LORAIN COUNTY, Ohio — Now that early voting is underway in Ohio, we're taking a look at the different ways you can cast your vote.
THE CLAIM
We’re seeing claims on line that if you’re voting electronically, Issue 1 doesn't fit on one screen. One reddit post says you have to click "more" to get to the voting selection box, and that if you hit next, you might accidentally skip the opportunity to vote on Issue 1.
We're taking VERIFY on the road to look into this claim, and stopping at the Lorain County Board of Elections where they use the DS 200 machine.
SOURCE
- Lorain County Board of Elections Director Paul Adams
EXPLANATION
Adams showed me how electronic voting works at this location. He told me in Lorain County, you're provided a ballot access card that you place into the voting unit.
"Nothing is recorded on the electronic machine. It’s basically a big pencil," he said. "So it allows you to make your selections, and put that on your ballot, before you scan it."
When he showed me how Issue 1 shows up on the screen when the text is set to regular size, I could see that the entire language for Issue 1 shows up, along with "yes" and "no" options that could be selected to enter your vote. This all appeared on the same screen. It was the same scenario when we changed the text size setting to "large."
"The larger text option allows you to see it larger," Adams said, "and you can scroll down through it, but at all times, you can still select 'yes' or 'no.' That's not hidden during the process."
Then I asked about Adams what would happen if I were to accidentally click "next contest" without voting. He told me, "You can go back and hit previous contest and then you can make a selection, or you can change your selection, as well."
ANSWER
So we can VERIFY that in Lorain County, part of this reddit post is true, and part of this is false.
Here's what's true: If you have the text set to display size "large," Issue 1 won't appear on one screen.
Here's what's false: In Lorain County, you don't have to hit "more" to get to the section where you're able to vote. Your "yes" and "no" voting options always appear on the screen.
The post also claims that if you accidentally hit next, you'll skip your chance to vote on Issue 1. That's false. You can easily go back to the previous screen to record your vote on the DS 200 machine.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Now if you're voting in a different county like Stark County, where their electronic voting machine is the Dominion Image Cast X, it might be a different story. We'll check on that in a future VERIFY.
Remember, if you see something you want us to fact check, you can send it our way at VERIFY@wkyc.com.