Assessing Minimum Accessible Voting Equipment Requirements through Simulation

Abstract

The 2002 Help America Vote Act (HAVA) requires that polling locations offer at least one accessible voting device to ensure that voting is equitable for all voters in federal elections. However, little empirical evidence indicates the efficacy of one accessible device to serve the electorate assigned to an in-person polling location, and it is unclear when additional accessible voting equipment is required. Given the continued challenges and disenfranchisement faced by voters with disabilities and recent changes to election law, it is critical to understand how the allocation of accessible voting equipment meets the needs of voters. This analysis applies discrete-event simulation modeling to generate voter wait time estimates for systems employing different allocations of accessible voting equipment. We find that allocating only one accessible voting device fails to keep wait times below 30 minutes for voters with disabilities, particularly in counties with a large proportion of voters with disabilities and in precincts with medium to high in-person voter turnout. These results suggest that accessible voting equipment allocation requirements must be flexible, adaptable, and jurisdiction-specific in order to be responsive to voter needs and meet the HAVA requirements.