Linn County to try new software for city elections

New software that tracks who is registered to vote and who has voted will be used in three Linn County precincts Nov. 3.

The program, The Precinct Atlas, is an electronic poll book that will help election workers identify and process voters on the spot, and should help prevent election fraud.

In 2008, several felons were charged with election misconduct in Linn County for registering and voting on Election Day. The software would identify felons before they could vote.

Laptops with the software will be set up at three locations for Cedar Rapids city elections:

• The Linn County Elections Depot, 823 Second St. SW.
• Linn County West Board Room, 2500 Edgewood Rd. SW.
• Northbrook Baptist Church, 1700 Boyson Rd. NE.

“Let's hope that our trial operation of Precinct Atlas proves it's reliable enough to be deployed in every precinct, and that we obtain sufficient funding in the next fiscal year to purchase Precinct Atlases for every precinct,” Linn County Auditor Joel Miller said.

Including Linn County, 44 counties in Iowa plan to use the program for city elections. The software was developed by Cerro Gordo County and was first used in a special election for the Mason City Community School District in February.