New Clark County elections machines will give on-site voters a ‘hands-on’ experience

Clark County voters will encounter a new, additional step when casting ballots in person starting in the 2026 elections, allowing them to inspect and insert the paper record of their votes into newly acquired tabulation machines.

Lorena Portillo, the county’s registrar of voters, outlined the updated process Thursday morning.

“The paper ballot itself will be something that the voter will enjoy to have in their hands, and for them to go actually cast the ballot themselves,” she said during a media presentation at the Clark County Election Department.

Portillo said the change meets Nevada elections’ “high standard of security.”

The process for in-person check-ins and candidate selections will not change.

“It used to be a two-step process, now it’s a three-step process,” Portillo said.

‘Just like in the past’

Clark County will continue using Dominion Voting Systems touchscreen machines, known as ImageCast X, or ICX, she noted.

“The ballot marking device will assist the voter just like in the past,” Portillo said.

But unlike previous elections, the machines will only mark the ballots instead of tabulating them, Portillo explained.

State law requires that the ballots be printed, she noted. However, voters will now be able to hold the printouts, review them and walk them over to insert them into the new tabulating machines.

The elections department began acquiring the 500 new tabulators and 5,000 printers in January, Portillo said.

The tabulators are equipped with SD cards that are faster than the previously used flash drives on the ICX machines, she said.

“We are anticipating a much quicker response,” Portillo said. “However, remember Nevada law doesn’t allow us to publish any results until the polls close in the state … and the secretary of state gives us the green light to do so.”

She said training at the elections department is ongoing and that the county plans to roll out educational materials for voters.

Portillo said the tabulators have been used in other jurisdictions.

“It’s very important to understand that in the election world, there’s new equipment always being produced and improved,” she said. “And this also aligns with security standards, statewide standards, and we also want to introduce the in-person process and hands-on experience for the voter.”

Contact Ricardo Torres-Cortez at rtorres@reviewjournal.com.