People line up to vote in the 2024 U.S. presidential election on Election Day, at Arizona State University campus in Tempe, Arizona, U.S., Nov. 5, 2024. Photo by Go Nakamura/Reuters

A technical glitch meant long waits in Apache County, Arizona

Politics

A technical glitch in ballot printers at more than a dozen polling places in Arizona's rural Apache County meant long waits for voters.

"Poll workers were encouraging people to leave and come back later in the day when the printer was fixed," said Zane James, who voted in the community of Wheatfields after waiting 2 1/2 hours in 40-degree weather.

The printer was fixed, "but five to 10 people left and I don't know if they are coming back," he said.

Rita Vaughan, the Apache County elections director, said technicians fixed the problem after it emerged early Tuesday. She said polling places stayed open and people voted with paper ballots or accessible voting devices used by people with disabilities or language issues.

The Native vote helped push Biden over the top in Arizona in 2020. Trump drew a diverse crowd, including Navajo families from neighboring Arizona, when he visited New Mexico last week.

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A technical glitch meant long waits in Apache County, Arizona first appeared on the PBS News website.

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