Tipsheet

Uh Oh, These States Are Already Having Voting Issues

Sarah Arnold
Sarah Arnold  |  November 01, 2024 7:30 PM

People are experiencing voter suppression at its finest while waiting to cast their ballot at Levittown, Pennsylvania— a Republican stronghold— because of an apparent staff shortage. 

Voters lined up to vote on Friday were told they had to leave because there wasn’t enough staff to cover the long lines of people wanting to cast their ballots. Due to the overwhelming number of people who came out to vote, early in-person voting was extended to November 1. People in line said they couldn’t return on Election Day due to work and previous engagements. Some of the voters interviewed had been waiting in line for nearly six hours, saying they were frustrated and angry at the lack of preparation. 

Also, in Levittown, voters were told to fill out their ballots and hand them to election workers, who said they would put them into the machine later. 

The same is happening in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, where “elections officials did the bare minimum to comply with court’s order to provide voting access through 5 PM today,” Trump campaign's James Blair said.

Blair said that some polling sites in the area were staffed with just one or two workers even though the 2024 election would see some of the most significant numbers of people in history voting. 

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Last week, the Department of State emailed county election officials about many voters applying for mail-in and requesting on-demand ballots before the deadline. 

The email informed the boards of the election that they are to ensure “every voter who is in line by 5:00 PM is provided with an opportunity to request and submit a ballot.” 

It warned polling sites that 2024 is a “uniquely busy election cycle” and “may require you to consider logistical challenges that you previously didn’t need to consider.” However, several polling sites across the state failed to do so. 

Voters were guaranteed an opportunity to apply for a mail ballot if they were in line by 5 p.m. before the deadline. However, workers turned people away even before the deadline because of long lines. 

This comes after Republican National Convention (RNC) Chairman Michael Whatley said that the Trump campaign plans to file a lawsuit against Bucks County for turning away voters lined up to apply for mail ballots in person before the 5 p.m. deadline. 

“Folks, here’s what’s happening: Democrat election officials are seeing our numbers. They’re seeing our turnout. They are seeing us breaking early vote records across Pennsylvania. They are terrified. And they want to stop our momentum,” Whatley said. “We are not going to let them suppress our votes. We are going to fight.”

In addition, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) took to social media to raise awareness of voting issues elsewhere. 

In a video posted on X, Greene pointed out that voting machines in Arkansas switched votes to Vice President Kamala Harris after a voter picked former President Donald Trump.