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Accessible, Independent Voting with ExpressVote®

At ES&S, we’re serious about accurately capturing the intent of every voter. We closely follow the guidelines set by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure our machines provide all voters with a simple and inclusive voting experience.

Thoroughly tested by independent laboratories and verified by more than 100,000 machines in use across the country, the ExpressVote Universal Voting System brings independence to the election process, allowing all voters to vote privately and independently.

Accessible

  • Voters can switch the ExpressVote touch screen to display larger text, high-contrast colors or both.
  • Voters can use assistive input devices, including:
    • Audio-tactile keypad with Braille legends
    • Two-position rocker switch
    • Sip-and-puff device
  • Voters can connect headphones to listen to the ballot text.
    • Voters who rely on the audio ballot can blank the screen for privacy.
    • Voters can adjust the audio volume and tempo.
  • Accessibility features are easy to activate and navigate.
    • Voters press any key on the audio-tactile keypad to engage the accessibility features. Assistance from a poll worker is not required.
    • Pressing a button on a rocker paddle or taking a sip/blowing a puff into a sip-and-puff device automatically engages the device and adjusts the navigation accordingly.
  • Voting systems can be positioned for both standing and seated voters.
A voter making selections using the ExpressVote audio-tactile keypad with Braille legends.
A voter making selections using the ExpressVote audio-tactile keypad with Braille legends.

Independent

  • Voters who are blind or have a visual impairment can blank the screen and/or use a privacy curtain so that they cannot be observed.
  • Screen prompts, symbols and audio prompts help voters navigate the voting process.
  • For verification before tabulation, voters can review their selections before and after printing the ballot.
    • After printing, the voter can review selections by reinserting the printed ballot into the machine. The unit will scan the ballot and read the selections to the voter.
    • ES&S Universal Voting Systems provide audio read-back of a voter’s selections from the printed ballot without requiring additional hardware.

Universal

On an ES&S Universal Voting System, everyone — including those who need the support of assistive technologies and those for whom English is not their first language — votes in the same private and independent manner.

An ExpressVote with the screen blanked while the voter listens to audio prompts to navigate the voting process.
An ExpressVote with the screen blanked while the voter listens to audio prompts to navigate the voting process.

ES&S develops voting equipment with inclusivity in mind, with assistance and accessibility testing or review provided by The National Federation of the Blind, Nebraska Chapter; American Council of the Blind, New York Chapter; California Secretary of State Voter Accessibility Advisory Committee; Human-Centered Computing Department, Clemson University; Human Computer Interaction Laboratory, Iowa State University; User Research Lab, University of Baltimore; Commonwealth of Pennsylvania