Brazoria County Chooses Verity for New Voting System

ANGLETON, Texas, July 6, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Brazoria County Commissioners voted June 27 to replace aging election technology with Hart InterCivic's Verity® Voting, an all-new system designed to be flexible, easy to use and transparent. Confidence in the reliability of Hart's current products and service supported the action.

"Hart is a pleasure to work with. The business relationship and the success we have had with existing machines made us confident in recommending the new Verity system to our commissioners," said County Clerk Joyce Hudman, who proposed the upgrade to county officials. "We planted a seed a few years back that an upgrade would be necessary. I told them now is the right time, and they agreed."

"Not only did we want to stick with a vendor that stands behind its customers, but the ease and reliability of the new system is exciting. I am looking forward to the efficiencies of Poll Pad and Verity – from the poll books to the check-in process to the voting machines," she added.

"We appreciate Brazoria County's trust in Hart and applaud their move to Verity. We've worked with the County since 2005, and their continued confidence is rewarding to us," said Phillip Braithwaite, President and CEO of Hart InterCivic, an Austin-based company with more than 100 years of election experience. "Brazoria County voters will benefit from this forward-looking decision."

The flexible, electronic Verity system will support the county's popular and convenient Vote Centers serving about 190,000 registered voters. The new touchscreen tablet is easy for voters to use and for poll workers to learn. "Our staff is so excited. They've done their homework and are ready for training," Hudman said, adding that the lightweight and compact equipment will be easier for workers to handle and transport.

Hudman's office will roll out voter education with outreach to civic groups later in the summer and plans social media support to show and tell citizens about the new system before the November Constitutional Amendment election.

Since the Texas Secretary of State certified the latest release of Hart InterCivic's Verity® Voting system in mid-December, 16 Texas counties have purchased the state-of-the-art system. Federally certified in 2015, the secure and efficient system is also in use in numerous counties throughout the U.S.

Braithwaite expects more Texas announcements in the coming weeks.

Hudman, who has been with the Brazoria County clerk's office for 20 years, urges other counties considering an upgrade to take action now, "Don't wait until it is too late. Be proactive."

More about Verity:

Verity is the only all-new, federally-certified system that provides an integrated platform for all voting types.

For jurisdictions that vote electronically, like Brazoria County, Hart's direct record electronic (DRE) voting technology offers unique benefits. Like Hart's legacy system, Verity uses a centralized approach to managing the voting devices in the polling places. A single console (Verity Controller) monitors and controls as many as 12 voting terminals, and allows poll workers to assign ballot styles remotely. An available integration with an electronic poll book automates this process, thus reducing the chances for error. 

On election night, Verity allows officials to publish results faster, because poll workers close polls on all voting terminals at once and report consolidated totals in just one step; there is no need to collect votes from every device separately.

The system's easy-to-use touchscreen is familiar to voters and a lightweight, removable tablet and an array of accessibility features accommodate all voters, including those with disabilities.

Voters can switch between available ballot languages at any point in the voting process, adjust the font size and/or contrast on the screen, and control both the speed and the volume of the audio if they are using the headphones.

Learn more about Verity in Texas: http://www.hartintercivic.com/texas4verity.

About Hart InterCivic, Inc.

Austin-based Hart InterCivic is a full service election solutions innovator, partnering with state and local governments to deliver secure, accurate and reliable elections. Working side-by-side with election professionals for more than 100 years, Hart is committed to helping advance democracy one election at a time. Hart's mission fuels its passionate customer focus and a continuous drive for technological innovation. The company's new Verity Voting system makes voting more straightforward, equitable and accessible—and makes managing elections more transparent, more efficient and easier.

SOURCE Hart InterCivic

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