Residents and election workers press Collin County to delay $114,400 Enhanced Voting contract

Several Collin County residents and an election worker asked the court on Tuesday to delay final approval of a roughly $114,400 contract with Enhanced Voting LLC so the county can provide written answers about what it will buy and how the products will be secured.

"Please protect that standard and table this item," Lee Moore told the court, arguing the purchase could reverse last year's move toward hand-marked paper ballots and that some company leaders have worked at federal election-security agencies. Moore also warned that adopting a cloud-based ballot-marking product could erode public confidence.

Debbie Lindstrom asked the court to "table this item for 30 days and require written answers to three questions," citing what she said were gaps between the department memo and the vendor's quote: she noted two "remake stations" at $14,000 each (about $28,000 of the purchase) and said the quote indicates annual subscription pricing that does not appear on the agenda item.

Avis Novak, who identified herself as a Collin County voter and election worker, listed specific technical and security questions she said should be answered on the record before a contract is signed: whether the enhanced ballot will be limited to UOCAVA (overseas and military) voters, where voter data and ballot images would be stored, whether any data could leave the United States, and what independent security testing the county will require.

Caleb Bridal, Collin County elections administrator, told the court the four products included in the FY2026 budget serve distinct functions: the enhanced ballot is for UOCAVA voters who cannot receive ballots by mail, the ballot remake station lets the ballot board print and prepare emailed ballots for tabulation, USPS intelligent barcodes provide ballot tracking, and the enhanced results site will display customized results on the county website. "These enhancements do a couple of things for us," Bridal said, explaining the remake station is intended to reduce the time ballot-board members currently spend fetching printed ballots from the early-voting clerk.

Purchasing Agent Michelle Chernoski explained the procurement path, saying cooperative purchasing through BuyBoard and related cooperative contracts are permitted under Government Code 791 and Local Government Code 271 and that the county verifies the cooperative's competitive process.

The court heard public comments and questions; the transcript shows those concerns were placed on the record, and the elections administrator and purchasing agent provided explanation, but the speakers requested formal written responses and a 30-day delay. The transcript does not record a subsequent court vote specifically adopting or tabling the Enhanced Voting contract separate from other consent agenda actions.