Internet Voting Comes to Florida Schools; VoteHere.net to Conduct Voting Trials in Okaloosa and Sarasota County Schools

Business Wire, March 10, 2000

Business Editors, High-Tech Writers

BELLEVUE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 10, 2000

On March 14th, over 5700 high school students in Okaloosa and Sarasota counties will cast their votes for the next U.S. president in a mock Internet election sponsored by their respective county election supervisors.

VoteHere.net, the secure Internet voting company, will work with four Sarasota County and six Okaloosa County schools to establish mock poll-sites where students can register to vote and cast their ballots online.

Florida is one of the first states to actively pursue public-sector Internet voting. It is also involved with the Federal Voting Assistance Program's Internet voting project that will enable overseas military personnel to participate in the November 2000 presidential election via the Internet. Supervisors of Elections, Marilyn Gerkin (Sarasota) and Pat Hollarn (Okaloosa) agree that Internet voting has a future in Florida and both believe that conducting this mock election serves several purposes. First, it is a great opportunity to encourage young people to be aware and involved in the electoral process. Secondly, it provides county election officials a chance to explore Internet voting as an alternative voting method for future use.

According to Hollarn, "Given our involvement with FVAP's pilot project for the military, we are excited to bring Internet technology and the overall voting experience to students, the voters of the future. VoteHere.net's experience with numerous public sector online election tests qualifies the company as a capable partner for this exciting opportunity."

Gerkin echoes that sentiment, "Sarasota County is proud to be a part of this project that offers students a way to explore future voting concepts. Young people are tomorrow's leaders. Any way we can encourage them to become involved in the electoral process will benefit everyone."

VoteHere.net president and CEO, Jim Adler, agrees. "We are pleased to be involved with these Florida projects. With voter turnout of the younger population at such low levels, we must get students involved in the democratic process early. The Internet is a great way to reach out to them since it is already such an integral part of their lives."

About VoteHere.net

VoteHere.net is the leading worldwide supplier of secure Internet voting solutions. Founded in 1996, VoteHere.net has developed proprietary patent-pending technology to provide secure, certifiable Internet voting systems for both public and private elections, market research, polling, and surveys. For more information, visit their web site at http://www.votehere.net, or by phone at 888/457-6863, 425/827-5156 or email to info@votehere.net. Correspondence may also be sent to VoteHere.net, 3101 Northup Way, Suite 250, Bellevue, WA 98004-1449.