Voting Machines Reject Ballots Across Westchester County
Is this just a glitch that officials handled smoothly or a chain-of-custody crisis demanding bipartisan oversight?
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Above: Mike Lawler casts his ballot in Pearl River, NY, on Nov. 3. Image credit: Kena Betancur/Getty Images
The Facts
- Voting machines throughout New York's Westchester County began rejecting paper ballots Tuesday morning, the county Board of Elections said, adding that it was in constant contact with state officials, county government and poll workers.
- Ballots that the machines could not process were placed in designated orange emergency bags that officials said would remain secure and monitored. Republicans and Democrats sought a court order to ensure a centralized location for tabulation.
- Election officials initially blamed the thickness of the paper ballots, then removed that explanation from their statement. Westchester covers roughly 30% of the 17th District, which also takes in Putnam and Rockland counties and part of Dutchess.
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The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
A paper jam is a paper jam, not a conspiracy. Bipartisan election officials caught the problem fast, kept every polling place open and made sure each ballot stays secure until it's counted. With a statewide hotline standing by to fix voter problems on the spot, the real threat to democracy would be walking away from the line.
Establishment-critical narrative
When every scanner in a county fails in one of the tightest House races in the country, assurances alone don't cut it. Dumping ballots into emergency bags without a centralized, bipartisan-monitored tabulation site is exactly how confidence in results evaporates. This could very well be an accident, but states like New York have to be better prepared.
