Everything worked as expected Friday morning when the Porter County Board of Elections & Registration met in the basement of its offices and at  Porter County Expo Center to put voting equipment through its paces in preparation for the general election. The board, which is made up of two Democratic and two Republican appointees, as well as Porter County Clerk Jessica Bailey, is required by the state to test 10% of its voting machines. “We always go above and beyond, so today we’re testing 15,” explained Elections & Registration Office Director Sundae Schoon of the ExpressVote machines. The ExpressVotes are described by election officials as an electronic pencil. Five DS200 tabulators were also tested in the basement before the group adjourned long enough to drive over to the Expo Center where the high-speed 850 vote counter was also checked. “Remember after the last election we talked about getting another one of these?” asked board member Jeff Chidester. “They didn’t have enough. We looked at renting one,” Schoon said of supply chain issues back in 2020. “They have a 950 now.” Director of Elections & Registration Sundae Schoon, left, and Porter County Clerk Jessica Bailey check the work of a DS500 vote tabulator on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, at the election test in advance of the general election. (Shelley Jones/for Post-Tribune) Bailey said she couldn’t guess what the latest model would run now as it’s been six years since they purchased the 850, except that it would be beyond the county’s budget, particularly with the effects of inflation. Fortunately, there are other ways to keep the vote count on schedule other than investing in a second machine. “That’s why we’re watching the absentees,” Bailey explained, “to see if we need to start our central count on Sunday rather than Monday,” the day before the election. Betty Rausch, of Chesterton, was the only member of the public who came to watch the election test. She’s the wife of Board President Paul Rausch and has been working early voting so long she’s lost track of when she first started. She’s taking a break from that role this year “so I figured I’d come with him this year and see what this is like. We deal with this all the time when we’re working, but I’ve never seen them test it.” Porter County Chief Deputy Clerk Kathy Hartwig runs a test on the DS200, one of five vote tabulators tested on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, by the Board of Elections & Registration. (Shelley Jones/for Post-Tribune) Her main concern with the upcoming election is making sure folks who are used to voting at the Chesterton Town Hall vote center know it’s been moved this general election to the new Duneland YMCA Healthy Living Campus at 651 W. Morgan Ave. Voters should enter through the pool entrance. Because of unexpected black mold remediation, the Burns Harbor Town Hall vote center has been moved next door to the Burns Harbor Fire Station, 308 Navajo Trail. The deadline for voter registration is Monday. Early voting starts Tuesday and continues through 12 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 4; for details on times and locations, go to https://porterco.org/1111/Early-Voting. Shelley Jones is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.