Verity is ‘Easy to Learn and Easy to Use’
WIGGINS, Mississippi, February 1, 2021 – Stone County Election Officials are crediting a smooth and secure November election to their decision to upgrade to Hart InterCivic’s new Verity® Voting paper-ballot system, which replaced outdated electronic equipment from another vendor.
The decision came less than two weeks before absentee voting began, a timetable that demanded total confidence in Hart’s system and support. The trusted election system provider delivered both.
“I can’t say enough good about the Hart staff that helped us set up our ballots and trained us so quickly,” said Circuit Clerk Treba Davis. “Verity was so easy to use, so easy to learn. There is no way I’d go with any other system or vendor.”
“We had no issues, and our voters were very comfortable with the new paper ballots. We had a lot of good feedback and they were confident in scanning their own ballots at the polling place,” she added. “Poll workers loved it. Election Commissioners loved it.”
When Davis took office in January 2020, she knew that the county needed a new election system, and it would have been easy to give the existing vendor that contract. But Davis does not believe in taking the easy route without due diligence.
“Just because you are comfortable, doesn’t mean there isn’t a better option out there,” she said. Her research included a conversation with the clerk in Rankin County, the first Mississippi county to choose Verity. She learned that Rankin has had no problems with Verity since they purchased it in 2016.
“I heard good things about Hart and when I saw it in person, I could tell that they developed it by listening to their users. It’s so much better than other equipment we tried. It’s like the difference between a Volkswagen and a BMW,” said Davis, who has worked in the election office for five years. “Their representative gave an excellent presentation, and he was so trustworthy and honest. Clearly, he had nothing to hide. Now that we’ve voted with Verity, I understand his pride in the system.”
Davis also praised the Hart technician who set up their equipment and spent Election Day in Stone County. “It was so smooth; he might have been bored!”
Davis is looking forward to working with Hart on future elections and to learning how to set up an election on her own. “Our interaction with Hart didn’t end with a contract. We have a relationship; they are so knowledgeable and helpful,” she said.
“Relationships are the heart and soul of our business. We are happy to welcome Stone County to the Hart family,” said Julie Mathis, CEO of Hart InterCivic, an Austin-based company with more than 100 years of experience providing election solutions. “We’ve only been in Mississippi since 2016, but our election success is built on generations of experience.”
Davis has advice for jurisdictions planning to replace election equipment: “Hear Hart out. My experience has been wonderful.”
Verity, the most up-to-date technology available in the U.S., is a federally and state certified system designed from the ground up to be flexible, easy to use and secure with all new hardware and software. Stone and Rankin County officials chose a paper-ballot configuration when they purchased Verity. Other jurisdictions across the U.S. have chosen electronic, paper or hybrid arrangements.
For more information about the Verity Voting system, please visit
https://www.hartintercivic.com/better-elections/
Media Contact:
Steven Sockwell
512.252.6409