By KEVIN CHIRI

Publisher

LAPLACE — The Saturday, April 1 election in LaPlace will mark the beginning of a new era in voting for the electorate in Louisiana, as St. John Parish will unveil its new electronic voting machines.

Clerk of Court Eliana DeFrancesch has put together a host of aids for voters to learn about the machines, and is offering information on everything from local cable TV to classes which will be held Thursday night, March 23.

The classes are open to the public and will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Acuri Center on Cambridge Drive, the east bank office for the clerk of court.

&#8220We have tried to find as many ways as possible to educate the public about the new machines,” DeFrancesch said.

&#8220And I like the fact we have a smaller election for the first time we use them on April 1. It will enable us to work out any kinks on a smaller scale.”

DeFrancesch has spent money from the court fund to put together an educational advertisement running on Time Warner cable, she has put together an in-hour three minute video to explain how the machines work, and even has CD’s at her office for people to pick up. Additionally, the video is on-line at stjohnclerk.org on the Internet.

The machines are equipped with headsets and audio assistance for voters, if needed, and also offer Braille voting.