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NC Counties Worry About Meeting Deadline To Replace Voting Machines

KERI BROWN/WFDD

The State Board of Elections has postponed a decision on whether to certify new voting systems for use in North Carolina. The delay is causing some concerns for several counties, including Guilford.

North Carolina is switching to paper-based voting machines to protect against cyber security threats.

Election officials say they need more information about three companies that want to supply the new systems, specifically who owns them.

Guilford is among several counties that need to replace their equipment before a January 1, 2020 deadline.

“We have to go through a process, and that's what becomes more challenging," says Charlie Collicutt, director of Guilford County's Board of Elections. “It sounds easy, you know, we are six or seven, eight months away from needing them, but it's really a tighter time frame than that because we still have to do public demonstrations, and local boards still have to come up with their decisions.”

State election officials say they want to give voters more time to learn about the companies. There are also concerns over reports of Russian hacking.

The Department of Homeland Security is currently inspecting equipment used in Durham County that was supplied by a vendor whose system was targeted by Russian hackers in 2016.

Durham County says its investigation shows the problem was likely caused by human error.

The companies seeking state approval for their voting systems will have until June 21 to submit additional information.

*Follow WFDD's Keri Brown on Twitter @kerib_news

Keri Brown is a multi-award winning reporter and host at 88.5 WFDD. She has been honored with two regional Edward R. Murrow awards for her stories about coal ash, and was named the 2015 radio reporter of the year by the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas (RTDNAC).Although she covers a variety of topics, her beats are environmental and education reporting.Keri comes to the Triad from West Virginia Public Broadcasting, where she served as the Chief Bureau Reporter for the Northern Panhandle. She produced stories for the state's Public Television and Radio programs and was honored by the West Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters Association for her feature and enterprise reporting.She also served as an adjunct instructor at Wheeling Jesuit University and Bethany College in West Virginia. She worked with the Center for Educational Technologies in Wheeling, WV, and other NASA centers across the country to develop several stories about the use of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) concepts in the classroom.Keri's journalism career began at WTRF-TV 7 in Wheeling. She worked in several roles at the station, including the head assignment editor. She also was a field producer and assignment manager at WPGH-TV Fox 53 in Pittsburgh.Keri is a graduate of Ohio University. When she's not in the studio or working on a story, she enjoys watching college football with her family, cooking, and traveling.Keri is always looking for another great story idea, so please share them with her. You can follow her on Twitter @kerib_news.

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