Visually Impaired Voters Use New Ballot Marking Technology from ES&S, AutoMARK to Elect Representatives

Breakthrough Technology Enhances Optical Scan Voting System, Increases Voting Accessibility for All, Particularly Voters with Disabilities

East Lansing, MI, April 24, 2004–More than 70 visually impaired voters used breakthrough ballot marking technology from Election Systems & Software (ES&S) and AutoMARK Technical Systems (ATS), LLC, formerly Vogue Election Systems, today to select members of the Elected Operators Committee of the Michigan Commission for the Blind's Business Enterprise Program. The device, called the ES&S AutoMARK, allows voters to mark ballots privately and independently when using an optical scan voting system.

The election took place at a workshop meeting of the Michigan Commission for the Blind, a government agency that provides opportunities to individuals with visual disabilities to achieve employability and/or function independently in society. The Michigan Council of the Blind and Visually Impaired, an advocacy group with around 300 members statewide, and the Michigan Commission for the Blind invited ES&S and ATS to conduct the election using the ES&S AutoMARK to demonstrate the new technology.

"Today, for the first time, visually impaired voters were able to mark a ballot using an optical scan voting system without assistance from elections staff or polling place volunteers, thanks to the ES&S AutoMARK," said Pat Cannon, executive director of the Michigan Commission for the Blind. "We asked the two companies to run our election today to show the members of our organization this wonderful technology and how it will make voting more accessible than ever before."

"This is a major step forward for our community, and something we have been working toward for years," said Casey Dutmer, legislative chairman for the Michigan Council of the Blind and Visually Impaired. "We're looking forward to seeing jurisdictions in Michigan and across the country incorporate the ES&S AutoMARK into their optical scan systems to ensure that every voter has the opportunity to cast his or her ballot in private."

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The ES&S AutoMARK voter assist terminal does not tally or store votes; rather, it is a ballot marking system designed to provide privacy and accessibility to voters who are blind, vision-impaired, or have a disability or condition that would make it difficult or impossible to mark a ballot in the usual way. In addition, the technology provides language assistance to voters who are more comfortable speaking an alternative language or who have reading difficulties.

The ES&S AutoMARK also helps jurisdictions with optical scan voting systems nationwide comply with the requirements of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) of 2002, which requires all polling locations to be equipped with at least one disability-accessible voting machine. In Michigan, more than X jurisdictions currently use optical scan voting systems.

"At ES&S, we recognize the incredible responsibility we have in supporting the democratic process and ensuring it is open and accessible to all voters," said Aldo Tesi, ES&S president and CEO. "This technology will improve the act of voting for individuals who may have been disenfranchised in the past, which is one of our goals as an industry leader."

On March 31st, ES&S and ATS announced that they will team up to offer the ES&S AutoMARK nationwide to all jurisdictions in the United States that currently use or plan to upgrade to optical scan equipment. The ES&S AutoMARK will be the only product in the marketplace that will enable a greater number of voters to mark a vote privately and independently using an optical scan voting system.

According to ATS, the decision to offer a co-branded product with ES&S was an easy one. "Very simply, ES&S is the market leader in providing quality voting systems and customer service," said Joseph M. Vanek, vice president of ATS. "Additionally, it seemed logical to match our technology, which is based on the need for a tangible and verifiable process, with a company that has a solid track record of successfully assisting jurisdictions with the task of elections. Collectively, we all felt it was a good fit."

In March, production units were presented for certification under the Federal Election Commission's 2002 voting standards, and hardware and software components currently are being evaluated by independent testing laboratories. ES&S and ATS expect to begin implementing the technology in the fourth quarter of 2004.

About Election Systems & Software (ES&S)

Election Systems & Software, Inc. (ES&S) is the world's largest and most experienced provider of total election management solutions. For more than three decades, ES&S-as an election-only company and the industry leader-has grown to support a customer base of more than 2,300 jurisdictions in the United States. Based on the primary voting tabulation system installed within the United States, ES&S customers represent approximately 50 systems have counted approximately 56 percent of the U.S. national vote in each of the last four presidential and congressional elections, amounting to more than 100 million ballots cast in each election. For more information on ES&S election solutions, please visit the Web site at www.essvote.com or call 1-800-247-8683.

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About AutoMARK Technical Systems, LLC (formerly Vogue Election Systems) AutoMARK Technical Systems, LLC is a developer of innovative election products, including the AutoMARK™ Voter Assist Terminal. The AutoMARK provides voters with physical disabilities or language issues the ability to mark an optical scan paper ballot privately and independently. Not only does the AutoMARK™ open the election process as never before, the addition of this technology to an existing optical scan system brings the system into compliance with the federal Help America Vote Act (HAVA). For more information, please visit www.vogueelection.com or call 1-888-761-9266.