http://ozarkspub.vo.llnwd.net/o37/KSMU/audio/mp3/christian-county-improves-voting-missourians-disabilities_67436.mp3
Missouri’s Secretary of State has awarded Christian County a $17,000 grant to improve voting conditions for citizens with disabilities.
The Polling Place Accessibility Grant will buy Christian County 21 new accessible voting booths. The Franklin booths, as they’re called, allow four voters to cast ballots at once, while separated by walls. They are wheelchair accessible, but voters can also stand, and equipped with a light for dimmer rooms. Laura Swinford is the communications director at the Secretary of State’s office.
“Secretary Kander really believes that it is imperative that we do all we can to ensure equal access to the voting booths for everyone. So he is really happy that Christian County is going to be able to provide these booths, and I think folks are going to find them very easy and very accessible,” Swinford said.
Currently, Christian county, as many others in Missouri, have table top and stand up booths. Kay Brown, the county’s clerk, said those are adequate, but didn’t always meet the demands for their voting locations, especially for bigger elections that increase turnout.
“It makes it easier for them to get up to vote next to the table. Also, it has lighting there. In the hallway of the courthouse, it’s not the brightest light, and so the lighting was really a big plus,” Brown said.
A few of the booths are already set up in the county precincts. But the rest, Browns says, will hopefully be up by the November elections in all of the voting locations.
Grants like these are made available through Health and Human Resources by the Help America Vote Act, and counties are welcome and encouraged to apply.
For KSMU news, I’m Anna Thomas.