For John Lloyd, the elementary act of voting for president Election day in November it became a nightmare.
A Moorestown High School English teacher stood in what seemed like an endless line from 6:30 to 10 p.m. to vote Medford United Methodist Church.
“It was crazy,” said Lloyd, 50. “You haven’t eaten since lunch, you’re cold, you’re standing there and you’re inhaling it all fires that were still burning. It was unlike anything I had ever seen.” Lloyd’s experiences were shared throughout Burlington County, The largest in New Jersey geographically, on elections on November 5, which ended only after 1 a.m. the next day.
To understand what caused what they deemed “unacceptable” voting lines and times, Burlington County Board of Commissioners on Wednesday appointed an independent special adviser to review the 2024 general election and make recommendations for improvements.
“The people of Burlington County deserve accountability and action to prevent a repeat of the 2024 election failures.” County Executive Felicia Hopson said in a statement.
The district hired Connell Foley Limitedlaw firm in Roseland, Essex, to carry out investigation. Company representatives did not respond to requests for comment.
The company’s review will cover all aspects of the 2024 election, including the rollout of up-to-date voting machines, which many believe may have contributed to too long waits. The company is also expected to conduct studies on the impact of the location and composition of voting districts, as well as train and manage election workers, said county spokesman David Levinsky.
In November, county commissioners asked the Superintendent of Elections and the Board of Elections to investigate the causes of that complex day. However, Levinsky added, while both offices have gathered information, “neither has the expertise to complete the review process.”
Representatives of electoral offices did not comment on problems with voting.
In joint statementBurlington County’s Democratic and Republican committee chairs have called for “a review of what happened and why,” Democratic Party Chairman Matt Riggins said in a brief interview.
County officials said neither party complained that voting problems put one at a greater disadvantage than the other. “It was an irritation on both sides,” he said Democratic Mayor of Riverton Jim Quinnwhich recorded the last vote cast in its area on November 6 at 1:10.
Tyrus Ballard, president of southern Burlington County NAACPhe agreed: “Everyone suffered,” he said.
Ballard received numerous complaints from voters, some saying they waited in line for five hours. “I had no idea it was going to be this bad,” he said. He added that Ballard and other NAACP members began showing up in several lines with chairs, water and other refreshments. “Unfortunately,” he added, “we lost voters. About 100 people left the line at the polling place at the EMS site in Mount Laurel Township. “I’m sure others left before the vote too.”
Ballard said he believed there may not have been enough poll workers to handle the large turnout that typically accompanies presidential elections. Ballard also alleged that voters are unaware of the more than 500 new voting machines. County officials are waiting for Connell Foley’s report before they can comment further. It is unclear when it will be released.
As for the machines, Quinn said voters make choices using touch screens, which results in a printout that must be transferred to a tabulator that scans the results.
“This was only the second time voters encountered this machine,” he said. It was first used in the June primary, which attracts fewer voters.
The district carried out “considerable range” about the up-to-date voting system, including by sending instructional videos on social media and showing off the up-to-date machine at Moorestown Mall, Levinsky said.
The transition was necessary due to elderly machinery that had been in operate for 25 years. They were no longer manufactured and could not be repaired, Levinsky added.
Although the up-to-date machines were cumbersome, poll workers tried to make the experience easier, according to Tina Zappile, 48, of Medford, who waited in line for two hours while her husband waited more than three.
“I felt sorry for the poll workers who had to deal with the lines,” said Zappile, a political scientist at Stockton University in Atlantic County. “But they were great, they talked to us, they lifted our spirits and they were never negative.”
