Brunner: No More Storing Voting Machines in Homes and Cars

While the GOP has been sniping at Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner in the press, she has been working diligently to try to prevent problems on election day. In the latest move, she has issued a directive that transitions counties away from storing voting machines in poll worker’s homes, work places, or automobiles before an election. County boards will receive financial assistance for the change, if it imposes extra costs.

This is a sound move against a practice that invites suspicion and risks damage to the sensitive machines, whether through uncontrolled temperature, humidity, or dust or through unauthorized use. “We want Ohio’s voters and the rest of the nation to see that we have prepared a transparent process of transporting voting equipment, ballots and supplies," said Secretary Brunner in a release. "That begins with security practices at boards of elections and polling places, documented chain of custody, and now procedures to make secure voting machine delivery."

Secretary Brunner has previously issued security directives dealing with such issues as polling place security; chain of custody of equipment, supplies and ballots; management of voting machine key cards; and security of elections offices as well as storage facilities for ballots and voting equipment.

The political dimension here is stark but simple. Secretary Brunner recognizes that Jon Husted and the GOP are gunning for her in 2010, motivated by the desire to capture a majority of seats on the apportionment board and thereby to control legislative redistricting. However, Brunner also knows that the best way for her to stay in office is to continue to oversee smooth elections, as she did with the primary election in March. So, she is keeping her eye on the ball, doing everything in her power to prepare for a solid election process in November.