Tag Archive for 'iPad'

Oregon Recognized by National Military Voter Protection Project as All-Star State

Oregon was recognized as an All-Star state today by the Military Voter Protection (MVP) Project for taking significant efforts to promote and protect the voting rights of America’s military service members and their families.

“Oregon Secretary of State Kate Brown has long demonstrated her commitment to the voting rights of our men and women in uniform, especially through the use of technology including iPads and internet tools,” said Eric Eversole, founder and executive director of the Military Voter Protection Project. “These efforts will help ensure that our service members can vote, regardless of where duty takes them.”

In analyzing these states, the MVP Project looked at a number of factors, including:

  • The state’s efforts to work with and reach out to local military installations and National Guard units on a proactive basis to provide on-base voter assistance;
  • Its use of electronic and web-based services to send election materials;
  • Its willingness to create specialized communications to military voters either through public service announcements or web-based announcements;
  • The state’s legislative efforts to eliminate barriers to military voter participation; and
  • Its track record of making sure that absentee military ballots are sent out no later than 45-days before the election and, when they are not, a high degree of accountability to resolve any violations.

You can view the Oregon All-Star page here.

“It truly is an honor to be recognized for our extraordinary efforts in protecting the voting rights of Oregon’s service members and their families,” said Secretary of State Kate Brown.

All-Star states list include: Oregon, Alaska, Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Jersey, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington and West Virginia.

For more information about the Military Voter Protection Project’s Heroes Vote Initiative or to view details about the MVP Project All-Star states, please visit http://www.herosvote.org/.

Bing Video: Oregon makes voting accessible with iPad

MSNBC featured the success of Oregon’s pilot program making iPads accessible to voters with disabilities in the first congressional district. Oregon Secretary Kate Brown and Lori Steele, Chairman and CEO of Everyone Counts, Inc were both interviewed by MSNBC’s Craig Melvin.

Secretary Brown shared her optimism about the pilot and explained that the second phase will kick off in January with the General Election. After the General election, officials will gather information from those who used the iPad - disability groups and county elections crews - to decide if the technology will be implemented statewide.

Watch the video: Oregon tests voting by iPad

Sec Brown Launches Pilot to Make Voting More Accessible

County Clerk Maeve Grimes exploring voting assistive device with Sec Brown

County Clerk Maeve Grimes exploring voting assistive device with Secretary Brown

On Tuesday, Oregon Secretary of State Kate Brown concluded her tour of all five Oregon counties taking part in the November 8 special primary election. These five counties are part of a pilot project lead by the Secretary of State’s Elections Division. With a goal of making voting more accessible to those with disabilities, each of the counties were given a portable computer or iPad. The applications available on the iPad can assist Oregon voters with limited visibility or other issues causing them difficulty filling out their mail-in ballots.

In Washington County, Deborah Houghton a resident at an assisted living facility found the iPad helpful because she couldn’t read the fine print on her ballot. Members of Washington County’s Voter Assistance Team brought the iPad to Deborah. Using the screen to make the print larger Deborah was able to read the voter’s guide and the ballot for herself and vote. “This is so much better,” said Deborah. “I’ll be back in January to use the iPad again.”

If the pilot proves successful, the state elections office will make iPad’s available to all 36 counties. “I won my first race for the Oregon House of Representatives by seven votes,” said Secretary Brown. “I know how important every vote is and as your Secretary of State I am working hard to make voting more accessible to all eligible Oregonians

Andrea Cantu-Schomus
Communications Director
Oregon Secretary of State
andrea.l.cantu-schomus@state.or.us
503-986-2368
503-507-0082