FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — The midterm election is right around the corner, and before voters hit the booth, there is something they should know.
According to the Arkansas voter procedure law, voting machines will time out after five minutes of inactivity.
The Washington County director of elections Jennifer Price says the automatic shutoff is not to rush voters, it’s to make sure their vote is secured.
“The machine will time out after five minutes, but this is only if you’re just not doing anything, and so, we don’t want voters to be concerned about this,” said Price.
Price says automatic shutoffs can occur when voters are not familiarized with candidates and ballot issues.
Chris Powell, press secretary for the Arkansas Secretary of State’s Office, says voters educating themselves before Election Day is always helpful.
“Sample ballots are required to be posted at the polling location if someone wants to review that before they go to the voting machine,” said Powell.
Powell says he considers the timeout as an election security feature, nothing voters should fear.
“For their vote, to make sure that it’s being cast the way that you want it to be cast,” said Powell.
Powell and Price both understand this time can be overwhelming and want to ensure voters have an accurate vote.
“We definitely allow the voter the time they need to cast their ballot and that’s the most important thing, a voter will never be rushed,” said Price.
Washington County sample ballots can be found here.
