@BOENYC only one machine out of 6 working at my polling place. District assembly 80. Need some IT people to fix the others

— ☀️curly☀️ (@sunshinelova11) November 6, 2018

Amid malfunctioning machines, long lines, and ballot confusion, a hearing on the New York City Board of Elections’ (BOE) handling of the midterm elections is expected in the near future.

At Scott Towers on Paul Avenue, the situation was described by at least one voter as “borderline chaotic,” though poll workers kept cool as ballot scanners were being repaired.

Machines ceased working at approximately 10:19 a.m. on Tuesday, jamming the feed flat, similar to a printer. Poll workers had to rejigger machines to get them back in order.

Similar scenes were also reported at Tracey Towers on Mosholu Parkway and P.S. 94 on Kings College Place.

 

@BOENYC only one machine out of 6 working at my polling place. District assembly 80. Need some IT people to fix the others

— ☀️curly☀️ (@sunshinelova11) November 6, 2018

Councilman Fernando Cabrera of the 14th Council District chairs the New York City Council’s Committee on Governmental Operations, which oversees the Board of Elections. He has called for a hearing and is adamant about getting to the root of the Election Day dysfunction.

“If you know that we’re going to have a high level of anticipation, why were we not ready?” said Cabrera of the fervor behind this year’s midterms.

Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz, who represents the 81st Assembly District including Norwood, criticized the voting technology. “These machines are garbage. The fact is we should have machines that should accommodate longer ballots and won’t break down when the weather is bad,” said Dinowitz.

 

He also acknowledged the BOE’s limitations, noting, “I think BOE handled it as best as they could given their limited resources. They have to work with what they have.”

There were also claims (attribution) of foggy weather having an impact on operations, to which Cabrera said, “There’s been rain before on elections. This was pervasive. They know that a lot of people were going to vote.”

P.S. 81 on Riverdale Avenue, according to Assemblyman Dinowitz, was another example of election dysfunction as over 100 people were on line. Of the six scanners available, up to five were out of service at a time. Additional scanners had to be delivered later in the day.

The BOE received a $122 million budget for Fiscal Year 2019 after a preliminary request of $137 million, according to a city report. It was down from last Fiscal Year’s adopted budget of $140 million.

According to the report, over $8 million was spent by the BOE on property, equipment, supplies and material. It is unclear if ballots and voting machines fell under that category.

BOE could not be reached for comment.