SARASOTA, Fla. (AP) - A public test of new voting machines in Sarasota County showed two things: That the apparatus works, and that Southwest Floridians prefer Jay Leno.

More than 800 people showed up Tuesday to cast mock ballots in Sarasota, Venice and North Port, using new optical scan machines. One failure was reported among the 199 machines, which cost the county $3 million. Elections supervisor Kathy Dent deemed it a low failure rate.

County commissioners and critics wanted the public test to bolster public confidence after disputed elections in 2000 and 2006.

More than half the voters picked Leno as their favorite late-night television host. Rival David Letterman racked up 36 percent of the vote and Conan O'Brien got 10 percent.


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Information from: Sarasota Herald-Tribune, http://www.herald-trib.com


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