The Board of Selectmen would be open to purchasing voting machines if federal grants become available for their purchase, Flynn said.
John D. FlynnHAMPDEN – The Board of Selectmen has voted unanimously not to seek funding from Town Meeting to purchase voting machines this year.
Selectmen Chairman John D. Flynn said that in making the decision, the selectmen approved a recommendation from a study committee that it not seek funding from Town Meeting to purchase voting machines this year.
Flynn said a study committee which Registrar Arthur Booth sat on recommended against seeking funds to purchase voting machines.
Booth said he did not believe the town would have excess funds to purchase a voting machine in the fiscal 2012 budget.
Voting machines cost between $10,000 and $12,000. The town has one voting precinct and would need one or two machines.
Following the state primary last September, Selectman Vincent Villamaino complained that he waited until nearly midnight for voting results before giving up.
At a selectman’s meeting last fall, James Gillen, a town resident and former city editor of The Republican, said the town follows an antiquated process in counting votes by hand.
Gillen said the newspaper frequently waited until midnight, 1 or 2 a.m. for election results.
Town Clerk Eva A. Wiseman said the only complaints she has received about the late results are from the media.
Flynn and Booth both said it is part of the town’s tradition to count the votes by hand.
Booth said that Ludlow has voting machines and two weeks ago did not have all results until close to midnight because of the large number of write-in votes.
“This can happen even with voting machines,” Booth said.
Flynn said the Board of Selectmen would be open to purchasing voting machines if federal grants become available for their purchase.
If the town were to purchase voting machines, the final decision would be with the Town Meeting, Booth said.
“This decision can always be reconsidered in a future year,” Booth said.