DAVENPORT, Iowa — Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate and Scott County Auditor Kerri Tompkins conducted public tests Wednesday morning on election equipment in preparation for Iowa's June 7 primary election.
"We just want to make sure they understand all the steps we go to to maintain the integrity of election, that their vote is very important; because the last thing we want people to do is to think that my vote doesn't count or something's being manipulated, because it defeats the results of the election," said Pate.
There are multiple steps in this process, mostly revolving around checking the 'tabulators', or the machines voters use to submit paper ballots.
"The technicians will be opening the systems to make sure everything is being accurate. They'll check for calibrations, making sure there's no devices being attached to it that might manipulate it," said Pate.
These machines do not connect to the internet. Instead, they store all information on both paper receipts and USB drives.
"Paper ballots are the key component here because it's a way to be able to audit and track and review everything to make sure it's all on the up and up. And we've got voter ID to make sure we know who's voting. And that wasn't enough, we still have the post-election audit where my office will select a precinct," said Pate.
Over 10,000 poll workers will be working the night of the June 7 election.