Some polling places in North Carolina are reporting issues with feeding ballots through vote-counting machines due to the high humidity levels.
Elections officials in Wake County and other areas said they could not use the tabulators effectively, and the North Carolina State Board of Elections advised them to keep voting areas as dry and cool as possible.
“When ballots cannot be read by tabulators, they are stored securely in ‘emergency bins’ and will be tabulated as soon as possible,” the North Carolina State Board of Elections said in a statement Tuesday.
.@NCSBE is receiving reports from county BOEs and voters about ballot tabulation issues caused by humidity. All ballots will be counted. Press release below. #ncga #ncpol pic.twitter.com/bHthatSOkU
— NCSBE (@NCSBE) November 6, 2018
Wake County, located in the center of the state, contains the capital, Raleigh. Weather reports around 11 a.m. showed the humidity level in Raleigh at 82 percent.
Despite the moist conditions, the board pledged to have all ballots counted.
“After the election, the state board conducts a series of post-election audits,” the election board said in its statement on Election Day. “This audit ensures that the number of voters who present to vote matches the number of ballots counted.”
[Also read: Justice Department to closely monitor potential voter fraud in Tuesday’s midterm elections]
