Voters voice grievances about polls
RINGGOLD, Ga. — Some Catoosa County voters are worried that technological glitches and limited parking could discourage future turnout at local polls.
During the May 22 primary election, the Catoosa County Elections and Registration Department reported that some machines were timing out after voters selected the “large text” option. Enlarging the text lengthened the 11-page ballot to 18 pages, causing system delays, Director Tonya Moore said.
“It was just like a computer, how it will get stuck,” she said during the Catoosa County Commission’s June 5 meeting, when one resident called the glitch “embarrassing.”
Moore said the issue did not cause too much backup in the lines, adding that the default text was already fairly sizable. She blamed the hiccup mostly on a high number of questions on the ballot for voters, which also was questioned at the commission meeting.
Those include questions from the Republican Party, as well as for the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax, Moore explained. In the past, she said, the SPLOST vote has typically fallen in odd-numbered years so it is alone on the ballot.
“We did everything we could,” Moore said.
“There was nothing [else] that we could do; we just asked everyone to please not press the ‘large text.’”
County resident, Ben Scott called for commissioners to address limited parking at the Chambers voting precinct in Ringgold.
The building’s parking lot holds only about 12 cars, with angled parking spaces on each side, he said. There are a few designated parking spots running down the lot’s center, he continued, but when visitors park there it’s hard for other drivers to back out.
“It was just an inconvenient parking situation,” Scott said. “While we were there, I saw at least two other cars that were wanting to turn in that just left, and I don’t know if they came back or not.”
Commission Chairman Steven Henry said the county is “totally aware” of the problem and already working to find a possible solution.
Moore said officials considered buying land next to the parking lot in hopes of expansion back when Mike Helton was county manager. He resigned in 2015. Moore believed negotiations fell through because of cost.
“Unfortunately, when people find out the county wants property, all of a sudden it’s worth a million dollars,” Henry said.
In the meantime, Moore said, Chambers precinct voters can avoid the parking issue by mailing in an absentee ballot or voting early in the three weeks before Election Day.
Scott, who is new to the Chambers precinct, said after the meeting he hopes the issue is resolved sooner rather than later. “I know you can mail in a ballot, but there’s still a lot of traditionalists that like to vote on Election Day,” he said. “I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like when you have a federal election for president.”
Despite the inconveniences, Catoosa County saw an increase in voter participation, poll data show. More than 5,200 people voted in the May primary, compared to 3,700 in 2104.
Still, with more than 38,600 registered voters in the county, this year’s 13 percent turnout is low, locals said.
Voters will return to the polls July 24 for runoff elections, which are held when no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the votes. Nominees from each party will advance to the Nov. 6 elections.