November 9, 2022
We do not believe that anyone has been disenfranchised because no one has been turned away.
Maricopa County Board of Supervisors Chairman Bill Gates (R) after a county judge denied a request to extend the hours at polling centers following issues with certain election equipment in the county.
What Happened? On Tuesday in Maricopa County, Arizona, printing issues caused tabulating machines (machines which scan and record peoples' votes off of their ballot) to reject ballots in about 25% of all voting centers in the county. Voters whose ballots were rejected were told they could either leave their ballot in a box to be counted in a separate location on Wednesday, or that they could go to another voting cite to cast a new ballot.
- Following the issues, some Republican candidates and organizations filed a lawsuit requesting that polling centers stay open for three more hours to allow people more time to vote. The Associated Press explains: "Former President Donald Trump, Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake and others weighed in to claim that Democrats were trying to subvert the vote of Republicans, who tend to show up in greater numbers in person on Election Day."
- A Maricopa County judge rejected the Republicans request, saying that voters were not denied their right to vote.
Big Picture: "County Elections Department spokesperson Megan Gilbertson told Axios that all printers and tabulators are tested prior to the general election, and it's unclear why that testing didn't detect the problem," Axios reports.
Maricopa County judge rejects Republicans' request to extend poll hours (Axios)
by Jenna Lee,
