NJ voters encounter long lines, tech issues at polls

✔️ Some polling locations had technical issues to start the day

✔️ Turnout appeared to be heavy in some locations

✔️ Officials stressed that everyone in line at 8 p.m. will get to vote

New Jersey voters encountered some problems and long lines at the polls as of Tuesday afternoon for what election officials say could be a record turnout.

Burlington County voters on social media and callers to the New Jersey 101.5 newsroom are reporting long lines at voting locations in Burlington, Eastampton, Florence, Marlton and Mount Laurel.

The state Attorney General's Office was reportedly seeking a judge's order to keep polls open in Burlington County past 8 p.m. in order to accommodate the long lines, New Jersey Globe editor David Wildstein reported.

After nearly 1.2 million votes were cast during the nine-day period between Oct. 26 and Nov. 3 in-person voters got their chance to vote on Tuesday. Turnout appears to be very heavy creating some long lines although no specific numbers have yet been reported.

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"People are excited. People are eager to make their voices heard. It may be taking voters a little time on equipment that's not familiar. It's quite possible that you haven't been in a voting booth since 2016. Every single New Jersey county has upgraded their machines since then," Alicia D’Alessandro, spokeswoman for the Secretary of State's Office told New Jersey 101.5.

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New voters encounter problems

County spokesman David Levinsky said there were technical issues at some locations when the polls first opened that slowed the process but they were resolved. Lingering problems were the result of the large turnout.

"We still have just a lot of interest in participation and turnout. It could possibly be a record turnout year. We're asking people to be patient. We want everybody to know that if you're online at eight o'clock, you will be allowed to vote," Levinsky said.

About a dozen newly registered voters at the Claremont Avenue School in the Colonia section of Woodbridge told New Jersey 101.5 that their names were in the system but poll workers could not complete the process to give them a ballot. A spokeswoman for the The Middlesex County Board of Elections in a statement said increased loading times on the poll book are to blame.

“Where applicable, voters were issued a provisional ballot, and Board of Elections staff has been on-site throughout the day to ensure that voters are able to sign in and cast their ballots," the spokeswoman told New Jersey 101.5 in an email.

Ten people who were not allowed to vote in Monmouth County went before a judge who turned all of their appeals down, according to the Asbury Park Press. Allan Roth, attorney for the Monmouth County Democratic Organization, told the Press that they were rejected because they missed the deadline to register or were registered out of state.

D’Alessandro urged voters to not take out their frustrations at long lines on poll workers adding that many of them are working an 18-hour day.

"We urge everybody to be patient. These are folks taking time out of their lives to make sure democracy happens," D’Alessandro said.

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