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Breaking: 1 in 5 Polling Locations Goes Down in Major Battleground State County

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Ballot tabulation machines in about 20 percent of the polling stations in Maricopa County, Arizona, were not working as of Tuesday morning.

KSAZ-TV in Phoenix reported, “While the specific addresses and number of locations having issues have not been confirmed, the Maricopa County Recorder’s Officer says technicians have been called to fix the precinct tabulator machines that aren’t working.”

The Maricopa County Elections Department tweeted, “Advice for Voters: If a tabulator is not working at a site, you can still vote! You have the option to cast your ballot and place it into the secure ballot box.”

“The poll workers on site at the voting location are best equipped to help you ensure your ballot cast.”

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“We’ve had a few tabulator issues at a couple locations where the tabulator isn’t immediately taking the ballot,” County Recorder Stephen Richer told KSAZ after being asked about two locations with reported issues – Burton Barr Library and Christ Lutheran Church.

Richer said voters at either location could go to a different polling site before casting their ballots. If their ballots have already been cast, they can be counted by the tabulators on site, once they are fixed, or counted at the elections department’s central facility in downtown Phoenix after polls close.

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Richer and Maricopa County Board of Supervisors Chairman Bill Gates addressed the issue in a video posted on social media Tuesday morning.

“We’ve got about 20 percent of the locations out there where there’s an issue with the tabulators out there where some of the ballots after people have voted them, they try to run them through the tabulator, and they’re not going through,” Gates said.

He tried to reassure voters that they are trying to fix the problem as quickly as possible.

Gates said if the machine will not take the ballots, they can still be placed in the secure box below it for counting later at the central facility.

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That’s how early vote ballots are submitted to be counted, Richer said.

Richer added that’s how ballots are processed that are early voted by going through the central counting facility.

About 9 a.m. local time, Arizona Republican Party chairwoman Kelli Ward tweeted, “As of now, 50 @MaricopaVote polling locations are affected. Fifty out of 233. Over 21%. Ridiculous.”

Elliott Echols, political director for the Republican National Committee, tweeted, “Our attorneys and volunteers are on the ground working to solve this.”

Republican voters historically vote in much larger numbers on Election Day than Democratic voters.

In the 2020, the Election Day vote strongly favored then-President Donald Trump over Democrat Joe Biden.

Maricopa County, which encompasses the Phoenix metropolitan area and is the state’s most populous, includes about 60 percent of the registered voters in Arizona.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake encouraged Arizonans to vote because their ballot will be counted.

“If you have already *checked in* at a Maricopa County voting location where the tabulators do not work, you should *not* leave and go to another location without casting a vote,” she tweeted.

“[Y]ou can (1) wait for your ballot to be tabulated on site, (2) ask to use the handicapped voting machine, or (3) leave your ballot in a box to be counted later,” she added.

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Randy DeSoto has written more than 2,000 articles for The Western Journal since he joined the company in 2015. He is a graduate of West Point and Regent University School of Law. He is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths" and screenwriter of the political documentary "I Want Your Money."
Randy DeSoto is the senior staff writer for The Western Journal. He wrote and was the assistant producer of the documentary film "I Want Your Money" about the perils of Big Government, comparing the presidencies of Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama. Randy is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths," which addresses how leaders have appealed to beliefs found in the Declaration of Independence at defining moments in our nation's history. He has been published in several political sites and newspapers.

Randy graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a BS in political science and Regent University School of Law with a juris doctorate.
Birthplace
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Nationality
American
Honors/Awards
Graduated dean's list from West Point
Education
United States Military Academy at West Point, Regent University School of Law
Books Written
We Hold These Truths
Professional Memberships
Virginia and Pennsylvania state bars
Location
Phoenix, Arizona
Languages Spoken
English
Topics of Expertise
Politics, Entertainment, Faith




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