Lincoln officials demonstrate electronic "clicker" voting to Bristol Selectboard

Lincoln Town Clerk Sally Ober and Town Administrator Trish Waugh visited Bristol's Selectboard on Sept. 28 to demonstrate an electronic keypad voting system used at Lincoln's Town Meeting.

Trish Waugh explained the mechanics: "the software ran on two screens, one displaying the article under consideration and the other showing the voting." She said voters test their units at the start and results display only when voting closes; vote operators can preload the warning text and enter amendments on the fly. Ober added that the system preserves voter anonymity and helps voters who prefer not to vote openly in front of neighbors.

Ober and Waugh said Lincoln initially rented the system for about $3,000 to evaluate it and later applied the rental credit toward a purchase price of about $10,000 to $11,000 for a 200-unit package. They described operational safeguards — check-in records for unit numbers, practice test votes, and collection boxes at exits — and said a voter who does not press a button is treated as abstaining. Bristol Selectboard members asked about time impacts, range, and older voters learning the device; presenters said practice and vendor support minimized problems and that voters responded positively after trying the units.

Selectboard members discussed how electronic voting might interact with Bristol's long-standing preference for floor discussion and amendment at Town Meeting and raised logistics including unit counts, cost, and the possibility of Saturday meetings to improve turnout. No action was taken; the presentation was informational.