Voters Turned Away as Ballot Scanner Failures Hit New York Battleground
by Frank Bergman
Ballot scanners stopped accepting paper ballots at polling places across Westchester County, New York, on Election Day, disrupting voting in a critical House battleground and triggering reports that voters were being told to return later.
The breakdown struck a county covering roughly 30 percent of New York’s 17th Congressional District, where Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) faces Democrat nominee Cait Conley in one of the country’s most closely watched House races.
Election officials instructed voters to place rejected ballots in orange emergency ballot bags while authorities investigated the failure.
The disruption could delay results in the competitive contest because those ballots must be processed before they can be tallied.
Officials Remove Initial Explanation
The Westchester County Board of Elections acknowledged that voting machines were refusing paper ballots at polling locations throughout the county.
The board initially blamed the thickness of the ballots, then removed that explanation from its statement.
Officials have not announced a replacement explanation.
Lawler said authorities were working with vendors to determine whether the problem involved the ballots or the machines.
The board said it was coordinating with state officials and county government “to ensure that voting continues with as little disruption as possible.”
However, at least one voter reported receiving instructions that conflicted with officials’ public message to remain at polling places and vote.
“I just went to vote in Westchester & machines are apparently broken county wide,” voter Ben Hort wrote on X.
“They said choice is vote absentee or come back later.
“This is going to be crazy.
“Our country is in trouble.”
Lawler Urges Voters to Stay and Cast Ballots