Probably the biggest snafu story of Election Day so far, as of mid-afternoon on the East Coast: ballot scanners in Westchester County, N.Y., unable to accept ballots because of their thickness. Mike Lawler, a Republican congressman who represents part of the county, said that "[t]here's no shenanigans going on here."
He and steamed local officials have tried reassuring voters that their cast ballots are being accounted for and that there hasn't been a reason to alter their voting plans, although the count after the close of polls will now take longer. Fox News with more:
Multiple voters in Westchester County told Fox News Digital that their paper ballots were taken and placed into red or orange bags. Lawler confirmed the procedure of using the bags to store ballots.
"As is often the case, when there's an emergency, they take the ballot, and they put it in an emergency voting bag. Every ballot will be counted. And everybody should be rest assured that their vote will count. They should wait on line. I know the lines may be impacted a little bit. With some delays, but do not leave the line. Make sure you vote. Your vote will be counted. The machines are being fixed," he said.
The county's board of elections reiterated Lawler's insistence that all ballots will be counted.
"Voters should continue to complete their paper ballots as instructed by poll workers. Ballots that cannot be processed by voting machines will be placed in designated orange emergency ballot bags, which will remain secure and monitored. These ballots will subsequently be counted," the BOE said.
(Chris Deaton)