Software issue disrupts voting in Pennsylvania county, court extends polling hours

Voting hours in Cambria County have been extended until 10 p.m. today following an emergency petition by the county Board of Elections. The petition, approved by President Judge Linda Rovder Fleming, cited a software issue that caused disruptions countywide, affecting the electronic scanners used to read paper ballots.

County election officials later found that the paper ballots couldn’t be processed by the scanners, and voters’ ballots would need to be securely stored and hand-counted, as reported by The Tribune-Democrat. According to the judge’s order, any votes cast after the standard 8 p.m. cutoff will be recorded by provisional ballot.

Pennsylvania’s in-person voting is normally from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day, but courts can extend hours if there are emergency situations, as happened in Cambria County. The petition, filed by County Solicitor Ron Repak on behalf of the Board of Elections, explained that the malfunction with the electronic scanners led to delays and confusion, with many voters leaving without casting their ballots. The petition stated, "The (Electronic Voting System) software malfunction threatens to disenfranchise a significant number of voters in Cambria County, and this petition is seeking to ensure all voters have an opportunity to vote."

According to The Tribune-Democrat, some polling sites had pre-tested the voting machines, yet they still failed to process ballots when voters arrived. One local voter, Christine Miller, described her experience at a Geistown polling location where she and her husband encountered issues with the machine accepting their ballots. Despite trying multiple times to submit her ballot, the machine wouldn’t process it. Unable to wait for a resolution, she handed her ballot to her husband, who, along with others, remained at the location, waiting to see how the problem would be addressed.