USAupdated 55m ago3 min read
Election Officials Face Pressure as California Midterm Races Take Days to Be Called
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Early voting underway in Texas, Florida, South Carolina, and North Carolina with specific dates. Competitive gubernatorial and Senate contests visible in these states, boosting turnout.
7 outlets told this the same way.
Counting, Calling, Pressure
Election officials in competitive congressional districts face pressure because some midterm races might not be called until days after Election Day, and NPR explained that races are called by news organizations based on initial returns and demographics rather than all ballots being fully counted. Stephen Richer, a Republican who served as the clerk and recorder for Arizona's Maricopa County, said, "Those days, those were hell for me," describing the strain of limited workers and space while phones kept ringing. Charles Stewart, an elections expert at MIT, said, "California just has a big target on its back," as NPR tied California's slower vote counting to longer waits and more time for conspiracy theorizing.
Kim Alexander, who runs the California Voter Foundation, said, "We have all these amazing rights and opportunities that we give to our voters, and the price we're paying is a longer vote count," and she argued that the count does not have to take as long. Alexander described a logjam she called "the pig in the python" problem, saying counties can see up to 50% of vote-by-mail ballots turned in on Election Day.
Federal Actions, Voter Data
Federal actions around voting system expand weeks ahead of midterms, and CBS News said the Justice Department threatened to prosecute California election officials if they knowingly count mail-in ballots from 20,000 people the Trump administration says are "likely noncitizens."
California Secretary of State Shirley Weber said in a statement, "Noncitizens cannot vote in federal elections," and Harmeet Dhillon told 60 Minutes, "So the question is simply how many of them there are."
Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson said she had never seen threats come "from within our own government," and she described the Justice Department's demands for voter rolls as seeking information that states keep private.
Henderson told 60 Minutes, "I never imagined that we would be raided by the FBI," recalling Fulton County Commissioner Dana Barrett's account of armed federal agents seizing ballots from a local facility in Fulton County, Georgia.
CBS News reported that the Trump administration alleged, without providing evidence, that 278,000 noncitizens are registered to vote, while a White House spokesperson said noncitizens "continue to register and vote in federal elections."
Early Voting Schedules
In Florida, early in-person voting in the midterm elections begins Monday, Oct. 19 in Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties and lasts for 14 days, while Florida residents have been voting by mail for more than three weeks.
Joe Scott, Broward supervisor of elections, said at a news conference, "We are preparing for more participation during early voting for people to vote in person," and Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Wendy Sartory Link said she expects more people to use in-person early voting this year.
Florida's early voting runs from Monday, Oct. 19 through Sunday, Nov. 1, with hours set at 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in both counties, and a voter in line by 7 p.m. will be allowed to vote.
In South Carolina, WCIV reported that early voting begins Monday in Charleston County and that Isaac Cramer, executive director of the Charleston County Board of Elections, expects the first day to draw a large crowd.
Cramer said, "I would anticipate [Monday is] going to be a very high turnout day," and WCIV added that early voting centers will be open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. and closed Sundays.