Democracy Dies in Darkness

Broken machines, rejected ballots and long lines: voting problems emerge as Americans go to the polls.

November 6, 2018 at 7:42 p.m. EST
Voters encountered long lines due to ballot machine issues and unopened doors at polling places across the country. (Video: Adriana Usero/The Washington Post, Photo: Melina Mara/The Washington Post/The Washington Post)

Civil rights groups and election officials fielded thousands of reports of voting irregularities across the country Tuesday, with voters complaining of broken machines, long lines and untrained poll workers improperly challenging Americans’ right to vote.

The loudest of those complaints came from Georgia, where issues of race, ballot access and election fairness have fueled an acrimonious governor’s contest between Democrat Stacey Abrams and Republican Brian Kemp. Abrams, a former state lawmaker, would be the nation’s first black female governor, while Kemp, the secretary of state, who oversees elections, has faced accusations of trying to suppress the minority vote.