So many problems at the polls across New York City on Election Day are prompting city leaders to call for changes — starting with the Board of Elections. John Chandler reports.
What to Know
- Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams blasted the Board of Elections over the chaos that took place at polling stations across the city.
- Voters showed up to their respective voting stations and found broken scanners, disorganization and overcrowding
- Numerous politicians have been critical of Board of Elections' handling of Tuesday's elections, even calling for the director's resignation
Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams blasted the Board of Elections over the chaos — which included broken scanners, disorganization and overcrowding — that took place at polling stations across the city.
Tuesday’s rainy Election Day got off to a rocky start for some across the tri-state area, with a number of voters reporting widespread issues at the polls — from broken scanners and missing names to huge lines and mass confusion.
Adams said Tuesday’s disarray at the polls was “inexcusable” and that bad weather is not a reason for the chaos voters experienced.
“It shows we have the wrong people making decisions on the most important aspect of our society,” he said during a Wednesday press conference.
According to Adams, there were at least 49 locations where there were serious problems with voting, saying that the “new way if voting is even worse than the old machines we were using.”
Adams said there should be a 5-point plan for polling stations and procedures in hopes of bettering the voting pocess. The plan highlights: immediate investigation on state and city levels; train poll workers to fix unjam scanners; have early voting; test new technology for voting; and obtain stakeholder commitment to structural reform.
Local
Adams is not the sole politician vocal over the chaos New Yorkers experienced during the midterm elections.
Mayor Bill de Blasio also said Wednesday that due to the high volume of voters, one should be celebrating the turnout, but that is not the case.
De Blasio said the Board of Elections can’t function and “can’t do its job.”
“It’s as if there was a purposeful plan to making voting. The board of elections can’t do its job. It must change,” De Blasio said, adding that if Board of Elections Executive Director Michael Ryan is unwilling to change the system, "he should step aside."
The widespread problems in New York City prompted City Council Speaker Corey Johnson to also call for Ryan's resignation.
"Bad weather and high turnout are no excuse when we have forecasts for both," Johnson wrote in a tweet Tuesday. "Michael Ryan needs to resign and we need a full top to bottom review of what went wrong today."
