department manager.  Thus, in a few short months this office lost 90 plus years of election management experience. 

Then we faced the record setting 2008 election.  More people voted in this election than any in recent history.  We shattered the previous record for absentee and early voting with more than 40 percent of the vote cast before Election Day.  At the same time, we started two new Election Day programs. First was the introduction of the AutoMark touch screen machine to assist voters with disabilities in casting their ballots at the polls.  Second was same day voter registration at the polling place which allows citizens to register to vote and to cast their ballots at the same time.  However, despite these many adversities the staff and election workers carried through with flying colors.  If you are a staff member or election worker who reads this blog, thank you for your service. 

Election Review - After getting settled into my new position as Auditor, the staff and I began a review of the last election with an eye on improving procedures to make elections as easy and frustration free as possible.  One thing we discovered is that the AutoMark machines (noted above) were not well utilized in the last election. 

Consequently, to better inform the public I will hold periodic meetings to familiarize voters with the AutoMark voter assistance technology.  Also, please contact me or my staff if you would like a presentation for your group or organization. 

VAT Requirement – Through the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA), Congress required all polling places in the United States to have ballot marking equipment to assist people with disabilities to independently cast their ballots at their polling places.  The technical acronym for this is VAT (voter assistance technology).  HAVA also requires that this equipment be available to any voter who wants to use it. Besides this mandate from the federal government, it is my personal belief that everyone, regardless of disability, has the right to vote in person at the polls if that person so chooses.  AutoMark, the VAT machine used throughout Iowa and Scott County, is easy to use and available to any voter. 

AutoMark Presentation – Our first presentation will be Thursday, February 26, 2009 at 7:00 p.m. at the Genesis Heart Institute, 1236 East Rusholme Street, Davenport.  Our presentation will be in conjunction with a public forum for the Davenport Second Ward Alderman Election.  Please join me for this hands-on demonstration of the AutoMark ballot marking machine. 

Election Reminders – Tuesday, March 3, 2009 LOSST* Election (Davenport Promise) for all of Davenport, and for Second Ward only, city council Alderman Election.  Polls are open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Voters should be pre-registered for this election or they may register and vote on Election Day with proper identification.  Please visit the Auditor’s Website for details on proper identification. 

*The so-called Davenport Promise is an election to modify the Local Option Sales and Services Tax, hence the acronym LOSST.