[US Midterm Elections] Some Voting Machines Malfunction in Arizona and Others... Republican Party Raises Election Fraud Allegations

Maricopa County Voting Machine Controversy During Last Election
Trump "Starting Again"... Allegations of Election Fraud Raised

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] During the U.S. midterm election voting process, voting delays occurred in some areas such as Arizona and New Jersey due to voting machine malfunctions, raising allegations of election fraud mainly from the Republican Party. U.S. election authorities maintain that the delays were caused by simple machine defects and that there are no issues with the vote counting, but the controversy is expected to continue even after the election.

According to the Washington Post (WP) on the 8th (local time), voting machines malfunctioned in some areas including Maricopa County in Arizona and Mercer County in New Jersey, causing delays in some voting. Although the exact cause of the machine defects has not been identified by U.S. election authorities, they insist there are no problems with voting and counting, but the Republican Party has strongly opposed this by raising suspicions of election fraud.

In particular, Maricopa County, where more than half of Arizona’s voters reside, became even more controversial as voting machine malfunctions occurred there during the 2020 presidential election as well, leading the Republican Party to raise allegations of election fraud. Former President Donald Trump stated on his Telegram channel, "We lost due to election fraud in the 2020 presidential election, but we are starting again," adding, "The people will not lose."

Republican Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake also criticized election authorities at a press conference that day, saying, "We will watch what happens," and "We must ensure that all this madness does not interfere with voting."

Maricopa County election authorities said they are investigating the cause of the machine defects but believe there will be no significant impact on voting and counting. Megan Gilbertson, spokesperson for the Maricopa County election department, emphasized at a press conference, "We are still investigating the cause of the voting machine errors, and ballots delayed due to machine malfunctions will be counted manually," adding, "No one is obstructing voting, and no ballots have been mishandled."

The Democratic Party also explained that the voting machine defects were simple errors. Katie Hobbs, the Democratic candidate for Arizona governor, stated, "The technical errors are minor and will not interfere with the counting," and explained, "All voters can be confident that their votes will be counted."