90.1 FM San Luis Obispo | 91.7 FM Paso Robles | 91.1 FM Cayucos | 95.1 FM Lompoc | 90.9 FM Avila
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

The Machinery of Democracy, a History of Balloting

Most Americans never paid that much attention to how they voted until the 2000 presidential elections showed that even tiny punch card chads can make a difference. Now, a lot of voting equipment -- especially new electronic touch screen machines -- gets intense scrutiny. But a new exhibit at the Smithsonian shows that worries about voting security are as old as the republic.

NPR's Pam Fessler has a report on the National Museum of American History exhibit, which is called "Vote: The Machinery of Democracy."

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Pam Fessler is a correspondent on NPR's National Desk, where she covers poverty, philanthropy, and voting issues.