Dear editor,

Why exactly do our Wood County commissioners not want paper ballots?

Another question in my mind is why the “poll book” that’s still electronic, which means it remains hooked up to the “Internet of Things” or the IOT. It is electronic, and our entire countywide vote is controlled by it. It most certainly can be hacked. That kind of thing happened, often, in the 2020 nationwide election.

Personally, I do not trust the internet because none of us really know who else can actually see, and possibly manipulate, our votes. I well remember what happened nationally in 2020. There was a lot of voter fraud, even here in Texas.

I’m 75, and I’ve never actually seen an electron, and there’s the rub. No one else can prove to me, beyond a shadow of doubt, that my votes, and our votes are actually safe and were accurately counted. It’s a machine for Pete’s sake.

Our votes were tabulated by electronic means. No person in our entire county visibly saw, or counted, those votes. That really causes me to not trust the optical character readers that did see our votes. All four Wood County precincts are connected to a poll book, electronically.

And this brings me back to the question of why, exactly, do our Wood County commissioners not want paper ballots? Is it money? Are our commissioners concerned that Wood County will have to pay folks to count paper ballots by visibly seeing each and every vote? I really don’t know; I haven’t asked them.

We’ve always done things this way is not comforting to me. I’m wondering who else is also concerned?

The front page article, about our Wood County election administrator telling our county commissioners what she wanted, and their total acquiescence is troubling because of what that poll book is. 

James R. Carter Sr.

Mineola