Slight Snag at No.Va. Polling Place

Tue, November 04, 2008 - 4:49 PM

SPRINGFIELD,Va.—In what otherwise is being reported as a smooth Election Day across Northern Virginia, one precinct had a snag with its ballot machines early this morning. (Watch the problem precinct at the right.)

Washington Irving Middle School, an approximately 2,700-voter precinct in Fairfax County was not able to scan ballots for about an hour, so rather than put completed ballots into the secured ballot box, chief election officer Ronald Heald wrote “void” on about 20 voters’ ballots and told those voters to cast electronic ballots instead.

Precinct workers had counted on most voters asking for paper ballots, so they only had three electronic voting machines. During the hour when all voters were told to vote electronically, the line grew to hundreds of feet long.

The precinct staff never did learn the root of the ballot machine problem. Heald called for help from the county registrar’s office, which sent technicians out right away.

“They jiggled it around, played with some things and got it going,” Heald said.

Poll watchers from both parties said the snafu was handled as well as could be expected and nobody walked away as voting lines during the early morning rush grew.

“At least they got to vote,” said Eva Coffey, a Republican poll watcher, who primarily was making sure election officials were asking voters for their names and addresses.

Terry Martin, a Democratic poll watcher had found no significant problems in the first six hours of the voting day. “I just observe and make sure (voters) get assistance they need. If anything occurs, I get the lawyers,” he said.

--Neil Simon