New Voting Machines Go Off Without Little Hitches In Suffolk, Officials Say

YAPHANK, NY — Suffolk officials reported few issues with the county's new touchscreen voting machines this Election Day.

The new machines allowed voters to view their choices, then select them by touching the screen, and also prompted voters if they did not select a choice, making it possible for them to go back and make changes. Voters were also able to approve their choices at the end of the process.

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It was a far cry from 2022's election when a WiFi outage delayed resultsinto the next day, affecting the outcome of hotly contested races like the gubernatorial race and some congressional districts.

A spokesperson from the Suffolk County Board of Elections said in an email that overall, the experience with the new voting machines "went well."

"The voters found them to be user-friendly, and the touch screen was well received and completely [Americans with Disabilities Act]-compliant," they said. "This voting system offers voters multiple opportunities to review their choices."

There was an issue with the occasional inability for a voter to see the top race on the printed ballot behind the protective plastic shield, according to the rep.

But it was "remedied" with instructions prominently displayed in the voting booth advising the voters they could request a magnifier or have the poll coordinator eject their ballot for an up-close review," the rep said.

The county's party leaders also reported that the new machines ran smoothly.

Brookhaven Town Democratic Committee Chairwoman Diane Costello told Patch that she did not hear of any issues with the machines.

"Nobody called me personally about any problems with the machines," she said. "I did see comments on social media that some people found it difficult to see that once they voted by touchscreen, when the ballot came down for them to verify that it was dark, and some people couldn't read it so well."

Costello asked a few voters if they had any problems reading their ballots.

"They said it was easy; it was great," she added.

County GOP Chairman Jesse Garcia said he was confident in the professionalism of the bipartisan Suffolk County Board of Elections.

"There's always going to be a technical issue," he said. "What's important is how that issue is remedied, and if it's done efficiently, quickly, and it does not impede the voter."

"That's why you have multiple machines at multiple checking points at every polling place," he added.