‘Behind the curtain’

Berks officials allowed public to watch election equipment testing for first time

A small crowd gathered around R.F. Shoup as he worked.

The president of Elections USA, the company Berks County contracts with to test its elections equipment to ensure they are running properly before they are put into service, was meticulous. He made sure the ballot was correctly uploaded into the electronic voting machine, he made selections to verify the machine was properly accepting votes and confirmed that the paper ballot it produced matched his picks.

Through each step, he explained Monday, March 25, to the three people gathered to observe the testing what he was doing and why he was doing it.

It was all part of an important step in preparing for the April 23 primary election.

Election workers this week conducted logic and accuracy testing to ensure the machines voters will use on election day are ready to go. That arduous process began Monday at the Berks County South Campus in Mohnton and concluded Wednesday afternoon.

“We are testing every part of the voting process that will happen on election day,” Shoup told the small group before starting his demonstration. “Our job is to find any mistakes and correct them immediately so that they are ready for the election.”

On Monday, for the first time, members of the public were allowed to come watch the testing.

Opening the process

The state election code only requires counties to allow representatives of political parties and county organizations that investigate election fraud to observe testing. And Berks officials opened up the process to the media as well in 2022.

But this year, a revised directive from the Pennsylvania Department of State has opened the process even further. It says the process should be open to the general public.

So, the county elections board voted to expand the opportunity to observe the testing of the nearly 800 voting machines that will be used in the primary election, as well as ballot scanners and electronic poll books from each of the 202 Berks precincts.

Elections Director Anne Norton said she believes allowing public observation of the testing will increase the transparency of the process.

“I think it’s important for the public to see what we do and understand all the checks and balances that we have in place,” she said. “This is a positive step toward restoring integrity in our voting system.”

Lenny Krug, an observer representing the Berks County Republican Committee, said Monday that he was excited to learn about the process.

“I find this all very fascinating and I want to know more about the technology behind how our voting system works,” the Hamburg resident said before Shoup’s demonstration.

And afterward, Krug said he thought the demonstration was very informative.

BILL UHRICH — MEDIANEWS GROUP R. F. Shoup, president of Elections USA, explains the workings of the Berks County electronic voting machines Monday to members of the public, from left, Bill Litvin of Exeter Township, representing the League of Women Voters; Lenny Krug of Hamburg, representing the Berks County Republican Committee; and Jill Greene of Wyomissing, representing Common Cause PA. This was the first time that members of the general public were allowed to witness the testing at the county’s South Campus in Mohnton.