Major battleground states extend polling hours in key precincts: What to know
Several battleground states extended the hours of polling sites on Tuesday, citing unexpected wait times, technical issues, and other issues for voters in key precincts.
Here’s a rundown of the states and precincts impacted so far.
Pennsylvania
In Pennsylvania, where state polling locations were scheduled to close at 8 p.m., voters in several counties saw extensions.
In Clearfield County, a county solicitor granted an emergency oral request for special relief after a non-credible bomb threat was called in at the Clearfield County Administrative Building, where votes were being counted.
Polling hours there were also extended to 9 p.m.
In Luzerne County, local election officials said residents will have until 9:30 p.m. to cast their ballots. Voters in line prior to 8 p.m. will still be able to vote in the county’s regular voting system, state officials said, and voters who get in line after 8 p.m. will be able to vote by provisional ballot.
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Earlier Tuesday, the Pennsylvania Department of State announced a two-hour extension of polling hours in Cambria County, citing a “software malfunction” that temporarily delayed the scanning of ballots in the precinct.
Voters in Cambria County will have until 10 p.m. to vote, two hours after the 8 p.m. deadline, though any ballots cast after 8 p.m. must be made using provisional ballots.
North Carolina
In North Carolina, state election officials extended voting hours by 30 minutes in the precincts of Burke County and Wilson County. Voters there will have until 8 p.m. to cast their ballots — longer than the 7:30 p.m. deadline in the rest of the state.
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Georgia
Georgia also announced an extension for voters in the Atlanta-area precincts of Cobb County, DeKalb County, Fulton County, and Gwinnett County.
The extensions come after two polling sites in Fulton County were evacuated Tuesday due to several “non-credible” bomb threats, prompting county officials to apply for an application to extend voting hours through 7:30 p.m.
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In Gwinnett County, officials said voters at a separate polling location that was also the target of a bomb threat will have until 8 p.m. to cast their ballots.
On Tuesday evening, a judge in DeKalb County granted a request from the Democratic National Committee and Harris campaign to extend the hours at six polling precincts that were disrupted by unfounded hoax threats.
Republican Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger urged calm on Tuesday, telling reporters of the threats: “Georgia is not going to be intimidated.”
This is a breaking news story. Check back here for updates.