Poll workers at Des Moines Precinct 13 retrieve ballots that were jammed in the vote tabulator on Nov. 5, 2024. (Photo by Jim Obradovich for Iowa Capital Dispatch)
Voters who turned out at Des Moines precincts 12 and 13 after the morning rush encountered a long line that stretched around the gym at First Church of the Open Bible in Beaverdale.
People weren’t waiting to vote, however. The line started after people had marked their ballots and were waiting to slide them into the vote tabulator. About 9:30 a.m., the line was about 30 minutes long. Earlier, some voters said they waited an hour.
Precinct Chair Matthew Peirce said some ballots were cut about a millimeter-and-a-half too wide to slide easily into the machine. He said the problem was discovered right after the polls opened when the third ballot wouldn’t cooperate. A technician came to check the machine. “The machine is fine – the ballot’s too wide,” he said.
Poll workers were waiting by the machine to assist, but many ballots took several tries to go through. A few had to go back and fill out a new ballot when theirs wouldn’t cooperate. It’s like trying to feed a dollar bill into a vending machine, Peirce said.
This story is developing and may be updated.