Long lines, polling stations that opened late, polling stations with no machines – or just one – which was broken, wrong machines being delivered, machines delivered to the wrong address, and only a few provisional ballots and no pens. These are just some of the problems being reported about voting in Georgia’s primary Tuesday morning.
“Georgia election officials, poll workers and voters reported major trouble with voting in Atlanta and elsewhere on Tuesday as the state’s primaries got underway, most critically a series of problems with new voting machines that forced many people across the state to wait in long lines and cast provisional ballots,” The New York Times reports.
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms is sounding the alarm.
“Fulton County Commissioner Liz Hausmann said it took her 2 hours and 40 minutes on Tuesday morning to vote at the Johns Creek Environmental Campus,” the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. “She said she’d never seen a line so long — even for a presidential election.”
Georgia’s Republican governor Brian Kemp was the Secretary of State when he won against Democrat Stacey Abrams in 2018, amid massive complaints of voter suppression and election manipulation.
NBC News’ Blayne Alexander:
At Cross Keys High School in Brookhaven, near Atlanta, precinct manager Jonathan Banes said: “We are having technical issues and we don’t have access to any provisional ballots. I can’t give anyone here an ETA on when they can vote.”
Local CBS reporter: “no machines at some precincts.”
“My phone hasn’t stopped ringing,” said State Rep. William Boddie, who calls it a “complete meltdown.”
“We’re having issues throughout the county,” he added. “Did they not know this was going to be a voting day for months? Fulton County’s Board of Elections can’t be let off the hook this time. It’s inexcusable.”
Voting rights expert Ari Berman is one of many who are saying voter suppression is happening again in Georgia.
Local CBS reporter:
One voter at Central Park Recreation Center told the AJC poll workers had been calling for help since 5 AM.
At 8:45 AM the AJC reports “140 voters at Central Park Recreation Center were being told they’ll have to vote with paper provisional ballots because voting machines weren’t working.”