The National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) returned to San Diego on September 29th for its annual convention, and the energy was palpable. This year’s event was especially exciting, with some critical decisions on the table for NECA’s State Governors. From budget allocations to membership fees, the stakes were high. And for the third year running, we’re proud to be powering the voting process for these crucial business sessions. This year’s voting topics were particularly contentious, consisting of two articles that needed to pass by a majority of two thirds. Utilizing TownVOTE software with handheld voting clickers, all 122 of their present members were able to anonymously cast their vote, where the results were immediately displayed on screen.
In the past, manual vote counting was a time-consuming process, leaving attendees waiting with bated breath for the results. Alternatively, the speed and accuracy of TownVOTE allowed NECA to keep the session moving smoothly and efficiently, maximizing their valuable time together.
The town of Rehoboth, MA had an unconventional setup for their meeting this year, holding their Special Town Meeting at the “Senior Center” building instead of their typical venue at the museum. We provided coverage for participants being seated inside while accommodating for possible overflow, extending the range of the system to the outside patio as well. The meeting agenda consisted of nine articles, five of which required two-thirds majority and nine-tenths majority votes. Each electronic vote lasted a mere 15 seconds, freeing up extra time for debate and discussion around the motions. Several voice votes were also taken and recorded with TownVOTE, providing a perfect balance of speed and security. With the help of the software and keypads, all of the voting was completed in well under two hours.
“Meridia EZ-Vote software has transformed our town meeting by improving voting efficiency and accuracy. We are now able to tabulate hundreds of votes in seconds, eliminating the need for standing votes or recounts. Overall, electronic voting has created a more pleasant town meeting environment for our residents.”
– Justin Leduc, Assistant Town Manager at Oxford, MA
We participated at the Maine Municipal Association Convention in Augusta, Maine for the first time this year, and it was a great success. Maine towns, like in other states in New England, use the direct democratic method of town meetings to lead their towns into the future, purchase goods and services, and fund their budgets.
Currently, very few towns in ME are using electronic voting at their town meetings, but more and more are interested in speeding up the process, and creating an anonymous, non-threatening environment where everyone’s voice can be heard and every vote recorded.
Meridia’s TownVOTE application is tailor-made for town meetings and other business meetings governed by Robert’s Rules of Order and allows the flexibility of using voice votes where it makes sense, and electronic votes where needed.
