AUSTIN, Texas, March 4, 2021 – When voters in Hood and Sabine counties go to the polls on May 1, they will be casting their ballots for the first time using the Verity® Voting system from Hart InterCivic, a leading election provider gaining momentum in the United States. Both counties recently chose Hart to replace outdated equipment from ES&S. Election officials cited voting integrity, customer service and ease of use as factors in their decisions to switch.
“Verity’s paper trail option is the best to meet our voters’ needs,” said Hood County Elections Administrator Michele Carew. “Voting security is number one on everyone’s mind and we wanted security features that make the voter feel like their ballot is being cast the way they want. They want paper. They want to see it, touch it, read it before they cast it. Hart offered all of that.”
Hood County will rely on Verity Duo, a ballot marking device that that produces a voter-verifiable paper trail. Other systems, rely on converting voters’ choices to barcodes to be interpreted by computer, an approach some security officials have questioned. For example, Colorado banned the use of barcodes for counting votes over security concerns in 2019.
In Sabine County, Deputy Election Clerk Angie Garza is looking forward to Verity’s user-friendly technology and convenient design. “Verity is lightweight and easy to transport and that is important for our office. Our precincts are spread out and my staff does all of the setup.”
When it came time to upgrade Sabine County’s outdated election system, Garza talked to her counterpart in neighboring San Augustine County, which switched to Hart in 2019. “Hearing from someone who has been through a transition, doing research is important. They have been very happy with Hart and told me that customer service has been great.”
Hart’s reputation for customer support continues to be a strong factor for long-time and new users. Carew is both. Since 2007, she has worked with Hart systems as an election official in Parker and Aransas counties and will soon be using Verity in Hood County, where she started work in September.
“Picking Verity was the county’s choice, and I was so happy with our commissioners’ decision. Hart’s customer service is cream of the crop, always top notch,” she said. Both vendors made demos and presentations to the public as part of the selection process. “We had a good turnout and (the Hart representative) had to talk nonstop for four hours.”
“Our commissioners also liked that Verity is made in the USA. Hart is a Texas-based company, and their help is easy to access,” Carew added. “That was a selling point.”
“Welcome to the Hart family! We look forward to sharing our brand of customer support, backing the best voting technology available,” said Julie Mathis, CEO of Hart InterCivic, an Austin-based company with more than 100 years of experience providing election solutions.
“Nearly 90% of customers who have switched from other companies say Hart is more responsive and helpful and we think Hood and Sabine counties will agree.”
“Our election partners set a high bar for up-to-date, secure voting technology and demand the most responsive customer service. We understand that transitions can be complex, and we provide top-tier professional service to help customers adapt to new technology and processes,” Mathis added.
For more information about the Verity Voting system, please visit