http://www.premierelections.com/newsroom/premier81607.htm

Diebold Election Systems to Become Premier Election Solutions

Increased Operational Independence, Concentrated Focus on Elections Systems Industry Will Strengthen Premier’s Competitive Advantage 

ALLEN, Texas -- In conjunction with the announcement today by Diebold, Incorporated, to create a more independent structure for its elections systems subsidiary, Diebold Election Systems is changing its name to Premier Election Solutions.  The change to Premier signals a new beginning for the company, emphasizing Premier’s leadership position and proven expertise in election solutions.

“This is both a fresh identity for our company and a unique opportunity for us to concentrate our focus solely on providing best-in-class elections solutions for current and potential customers,” said Dave Byrd, president, Premier Election Solutions, “We will build on a strong tradition of excellence, innovation and customer service, armed with the resources to develop innovative products and services.  Premier is and will remain the leader in the election systems industry, and will be an even more engaged, agile and responsive company. Voters are demanding features on election systems that we provide, such as paper-based optical scan technology, touch-screen systems with voter-verifiable paper audit trail printers, and effective ADA solutions. Our associates are the most dedicated, talented individuals in the industry, and they will continue to provide voting systems that are the leading solutions in the market.”

Premier customers will continue to receive the high level of support and dedicated services and solutions they’ve come to expect from the company.  Diebold’s election unit has always maintained a high level of operational independence, with the parent company supplying mostly financial support which will continue with Premier Election Solutions. 

The new corporate governance and management structure is a logical next step to continue that independence and growth.  Premier Election Solutions has its own quality control, research and development, compliance, legal counsel, financial controller, sales and marketing, communications, government relations and human resources functions.  Premier’s optical scan and touch-screen voting terminals will continue to be manufactured in the United States, with final oversight from Premier's Allen, Texas-based quality organization.  Premier's quality, engineering and software development organizations will continue to be located in their existing operations in Collin County, Texas; Summit County, Ohio; Placer County, California; Snohomish County, Washington; and Vancouver, British Columbia.

“We are going to increase communication with our customers and with the election community,” Byrd said. “Premier offers products and services that let voters cast ballots in English, Spanish and many other languages, and we will also continue to develop products that help people with disabilities vote without assistance, on the same voting equipment and with the same ballots as other voters,” Byrd said. “Premier has a very strong legacy of innovation and customer service, but our mission is to take our performance to the next level.”

Premier will operate with an independent board which will include independent directors to oversee the newly realigned entity. Dave Byrd will remain president of this company and will report to the new board of directors.  

Premier inherits a very strong reputation for service that is unmatched in the election system industry. Premier will further enhance its technical support, poll worker training and voter outreach and education services, utilizing industry-leading security standards, safeguards and protocols.

Today, more than 25,000 optical scan units and more than 126,000 touch-screen voting stations, many with voter-verified paper audit trail, are deployed by existing Premier customers, ensuring every vote is safe, secure and accurate. Premier now offers the AutoMARK™ paper ballot ADA solution that enables blind and physically challenged voters to use an optical scan ballot to make their candidate selections. Premier customers use more than 16,000 ExpressPoll electronic poll books which have decreased voter validation time by up to 65 percent, reducing voter waiting lines at precinct locations.

Premier recently introduced a number of market-leading products that include a new AccuVote-OSX optical scan unit, and the patented VoteRemote absentee system offering automated signature verification for incoming absentee ballot envelopes. Premier’s high-speed optical scanner provides digital ballot scanning and can individually separate paper ballots that contain errors such as blank ballots, over-votes, under-votes, etc., expediting the ballot scanning process.

About Premier Election Solutions
Premier Election Solutions, Inc., is headquartered in Allen, Texas and has offices and personnel throughout the United States and in Canada.  Premier Election Solutions provides high-quality voting technology to jurisdictions of all sizes, along with comprehensive service and support capability, and is committed to elections accuracy, security and integrity. For more information on Premier Election Solutions, visit the company's Web site at www.premierelections.com, or call 1-800-433-VOTE.


For more information:

Chris Riggall                                                                           Martin Machowsky
Premier Election Solutions                                                Edelman Public Relations
1-800-433-8683 ext.  1112                                               (202) 326-1702
Christopher.Riggall@premierelections.com