CC SR 20200204 02 - VSAP Voting System
CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: 02/04/2020
AGENDA REPORT AGENDA HEADING: Regular Business
AGENDA DESCRIPTION:
Consideration and possible action to receive and file a presentation on Los Angeles
County's new Voting Solutions for All People voting system
RECOMMENDED COUNCIL ACTION:
(1) Receive and file a presentation on Los Angeles County's new Voting Solutions
for All People (VSAP) voting system by the Los Angeles County Registrar-
Recorder/County Clerk’s Office.
FISCAL IMPACT: None
Amount Budgeted: N/A
Additional Appropriation: N/A
Account Number(s): N/A
ORIGINATED BY: Emily Colborn, City Clerk
REVIEWED BY: Kit Fox, AICP, Interim Deputy City Manager
APPROVED BY: Ara Mihranian, AICP, Interim City Manager
ATTACHED SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS:
A. Letter from California Contract Cities Association (page A -1)
B. Vote Centers on or near the Peninsula (page B-1)
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION:
For the March 3, 2020, presidential primary election, Los Angeles County will roll out a
new digital voting system known as Voting Solutions for All People (VSAP) with the
hope of making voting easier, more accessible, and more secure. The traditional voting
system is receiving a complete overhaul, which will affect registered voters in the City
and over 5 million voters across the county.
Major changes include where and how you vote. Traditional, pre-assigned polling
places open only on Election Day will be obsolete. Instead, eligible residents will be able
to vote at any of the estimated 1,000 voting centers across the county. Voters in Los
Angeles County will now have 11 consecutive days to vote in -person at any Vote Center
countywide. It should be noted that some centers open for 11 days while others for 4
1
days before Election Day. Vote Centers for the March 3, 2020, election will be open
from February 22, 2020 to March 3, 2020.
The InkaVote system, which uses the pen-and-paper, bubble-coloring method, is also
being replaced. Voters will now use touchscreen-based, multilingual ballot-marking
devices. Once the ballot is completed, the station will print the ballot so the voter can
verify it. It will then be delivered to a ballot box.
Voters will have the option to prepare their ballots ahead of their visit via an official
County smartphone app. The app will produce a “poll pass,” a unique quick response
(QR) code that voters will be able to scan at the bottom of the ballot-marking device.
The system will then automatically print a copy of the voter’s ballot. Voting by mail will
still be available. Voters will have the choice to submit their sealed ballot via the U.S.
Postal Service, or drop it off at a local drop-off box.
County officials ensure that the new electronic system will be secure. The machines are
not connected to the Internet, and at the end of the ballot-marking process, they
produce a paper ballot that voters can double check. The system also does not store
any voting information, and it does not tally votes.
The new touch-screen system has drawn some scrutiny. A major concern has been that
only four candidates appear on the screen at a time. To view additional candidates,
voters must select a “MORE” button. However, if they inadvertently press a “NEXT”
button instead, they won’t see all the candidates in a particular race. The City of Beverly
Hills has filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent the system from being used in the March
election unless it is re-programmed to prevent voters from inadvertently skipping over
candidates. The California Contract Cities Association raised the same concern in a
January 9, 2020, letter to Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean
C. Logan (Attachment A).
Another concern with the VSAP system is the number of locally-accessible voting
centers in the City of Rancho Palos Verdes. Long-standing voting locations such as
Hesse Park and City Hall will no longer be polling places. Instead, mostly Palos Verdes
Peninsula Unified School District facilities will be used since they can offer staffing and
dedicated space for at least four days prior to Election Day. Below are lists of the voting
centers in Rancho Palos Verdes and in the vicinity of the Eastview area as of the writing
of this report.
Voting Period Facility Room Address City
4-Day Vista Grande Elementary
School
Multi-Purpose
Room 7032 Purpleridge Dr. Rancho Palos
Verdes
4-Day Cornerstone @ Pedregal
School
Multi-Purpose
Room 6069 Groveoak Pl. Rancho Palos
Verdes
4-Day Ladera Linda Community
Center
Multi-Purpose
Room 32201 Forrestal Dr. Rancho Palos
Verdes
4-Day Miraleste Intermediate School Gymnasium 29323 Palos Verdes Dr. Rancho Palos
Verdes
2
4-Day Mira Catalina Elementary Multi-Purpose
Room 30511 Lucania Dr. Rancho Palos
Verdes
Voting centers near Eastview:
Voting Period Facility Room Address City
4-Day San Pedro Service Center Multi-Purpose
Room 769 W . 3rd St. San Pedro
11-Day LA Harbor Masonic Lodge Main Hall 1640 W . 9th St. San Pedro
11-Day Little Sisters of the Poor Auditorium 2100 S. Western Ave. San Pedro
A list of voting centers—including other centers on the Peninsula and in surrounding
communities is attached to this report as Attachment B. A complete list is also available
on-line at https://locator.lavote.net/locations/vc.
A County VSAP representative will be at the February 4, 2020, meeting to speak on the
implementation of the new voting system and demonstrate the new ballot-marking
device, and will be available to address any questions or concerns.
3
Dean C. Logan
Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk
Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk
12400 Imperial Hwy.
Norwalk, CA 90650
January 9, 2020
RE: Recommendations for the New Los Angeles Voting Solutions for All People
(VSAP) System for the March 3, 2020 General Municipal Election
Dear Mr. Logan,
On behalf of the California Contract Cities Association, we write to express our concerns
regarding the new Los Angeles Voting Solutions for All People (VSAP) System. Specifically,
we are deeply concerned the current system may create confusion and misunderstanding when
more than four candidates are qualified for a given race. Since the trial release of VSAP,
several of our member cities have pointed to the various notification “buttons” available to
voters which may be confusing to voters and could result in some candidates being skipped
over by voters before moving to the next election contest. After a careful review of the system
and comments received from our members, we strongly believe VSAP lacks sufficient visual
aids, prompts, or notifications to inform voters that other qualified candidates are available
for selection. This is in direct conflict with VSAP’s principle goal to not create a “barrier [or]
source of disenfranchisement for any group of voters.” We feel there is a substantial
probability that some candidates will be overlooked or inadvertently skipped over with the
current ballot format.
In the 2018 General Election, the city of Cudahy had a total of 9 candidates for three seats on
the city council. The margin of victory that separated the third seat between the third and
fourth vote top-getter was 58 votes. A similar scenario also occurred in the city of Montebello,
where ten candidates ran for three seats on the city council. Three votes separated the third
and fourth vote top-getter, while approximately 50 votes separated the first, second, and third
vote top-getter. These two election contests represent potential case studies where the decision
and intuition of a voter to select their preferred qualified candidates could result in vastly
different outcomes. If VSAP were to be implemented without proper visuals and aids, it would
raise serious concerns regarding the validity of votes cast and furthering concerns an election
could be contested.
If the new VSAP system would have been used in the 2018 General Election, other cities with
more than four qualified candidates would be at risk : Agoura Hills, Artesia, Baldwin Park,
Bell Gardens, Carson, Claremont, Diamond Bar, El Monte, Hawaiian Gardens, Inglewood,
Lynwood, Malibu, Maywood, Pico Rivera, San Fernando, Santa Clarita, Santa Fe Springs,
Santa Monica, and West Covina. We can expect these issues to not only arise in 2020 but also
impact other election contests, including the Presidential Primary.
A-1
The importance of providing clear voting instructions and intuitive features that can accessibly inform a voter to
properly utilize VSAP is especially critical this election cycle. This year, voters will have to go to a new voting
center, while also casting their ballots in a new state-of-the-art electronic platform. We are sure this change will
create many challenges for the Registrar-Recorder, but also for many municipal city clerks.
While VSAP has received positive feedback from voters during its trial tests, the system has not used actual
candidate names to test the reliability of VSAP’s selection process. In the event a seat is contested for these
reasons, it would be necessary for the Registrar-Recorder to enact improvements to the system. However, we
cannot allow the 2020 General Election to simply be a trial run to determine what impr ovements are needed for
future elections.
CCCA strongly urges the Registrar-Recorder work to address this issue, whether it be to require that voters view
all candidates before casting their vote for the next office, which is our primary recommendation, or randomize
the order of all candidates in each ballot. These proposed changes are imperative to secure the integrity of ballots
cast and protect the validity of votes in Los Angeles County.
Should you have any questions regarding our concerns, please contact Marcel Rodarte at
Marcel@contractcities.org or (562) 622-5533.
Sincerely,
Sandra Armenta, City of Rosemead Gustavo Camacho, City of Pico Rivera
President, Legislative Chair,
California Contract Cities Association California Contract Cities Association
CC:
Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors
Los Angeles County Cities
Alex Padilla, California Secretary of State
A-2
LocationAddressCityZip Code RoomDates and HoursLunada Bay Elementary 520 Paseo LunadoPalos Verdes Estates90274 Location: Multi‐Purpose Room Hours: February 29 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMMalaga Cove Library2400 Via CampesinaPalos Verdes Estates90274 Location: Gallery Hours: February 29 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMPalos Verdes High School 600 Cloyden RdPalos Verdes Estates90274 Location: Multi‐Purpose RoomHours: February 29 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMRolling Hills City Hall2 Portuguese Bend RdRolling Hills90274 Location: Council ChambersHours: February 22 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMPeninsula Center Library 701 Silver Spur RdRolling Hills Estates90274 Location: Community RoomHours: February 29 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMCornerstone @ Pedregal School 6069 Groveoak PlRancho Palos Verdes90275 Location: Multi‐Purpose RoomHours: February 29 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMLadera Linda Community Center 32201 Forrestal DrRancho Palos Verdes90275 Location: Multi‐Purpose RoomHours: February 29 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMMira Catalina Elementary 30511 Lucania DrRancho Palos Verdes90275 Location: Multi‐Purpose RoomHours: February 29 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMMiraleste Intermediate School 29323 Palos Verdes Dr Rancho Palos Verdes90275 Location: GymnasiumHours: February 29 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMVista Grande Elementary School 7032 Purpleridge DrRancho Palos Verdes90275 Location: Multi‐Purpose RoomHours: February 29 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMHarbor Hills (Family‐Senior) 26607 S Western AveLomita90717 Location: Community RoomHours: February 22 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMLomita Library24200 Narbonne AveLomita90717 Location: Don Knabe Meeting RoomHours: February 22 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMSan Pedro Senior High School 1001 W 15th StLos Angeles90731 Location: Auditorium FoyerHours: February 29 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMCabrillo Avenue Elementary School732 S Cabrillo AveSan Pedro90731 Location: AuditoriumHours: February 29 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMSan Pedro Service Center 769 W 3rd StSan Pedro90731 Location: Multi‐Purpose Room 107Hours: February 29 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMLA Harbor Masonic Lodge 1640 W 9th StSan Pedro90732 Location: Main HallHours: February 22 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMLittle Sisters of the Poor 2100 S Western AveSan Pedro90732 Location: AuditoriumHours: February 22 ‐ March 2: 8AM ‐ 5PM March 3: 7AM ‐ 8PMB-1