Backup power for polling places
Polling places need backup power because voting equipment must keep working, and keep its data, through an outage. The U.S. Election Assistance Commission expects voter-facing voting systems at a polling place to carry about two hours of battery backup so that a power loss does not lose or corrupt data.
Why Maine should plan for it
Maine is heavily forested, and falling branches take power lines down often. In 2020 Maine had the highest average number of power interruptions per customer of any state, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Maine runs elections town by town, so each town plans its own contingency.
Why a generator is a poor fit inside the polls
A generator's voltage and frequency wander with the load and its waveform can be distorted. Generac states that power with more than 6 percent total harmonic distortion can make computers fail prematurely. Schneider Electric, which makes APC backup supplies, explains that a backup supply fed by a generator may switch to its own battery and back repeatedly. A generator also brings exhaust and noise to the door of a public building.
What a battery unit provides
A charged battery unit delivers steady power for ballot-marking devices, tabulators, poll books, lights and heat for a full election day, with no fuel and no exhaust, and it can be placed close to the building.
Sources
- U.S. Election Assistance Commission, Decision on Request for Interpretation 2023-05. eac.gov
- U.S. Energy Information Administration, "U.S. electricity customers experienced eight hours of power interruptions in 2020", 10 November 2021. eia.gov
- Generac, "What Is Total Harmonic Distortion (THD)?" support.generac.com
- Schneider Electric FAQ FA158891, "The UPS won't operate online when powered by generator". se.com