Politics on the Hudson

The state Commission on Quality of Care and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities is conducting a survey to get feedback from people with disabilities who voted in this week’s election. The information collected will be reported in a “Voter Experience Rating Guide,” an education and outreach tool to raise awareness of the voting process for people with disabilities.

This was the first year that all voters statewide used New York’s new system of paper ballots and optical scanners. Ballot-marking devices were available for people with disabilities and any other voters. The new system was piloted in numerous counties last year, but this was the first time there were no lever machines in use.

The commission has an eight-question survey online about accessibility of poll sites, accessibility and usability of voting machines and ballot-marking devices, voting privacy and the helpfulness of poll workers. No names or personal addresses will be used. The survey is available in large print and has been tested for use with computer-screen readers.