Voters in at least one Republican county in Pennsylvania — the most crucial swing state this election cycle — will get two extra hours of voting after widespread voting machine issues on Election Day, election officials said.
Cambria County east of Pittsburgh experienced issues with the machines that scan ballots Tuesday morning, election officials said.
“The Cambria County Board of Election learned early this morning that a software malfunction in the County’s Electronic Voting System has prevented voters from scanning their ballots,” Cambria County Solicitor Ron Repak said in a statement, according to the New York Post.
“This should not discourage voters from voting at their voting precincts. The Board has filed a Court Order extending the time to vote within Cambria County,” Repak said, adding that, “No one should be turned away from the polls if they wish to cast their vote.”
Election officials filed an emergency request to extend voting to 10:00 p.m., two hours past the 8:00 p.m. deadline.
The ballot machine issue “threatens to disenfranchise a significant number of voters” in Cambria County, Repak wrote in his emergency filing.
A judge approved the two-hour voting extension around 11:00 a.m. However, the judge noted that ballots cast after the original 8:00 p.m. deadline would be provisional ballots.
Nevertheless, some voters left the polling place without casting a ballot, according to election officials.
“The malfunction caused voter confusion, long lines of voters, and many individuals left the polling locations without casting a ballot,” Repak wrote.
The Pennsylvania Department of State said it was aware of the ballot scanning issues in Cambria.
In 2020, former President Donald Trump won Cambria with 68% of the vote.
“Voters are continuing to vote by paper ballot, in accordance with normal operations, while the county resolves the issue with in-precinct scanning,” the department said in a statement.
“We are working with the County to resolve this technical matter and remain committed to ensuring a free, fair, safe, and secure election,” the department said.
Cambria County said it had sent IT professionals to fix the issue with the voting machines.
Bedford County south of Cambria faced a similar issue Tuesday morning.
Several Bedford precincts encountered issues with their ballot machines before the polls opened, officials said.
Ballots in Bedford were being cast but kept in a lock box until they can be counted, local election officials said.
Trump won Bedford with 83% of the vote in 2020.
Pennsylvania’s 19 electoral votes are considered a must-win for Vice President Kamala Harris. Losing Pennsylvania would significantly complicate her path to victory.
Trump currently has a slight lead over Harris in Pennsylvania.