Millions of votes are being cast nationwide in the 2026 midterm elections, which have already faced scrutiny in battleground states.
asserted
which → cast → states
In North Carolina, results are expected to be delayed by an hour, until 8:30 p.m., in Hertford, Gates, Lenoir, and Wilson counties due to “various technical issues,” according to Sam Hayes, the State Board of Elections executive director.
uncertain
results → expect → Elections
Recommended Stories
The development is notable as Hertford and Gates counties lie in the 1st Congressional District, which is home to one of the most competitive races in the state.
asserted
which → lie → state
There, Rep. Don Davis (D-NC) is viewed as a highly vulnerable incumbent as he faces a challenge from Republican Laurie Buckhout.
asserted
he → view → Buckhout
Lenoir and Wilson counties are also considered swing areas, which could be crucial in North Carolina elections such as the state’s Senate race, where Democrat Roy Cooper is seeking to flip the seat blue in his race against Republican Michael Whatley.
uncertain
Cooper → consider → Whatley
“During every election, minor disruptions arise such as power outages, tabulator issues, printer jams, longer lines than previously anticipated,” Hayes said.
asserted
Hayes → arise → outages
“These are not indications of malicious activity, and the processes are in place to respond to each scenario.”
asserted
processes → respond → scenario
In New York, officials said Tuesday that problems in Westchester County prevented poll workers from scanning paper ballots, which they said are too thick to be scanned by voting machines.
asserted
they → say → machines
New York Attorney General Letitia James is monitoring the election, and the county election board has instructed workers to place ballots in orange emergency bags, to be counted by hand or else scanned later.
asserted
board → monitor → hand
The hold-up is significant because much of Westchester County lies in New York’s 17th Congressional District, where Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) is in a fierce battle to keep his seat from being flipped by Democrat Cait Conley.
asserted
Lawler → lie → Conley
Republicans fear the ballot-scanning problem could be used to hand Conley an advantage, though the county elections board has sought to allay concerns.
uncertain
board → fear → concerns
Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins, a Democrat, condemned the ballot-scanning problem in a statement describing the situation as “completely unacceptable.”
asserted
Jenkins → condemn → situation
“Once these issues are resolved, I will convene a bipartisan team to conduct a thorough review of the decisions and failures that led to this debacle, determine where accountability lies and ensure that this never happens again,” Jenkins said.
asserted
Jenkins → resolve → debacle
“Westchester County voters deserve a fair, secure and seamless election process,” he added.
asserted
he → deserve → process
“Today, we have fallen short of that standard.
asserted
we → fall → standard
The voters deserve better, and I intend to make sure they get it.”
asserted
they → deserve → it
Georgia
Fulton County, Georgia, the site of a sweeping election-integrity battle in the 2020 presidential contest, is once again facing scrutiny as voters cast ballots on Tuesday.
asserted
voters → face → Tuesday
County election officials have proposed using a different counting process for 1,069 early ballots after two scanners malfunctioned at Mechanicsville Library and Hugh C. Conley Recreation Center, according to CBS News.
uncertain
scanners → propose → News
The problem at the library stems from a paper jam in the scanning machine, according to officials.
uncertain
problem → stem → officials
The issue at the recreation center appears to stem from an accident in which a voter using a wheelchair rolled over a scanner’s power cable.
asserted
voter → appear → cable
In Alaska, controversy over two Dan Sullivans being on the ballot continues to upend the race, which features Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK) and Democratic challenger Mary Peltola as the two major candidates.
asserted
which → continue → candidates
A second Dan Sullivan running as a Republican is also on the ballot, with Peltola’s former staff telling the New York Times the Democratic candidate’s campaign helped plant him in the race to confuse voters and siphon off precious votes from the Republican senator in the tight election.
asserted
campaign → run → election
The newest allegations that Democrats are coordinating to confuse voters involve flyers backing Peltola that a PAC sent out to Alaska residents on Monday.
asserted
PAC → coordinate → Monday
The flyers featured Peltola and the second Dan Sullivan but did not mention the senator.
asserted
flyers → feature → senator
The Washington Examiner previously reported that the flyers were sent out by the Alaska Values PAC, which has been linked to the Peltola campaign’s effort to recruit and promote Dan J. Sullivan to pull votes away from the incumbent Sullivan.
asserted
which → report → Sullivan
In Texas, a brief incident at a state university’s central polling location on Tuesday caused a brief hold on voting, before officials resolved concerns.
asserted
officials → cause → concerns
A fire alarm went off at the student union at the University of Texas at Austin.
asserted
alarm → go → Austin
The alarm was pulled twice, leading to a brief evacuation and roughly a 10-minute hold on voting, according to officials.
uncertain
alarm → pull → officials
Officials are searching for the suspect who disrupted voting by pulling the alarm, apparently without cause, and are investigating the incident as a criminal offense.
asserted
who → search → offense
“Voters and election workers followed the site’s safety procedures; the building was cleared and the site reopened shortly after,” the Travis County Clerk’s Office told KXAN.
asserted
Office → follow → KXAN
“Voting is continuing, we are documenting the incident, and law enforcement is reviewing the cause.
asserted
enforcement → continue → cause
Any voter who left and was unable to come back can vote at any of our 201 polling places until 7 p.m.”
asserted
who → leave → p.m.
In Florida, flash flooding has affected around two dozen polling locations, leading Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) on Monday to issue an executive order to keep voting open and accessible across seven counties.
asserted
flooding → affect → counties
The governor’s order allowed the opening of 23 new temporary polling locations, including in Brevard, Highlands, Indian River, Martin, Okeechobee, Palm Beach, and St. Lucie counties.
asserted
order → allow → counties
Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd assured residents that the elections are “going smoothly” during a press conference in which he said the two areas most affected by the flooding were St. Lucie and Brevard counties.
asserted
areas → assure → flooding
At this point, “nothing we’ve seen will require polls being open past 7 p.m.,” Byrd said.
asserted
Byrd → see → 7
Voters can check the Florida Department of State’s emergency election resources page to find the updated list of temporary polling locations.
asserted
Voters → check → locations
The Aporia
