By Terri L. Enns
Tuesday’s voting in Ohio went more smoothly than anticipated, and certainly more smoothly than some past experience would have portended. The biggest news was that those problems that did crop up were not widespread or systemic, but rather were localized and sporadic. What follows is a collage of reported glitches: One of the most common complaints concerned long lines. Reasons for those lines included voter unfamiliarity with how to operate new machines, long ballots, and heavy turnout. In some precincts, lines resulted from poll workers who failed to arrive or to open the polling places on time, and some of those delays were attributed to illness and to technical difficulties with setting up the machines. Another kind of problem was with new requirements that voters provide identification when voting. Voters without the proper identification are permitted to cast a provisional ballot. Problems were reported with poll workers requiring voters to cast a provisional ballot when the voter believed he or she had provided acceptable identification. Additional complaints centered on poll books being marked to require individual voters to cast provisional ballots and those voters feeling that they were not provided adequate explanations as to why they should vote provisionally rather than cast a regular ballot. Technological glitches also impeded the voting process in some places. At least one board of elections had its phone system go down due to an overwhelming number of calls. A temporary power outage halted voting for a brief time in at least one location. Some precincts reported problems with the paper trail getting jammed or other kinds of printer malfunctions. The overall picture is that, despite some inconveniences and delays, voters in Ohio were able to cast their votes on Election Day with relatively few problems. Problems that did arise should provide a blue print for educating both election officials and the public before our next election.