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Charles City may rent voting machines for April 21 state election; rentals carry five-figure quotes
Summary
Officials told the Board they lack sufficient machines to run back-to-back early-voting windows and may rent equipment for the April 21, 2026 election; ES&S quoted DS-200 rentals at $21,435 (discounted to $19,291.50) and ExpressPoll at $14,388 (discounted to $12,949.20).
County election staff told the Electoral Board on Feb. 9 that Charles City does not have enough voting equipment to run back-to-back early-voting periods for an April 14 referendum and an April 21 state/local election. Chief Deputy Lisa A. Cosby said the locality would need to rent machines for the April 21 election.
Tyler Link of ES&S provided two rental quotes to the Board: rental of the DS-200 was quoted at $21,435.00 with a 30-day payment discount to $19,291.50, and rental of the ExpressPoll System (tablet, flip stand, mobile device management and software) was quoted at $14,388.00 with a 30-day discount to $12,949.20. Vice-Chair Gerald Barnes noted that the department's budget had not planned for four elections in one year and said any rental payment must be routed through the Board of Supervisors.
When Chairperson Glenda V. Greene asked what would happen if the county did not approve rental funding, Mr. Link responded that the county has a "constitutional obligation to bear the cost of conducting an election," framing the rental as a necessary expense if local equipment is insufficient. The Board discussed routing the rental request to the Board of Supervisors for approval and noted timing pressures because the machines would be needed for early voting beginning in March.
